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Susie Greeen |
Writer wins two-year fight for trip damages
COUNCIL apologises after being ordered to pay compensation to woman hurt in manhole fall
A WRITER who was left with severe spinal injuries after tripping over an uncovered “manhole” in Hampstead has been awarded damages and substantial costs from Camden Council.
Susie Green, who lives in Willow Road, has hit out at the Town Hall following a two-year legal battle for compensation in the Central London County Court.
She caught her foot in an open manhole, a square flap concealing a gas stop-cock that had become filled-in with leaves, in October 2006 – one month after an official inspection gave the street the all-clear for hazards.
The council, who used an estimated £40,000 of taxpayers’ cash fighting the case, apologised to Ms Green on Thursday.
Ms Green said: “I was left with a frozen spine and pelvis – I really could hardly walk. I like to go for two or three hours’ walk on the Heath each day. It was really hard not being able to go outside for so long.
“What really makes me angry is that they didn’t have a leg to stand on. Camden has had to pay my damages and a large sum to my lawyer to barrister. It is as sheer waste of money – they could have fixed up a lot of roads for that money.
“I had offered to settle, but they refused and took it all the way to court at great expense. Now they are sick as pigs.”
Camden’s lawyers admitted their system of pavement checks, which is carried out by a private firm, had failed in this case, before arguing that Ms Green should have been checking the pavement before each step.
Ms Green’s solicitor, Charlotte Williams, from Osborne’s in Camden Town, said: “It is quite unusual for a case like this to go to trial. Camden were being fairly stubborn on this one. There was an obvious defect in the pavement. Their defence was that there had been an inspection and it simply wasn’t there. But we were able to show that it had been there for a long time.”
She added: “When they accept they’re to blame, that the pavements were not kept safe, then they argued that Ms Green was partly to blame. If that’s the case, her damages would be reduced. But they failed to do that as well.”
Journalist and animal aficionado Ms Green has written about animals and ancient shamanistic cultures for the Guardian, the Daily Mail and animal magazines. She has recently written a history of tigers.
“They were trying to prove that it was contributory negligence, that is was my fault for not seeing the manhole,” Ms Green added.
“Well, as the judge said, you can’t expect to have a map of every single trip hazard in Camden. The roads around Hampstead are in a terrible mess. There are holes everywhere.
“The court heard that it had been missed in one inspection in September 2006 – then I fell in October 2006. My lawyer wrote to them in December but it wasn’t until May that it was fixed.”
A council spokeswoman said: “We are sorry this accident happened and accept the judge’s ruling.
“We work hard to ensure residents and visitors are able to travel easily and safely in the borough and will continue to regularly review our processes for inspecting and maintaining our streets and highways.” |
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