What an injured person needs to prove, and how
Introduction
Falls are among the most common causes of personal injury and among the most contested claims. A wet supermarket floor, a broken footpath, a loose stair carpet or a trailing cable can cause a serious injury, but the fact of the fall does not establish that anyone was at fault. The injured person must prove that the occupier failed to take reasonable care and that the failure caused the accident, and the occupier will usually argue that the injured person was the author of their own misfortune.
This guide explains the legal test and the evidence that decides these cases.
The Law
The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1995 imposes on an occupier a duty to take such care as is reasonable in all the circumstances to ensure that a visitor does not suffer injury by reason of any danger existing on the premises. The duty is one of reasonable care, not of strict liability. A local authority owes a similar duty in respect of the footpaths and public areas it maintains, subject to the distinction the courts draw between failure to repair and dangerous works.
To establish liability the plaintiff must show that a hazard existed, that the occupier knew or ought reasonably to have known of it, that the occupier had a reasonable opportunity to remove it or warn of it and failed to do so, and that the hazard caused the fall. The courts weigh the hazard against the conduct of the plaintiff: adults are expected to look where they are going and to take care for their own safety. The High Court’s decision in Dinnegan v Loughegar National School [2025] IEHC 423 illustrates that a fall during an ordinary activity, at a location where no defect is proved, is an accident rather than a wrong.
Contributory negligence reduces the compensation in proportion to the plaintiff’s share of the fault. A finding that the plaintiff was wholly the author of the accident defeats the claim.
Practical Steps
Evidence in a fall claim disappears quickly. A spillage is cleaned, a defect is repaired, footage is overwritten. The steps that matter are taken within hours and days.
Photograph the hazard before it is removed, from several angles and with something in frame to show scale. Photograph the surrounding area to show the absence of warning signs or barriers. Note the lighting, the weather and the time.
Report the fall to the occupier or a member of staff on the spot and ask that it be recorded. Obtain the name of the person to whom it was reported. Ask for the CCTV footage to be preserved and make a written request for it under the GDPR; occupiers commonly retain footage for only thirty days.
Retain the shoes you were wearing and do not clean or repair them. Defendants frequently allege that footwear contributed to the fall.
Identify witnesses, including staff, and take their details. Write your own account of the fall while it is fresh, including what you saw before you fell and what you noticed afterwards.
Attend a doctor and ensure the mechanism of the fall is recorded. Send the section 8 letter within a month to the occupier and, where the premises are managed or cleaned by contractors, to them as well. In contested cases an engineer’s report on the surface, the gradient, the lighting or the defect will usually be required, and the occupier’s cleaning schedules and inspection records will be sought on discovery.
Takeaway
A fall claim is won on evidence of the hazard and of what the occupier did or failed to do about it. Without that evidence, the court is left with a fall and an injury, and neither proves fault.
The injured person is usually the only one in a position to secure that evidence at the time. A photograph taken in the minutes after a fall, a report made on the day and a request for footage made within the week are worth more than any amount of reconstruction afterwards. Where those steps have been taken, the occupier’s standard defence, that the plaintiff simply was not looking, has to be argued against a record rather than a recollection.
Further information
This article was prepared for informational purposes only. For further advice, please email workclaim@crushell.ie or contact the offices of Crushell & Co Solicitors.
About Crushell & Co
Crushell & Co is a specialist firm advising on the application of law in the Irish workplace.
Our Dublin-based solicitors have particular expertise in workplace injury litigation, regularly acting on behalf of employees who have suffered injuries arising from unsafe systems of work, inadequate training, or failures in workplace safety procedures.
We understand that a workplace injury can have serious consequences for an individual’s health, livelihood, and financial security. We work closely with our clients to identify the root causes of workplace accidents, gather the necessary evidence, and advance strong, well-supported claims for compensation.
We are experienced in pursuing workplace injury claims through the Courts and achieving meaningful outcomes for injured workers, while providing clear and practical guidance at every stage of the process.
We translate complex legal issues into practical legal options, adapting our strategy to meet each client’s specific circumstances and objectives.
Connect: @CrushellLaw or www.crushell.ie
