LEGAL GUIDE · ENGLAND & WALES
Slipping on a wet floor, tripping over a raised pavement slab, or falling because of a poorly maintained step — these accidents happen every day across England and Wales. If you were injured in a slip, trip, or fall that was caused by someone else’s negligence, you may be entitled to compensation.
This guide explains who is legally responsible, what you need to prove, what your claim could be worth, and how to start the process with no upfront cost.
Time limit: You have three years from the date of your accident to make a claim in England and Wales. For children, the clock starts on their 18th birthday. Do not wait — evidence is harder to gather as time passes. For a full explanation, see our guide on personal injury claim time limits in England and Wales.
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Responsibility depends on where your accident happened. The law places a duty of care on those who control premises and public spaces.
The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 requires businesses to take reasonable care to keep their premises safe for visitors. If you slip on a wet floor that was not properly signposted, trip on a raised mat, or fall down a poorly lit staircase, the business that occupies those premises may be liable.
Courts consider whether the hazard was foreseeable and whether the business had an adequate system for identifying and addressing risks — such as regular floor inspections and proper cleaning schedules. A business cannot simply blame a one-off spill if it had no monitoring system in place.
If you tripped on an uneven pavement slab, fell into a pothole, or slipped on an icy path, the Highways Act 1980 (section 41) may apply. Local authorities have a statutory duty to maintain the public highway in a safe condition. If a defect such as a raised slab or sunken manhole cover caused your accident, the council may be liable. Our guide on pavement trip and pothole claims against the council explains this in more detail.
However, councils have a statutory defence under section 58 of the Act if they can show they had a reasonable system of inspection and repair in place and that they acted on any known defects. This is why gathering evidence quickly — including photographs — is so important.
If you slipped or tripped in a communal area of a block of flats, on a staircase in a rented property, or in a managed car park, the landlord, managing agent, or property management company may owe you a duty of care.
Slip and trip accidents are one of the leading causes of workplace injury. Employers have specific duties under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Work at Height Regulations 2005. If your employer failed to manage these risks, you may have an employer’s liability claim rather than (or in addition to) a public liability claim.
To succeed in a slip, trip, or fall claim, you need to show:
The hardest element to prove is usually breach. The defendant will often argue that the hazard was not present for long enough for them to have known about it and dealt with it. This is known as the “transient hazard” defence. Evidence of how long the hazard was present — CCTV timestamps, cleaning records, witness evidence — is crucial.
The stronger your evidence, the stronger your claim. Collect as much as possible at the time of the accident:
Measurement matters: For pavement trips, evidence of the defect’s depth or height is important. Courts have not set a rigid minimum measurement as an automatic bar to claiming, but the size and condition of the defect is a key factor in assessing foreseeability of harm.
Compensation in slip, trip, and fall claims falls into two categories. General damages cover the pain, suffering, and impact on your quality of life. Special damages cover your financial losses. For a broader picture, see our guide on average personal injury compensation payouts in the UK.
The Judicial College Guidelines (18th edition, April 2026) are used to value the injury element. Common injuries from slips, trips, and falls and their approximate ranges include:
| Injury | Approximate Range |
|---|---|
| Minor soft tissue injury (recovery under 3 months) | Up to £3,150 |
| Ankle injury — moderate (some residual symptoms) | £13,740 – £26,590 |
| Knee injury — moderate (lasting symptoms) | £14,840 – £26,190 |
| Wrist fracture — complete recovery | £3,530 – £5,870 |
| Shoulder injury — serious (surgery required) | £19,200 – £48,030 |
| Hip fracture (significant) | £39,170 – £52,500 |
If the defendant argues that you contributed to your accident — for example, by looking at your phone, wearing inappropriate footwear, or ignoring a warning sign — your compensation may be reduced. This is called contributory negligence under the Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945. A 20% reduction, for example, would reduce a £10,000 award to £8,000.
Importantly, contributory negligence does not bar you from claiming altogether. Even if you were partly responsible, you can still recover the portion of your loss that was the defendant’s fault.
NJS Law handles all slip, trip, and fall claims on a No Win, No Fee basis. You pay nothing to start your claim. If your claim is unsuccessful, you owe nothing. If you win, we deduct a success fee from your compensation — agreed with you in advance. The financial risk stays with us, not you.
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Yes, if the wet floor was not properly signposted or if the business failed to have an adequate inspection and cleaning system in place. The supermarket must take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable hazards. If they failed to do so and you were injured, you have grounds for a claim.
Most straightforward slip and fall claims resolve within 9 to 18 months. Disputed liability cases or those involving serious injuries can take longer — sometimes two to three years. Your solicitor will keep you updated at every stage and advise on when and whether to accept any offer made by the defendant’s insurer.
The absence of witnesses does not prevent you from making a claim. Your own account of events, medical evidence, photographs of the scene, and CCTV footage can all establish what happened. Courts accept claimant evidence where it is consistent and credible.
Yes. The duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 can extend to the area immediately outside a business premises if it is maintained by or within the control of that business — such as a private car park, entrance steps, or forecourt. If the defect was on a public highway, the claim would be against the local authority under the Highways Act 1980 instead.
There is no rigid legal minimum. Historically, many councils have used a 25mm depth as an informal guide for repairs, but courts do not apply a fixed threshold. A trip on a 15mm defect can succeed if all other circumstances support the claim — including the location, lighting, and visibility of the hazard. What matters is whether the defect made the surface dangerous to ordinary pedestrians taking reasonable care.
This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. The law applies differently depending on the specific facts of your case. For advice on your specific circumstances, please contact NJS Law directly.
For a full overview of personal injury claims, including eligibility, time limits and the claims process, see NJS Law’s slip and trip claims service page.
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