Injured in a public place?

Have you been injured in a public place? Gordon Legal are the team of legal experts specialising in compensation law and helping individuals to claim what they need to rest and recover from an injury they have sustained in a public place. Our decades of experience in this field has ensured our reputation for excellence and here we have compiled some basic information for anyone who has sustained an injury in a public place.

Compensation for injuries sustained in public spaces

You may have heard of the term ‘public liability’ or even ‘public liability insurance’. Public liability essentially refers to a duty of care a person or organisation has over a public space or a space being used for a public event. Councils and businesses are required, by law, to hold a current public liability insurance policy.

Public spaces covered by public liability law may include public parks, supermarkets and shopping centres, schools, or even private residences. Common claims for injuries sustained in a public place include events such as slips and falls, and unsafe surfaces or structures resulting in injuries such as loose materials falling or causing preventable injuries in other ways. Compensation for injuries sustained in dog attacks also fall under these types of claims.

If you have been injured in a public place and your injury could have been prevented if safer measures had been taken to protect against your unfortunate event, then you may have a claim for personal injury compensation.

What am I able to claim in compensation costs for an injury I have sustained in a public place?

Compensation for personal injuries can take the form of reimbursement for emergency medical treatment, rehabilitation, ongoing support services such as counselling or physiotherapy, etc. You may even be able to claim for loss of earnings if your injury has prevented you from being able to work, or even a lump sum payout.

What should I do if I have sustained an injury in a public place?

As with any type of injury, one of the very first things you should do is seek medical treatment. If you are stable and able to, you should gather as much information as possible as soon as your injury occurs like the details of the address where it has occurred, the owner, business or local council responsible for the space, and, if possible, the insurance details covering the space in which you have been injured.

Report the injury to the owner or proprietor of the space. If there is the ability to follow the site’s individual incident report process then you should do so. For injuries sustained in a shopping centre, or other commercial premises, there will most likely be a formal reporting process requesting your personal details and details of the injury that you have sustained.

If it is at all possible, take some photographs of where the event happened and photographs of the cause of the injury. Record details for your own records of how it occurred and even the weather conditions at the time of the event.

If there were any witnesses at the time of your injury, then request their contact details such as phone numbers so they can be contacted at a later time.

You should also keep your medical records and records of all of your treatments including receipts and invoices relating to your injury. It’s a good idea to maintain the contact details of anyone who has offered you help and assistance, and the kind of help they have given you.

Please note that there are strict time limits applied to these types of compensation claims, known as a Public Liability Claim, and they vary depending upon the state or territory your claim is lodged within. It is important to seek professional legal advice as early as possible if you are at all unsure of how to proceed. This will ensure that your claim can be lodged correctly and on time.

For further information about Public Liability Claims or professional legal advice from a firm who specialises in winning compensation claims, then contact our team today on 1800 21 22 23 or log on to our website at www.gordonlegal.com.au.