Personal Injury Lawyers › Slip, Trip & Fall
Slip, Trip & Fall Lawyers — Their Negligence. Your Compensation.
A slip on a wet floor, a trip on a broken step, or a fall caused by an unlit hazard. If a business, property owner, or council failed to maintain safe premises and you were injured as a result, you have a potential public liability claim. These claims are assessed for free and run on no win, no fee. Evidence — photographs, incident reports, and witness details — must be preserved immediately.
⚠ Surveillance footage from businesses is typically overwritten within 7–30 days. If you were injured in a commercial premises, a lawyer must write to preserve the footage immediately. Time limit: 3 years to claim. Act now.
What We Help With
Slip, trip & fall claims — all premises and all hazard types.
Slip and fall claims arise in many different settings. The common element is that the occupier or responsible party created or failed to address a hazard, and that hazard caused your injury. A lawyer assesses whether the occupier met their duty of care.
Wet Floor — Supermarket or Retail
Slipping on a wet or contaminated floor in a supermarket, shopping centre, or retail store. The key issues are: how long the hazard had been present; whether the store had an adequate inspection and cleaning system; and whether appropriate warning signs were displayed.
Footpath & Council Premises
Tripping on a raised or cracked footpath, a protruding tree root, a pothole, or an uneven surface on council-maintained land. Council liability depends on whether it knew (or ought to have known) of the defect and had a reasonable inspection and maintenance system.
Stairs, Ramps & Steps
Falls caused by defective, poorly lit, or poorly maintained stairs or ramps — including missing handrails, uneven risers, and inadequate non-slip surfaces. These are common in older commercial buildings, car parks, and hospitality venues.
Restaurant, Café & Bar Falls
Slipping on spills, wet floors, or uneven surfaces in hospitality venues. Outdoor dining areas with uneven pavers, poorly lit walkways, and cluttered floor areas are common sources of slip and fall claims against hospitality businesses.
Car Park & Driveway Falls
Falls in car parks — including on wet surfaces, unmarked speed humps, unlit areas, and defective surfaces. Shopping centre car parks are particularly high-risk areas where CCTV footage exists and must be preserved urgently.
Workplace Slip & Fall
Where the slip and fall occurred at a workplace, both a workers compensation claim (for the employer's liability under the workers compensation scheme) and a public liability claim (against a third-party occupier) may be available simultaneously.
What the Law Says
Slip and fall law — proving the occupier was negligent.
Slip and fall claims are negligence claims. The critical issue is whether the occupier took reasonable precautions to prevent the hazard — which depends on what they knew, their inspection systems, and how obvious the hazard was.
The presence test — how long was the hazard there?
In supermarket and retail slip and fall cases, one of the most contested issues is how long the spill or hazard had been present before the accident. If the spill occurred moments before the accident, it may be impossible to establish that the occupier should have detected and remedied it in that time. CCTV footage is critical evidence — it can show when the hazard appeared and whether any staff were in the area. A lawyer preserves this footage before it is overwritten, which can happen within days.
Inspection and cleaning systems
Even where CCTV does not show exactly when a hazard appeared, evidence of the occupier's inspection and cleaning system — or its absence — is highly relevant. An occupier with no systematic inspection regime is more likely to be found negligent than one with documented inspections every 15 minutes. Inspection records, cleaning logs, and staff evidence about their duties at the time of the accident are all sought in discovery during the claims process.
Obvious risk — was the hazard clearly visible?
State civil liability legislation provides a defence where the risk that materialised was an obvious risk — one which would have been apparent to a reasonable person in the claimant's position. A clearly visible wet floor sign, a clearly marked step edge, or a highly visible hazard may attract this defence. However, a hazard that blends into the floor surface, is poorly lit, or is obscured by a queue of people may not be "obvious" in the legal sense. A lawyer assesses whether this defence is likely to be raised and how strong it is on the specific facts.
Contributory negligence — watching where you walk
Defendants commonly argue contributory negligence — that the claimant failed to take reasonable care for their own safety. Whether looking at a phone, wearing inappropriate footwear, or failing to notice a visible hazard, contributory negligence findings reduce the damages payable. A lawyer advises on whether contributory negligence is likely to be raised, the likely reduction, and how to present the evidence most favourably. Contributory negligence does not prevent a claim — it reduces the damages.
Council immunity provisions — local authority defences
Most states provide specific defences for local councils and road authorities — including that a council is not liable for failure to carry out work on a road or path where a system of inspections exists and the defect was not known to the council. However, where the council did know of the defect (including through prior complaints or inspections that identified it), the immunity is generally not available. A lawyer requests all records from the council relating to the relevant footpath or area to establish prior knowledge.
What you can recover — economic and general damages
Compensation available for slip and fall injuries includes: past and future medical and treatment expenses; past and future loss of income and earning capacity; care and assistance costs; general damages (pain and suffering) — subject to state thresholds; and out-of-pocket expenses. The injury severity drives the value. A fractured hip in an older claimant, a spinal injury, or a head injury can produce claims worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. A legal assessment provides a realistic range based on the injury and its consequences.
How It Works
One request. A free slip and fall assessment.
Tell us where you fell, what caused it, and your state. A public liability lawyer will assess your claim and advise on evidence to preserve — for free.
Submit Your RequestDescribe where and how you fell
Tell us the type of premises (supermarket, footpath, restaurant, etc.), what caused the fall, when it happened, your state, and your injuries. Note whether photos were taken or an incident report was lodged.
Matched to a public liability lawyer
Your request is matched to a personal injury lawyer experienced in slip and fall public liability claims — who immediately writes to preserve any surveillance footage.
Free assessment and evidence action
A lawyer assesses the claim and advises on what evidence to preserve immediately — including photographing the scene, obtaining witness details, and requesting CCTV preservation.
Common Questions
Slip and fall claims — frequently asked questions.
I didn't take photos at the time — does that mean I can't claim?
Not necessarily — but you need to act quickly on alternative evidence. Witness accounts, an incident report (if lodged), medical records documenting the accident and injury, and surveillance footage (which a lawyer requests urgently) can all substitute for photographs taken at the scene. The most important thing to do immediately is contact a lawyer — they can take steps to preserve evidence before it disappears. Even without photos, a claim can succeed where other evidence establishes the hazard.
The shop offered me a settlement on the day — should I accept?
No — never accept a same-day settlement without legal advice. Any compensation offered immediately after an accident is invariably far below what the claim may be worth once the full extent of the injuries is known. More importantly, you cannot know the full extent of your injuries on the day — symptoms, ongoing consequences, and treatment needs often become apparent over days, weeks, or months. Accepting a settlement extinguishes your right to further compensation regardless of how the injury subsequently develops. Get legal advice before accepting anything.
I was wearing heels — will that affect my claim?
Possibly — inappropriate footwear may be raised as contributory negligence reducing your damages. However, "appropriate" footwear is assessed in context — wearing heeled shoes in a restaurant or shopping centre is entirely normal and would not typically be considered unreasonable. Wearing stilettos in a factory or building site would be a different matter. A lawyer advises on whether contributory negligence is likely to be raised based on your specific footwear and circumstances, and by how much it might reduce the claim value.