Supermarket & Shop Accident Claims

What You Need to Show

Direct Answer: Under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957, a shop or supermarket must take reasonable care to keep customers reasonably safe. A claim succeeds by showing the store fell short of that — a spillage left too long, a known hazard that wasn't addressed, or unsafely stacked stock — not simply by showing an accident happened on their premises.

A wet floor sign is common evidence in these cases, but it isn't an automatic defence for the store, and nor does its absence automatically mean the store is liable. What matters is whether the store's overall response to the hazard — how quickly it was identified, how it was managed in the meantime, and whether the warning (if any) was adequate — was reasonable in the circumstances.

A different but related scenario is stock falling from a shelf or display. Here the question is whether the way goods were stacked or displayed created an unreasonable risk — overloaded shelving, items placed precariously, or a known fault with fixtures that should have been repaired.

Evidence That Actually Helps

Report the accident before you leave, if you can — most stores keep an accident book, and a contemporaneous entry is far stronger evidence than a recollection given weeks later. Photograph the hazard itself as soon as possible, since a spillage gets mopped up and a shelf gets restocked within minutes of an incident being reported. Ask whether CCTV covers the area, and get contact details for anyone who witnessed what happened.