75 year old grandmother considers accident claim

An elderly woman who tripped on uneven paving in Holloway Road, Holloway, an inner city district in the London borough of Islington, has been left with severe bruising and a golf ball sized lump on her head.

News of her painful accident came hot on the heels of the revelation that Islington Council has had to deal with hundreds of accident claims concerning the state of their roads in the past few years.

The council has paid out over £2 million in compensation to people who have been left with injuries after tripping and slipping on Islington's uneven pavements.

Almost 250 accident claims have resulted in payouts over the past five years, with each victim receiving an average of £8,500 in compensation.

Christine Mabey, chairwoman of the Islington branch of pedestrian campaign group Living Streets, said: "It's disgraceful how many holes there are. And £2million is probably just the tip of the iceberg because most people don't seek compensation - or if they do, they end up giving up because the whole process is so convoluted."

One woman who had an accident on Islington's streets was a grandmother in her seventies, who described her traumatic experience:

"I got off the 43 bus outside The Coronet pub. I caught my toe in the pavement and went straight down on my forehead. Luckily I didn't knock myself out so I got myself up and went straight to the doctor. I had a bump on my forehead and my whole face came up in bruises,” she said.

Islington Council tried to play down the amount of accident claims they have had to deal with in relation to the sorry state of their roads, with Councillor Greg Foxsmith, who is executive member for the environment saying:

"It seems like a lot of money but when you look at other boroughs, we are one of the lowest. We have also had a high level of investment in the pavements and while we can't keep every pavement clear all the time, we do better than most."

The council say that they have spent thousands on repairing the streets, resulting in the amount of compensation it has had to pay out falling from almost £500,000 in 2003 to about £180,000 in 2008.

However, campaigners have said that there is a “huge problem” with the streets in Islington and one Islington firm of injury lawyers say they have seen clients with a whole host of injuries resulting from tripping on the shoddy streets.

“We have helped people claim for broken ankles, wrists, hips and jaws, facial injuries and even depression,” said a spokesperson from the firm.

And the leader of the opposition labour group is not happy with the way the council are managing the roads:

"£2million is a lot of money. That money could have been spent on making our parks greener or our high streets more appealing to shoppers. Instead we are paying out in litigation,” said leader of the opposition Catherine West.

John Ackers, secretary of Islington Cyclists Action group said that the roads are causing a problem for cyclists too, although many were put off claiming for their accident.

"People just don't think they'll get anywhere with the council. But some of the roads are in an awful state. There are potholes which literally throw you off balance,” he said.