Starbucks pays four-figure sum to pensioner who slipped on a GREASY floor

Starbucks has paid a pensioner a four-figure sum after she was left barely able to walk when she slipped over on a GREASY floor after buying a coffee.

Rosemarie Duggan, 71, suffered a torn hamstring after she tumbled over while walking through the shop at the Bescot Retail Park in Walsall, West Mids., in October 2012.

Shockingly, it emerged another customer had already told staff about the greasy floor but no action was taken.

Mrs Duggan, from Perry Barr, Birmingham, was taken to Sandwell General Hospital and was given an x-ray on her leg.

She was diagnosed with a torn hamstring and was given crutches, strong analgesia and anti-inflammatory cream to ease the pain.

Her injuries meant she had to use crutches and struggled to walk on her own for 14 months following the accident.

Last month she was awarded a four-figure settlement from Starbucks after the company accepted liability.

She said: “Whilst walking through the coffee shop I suddenly fell as the floor was covered in a greasy substance from a spillage.

“I was in agony for a long time following the accident and was unable to get out and about as a result.

“My injuries took many months to heal and more than a full year on I have finally recovered from the accident.

“This could have been easily avoided if Starbucks had taken more care and put customer safety first, but I am pleased that I can now move forward with my life.”

Mrs Duggan agreed the undisclosed out-of-court settlement after approaching personal injury lawyers Irwin Mitchell.

Kelly Ferguson, who represented Mrs Duggan, said: “Cafes, shops and other public places have a fundamental duty to ensure they are providing a safe environment for the people that use them.

“In this case, the spillage on the floor where Mrs Duggan fell had been reported to staff but they had failed to act on this.

“Starbucks admitted that they were in the wrong and we were able to secure a settlement.

“Mrs Duggan was out of action for months following her fall while her hamstring healed and she suffered from a loss of mobility.”

Additonal Post: http://www.irwinmitchell.com/newsandmedia/2013/December/Pensioner-Wins-Legal-Battle-After-Fall-At-Starbucks