Petrol stations owe customers a duty of care which they may breach if the latter are exposed to a foreseeable risk of injury and an accident occurs. There are a number of potential hazards at petrol stations, especially those operating 24/7 and offering a range of facilities. As with all businesses offering services to the general public, petrol station owners, occupiers and staff are responsible for the safety of their visitors as per the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. Customers must be kept reasonably safe while visiting the premises, and all necessary measures must be taken to minimise the risk of accidents.
Typical examples of slippery surfaces at petrol stations include greasy areas in forecourts where oil or petrol has been spilled, and wet floors in bathroom facilities caused by recent cleaning or maintenance problems. Other internal floor surfaces may also be slippery if, for example, a customer spilled a product and it has not been cleaned up, or a recently cleaned floor has been left in a wet and slippery condition, in which case warning signs should have been positioned to warn and prevent customers from accessing the area.
Inadequate outdoor lighting at petrol stations is often a contributory factor in slip and trip accidents, and publicly accessible areas must be properly lit at all times to guard against this risk. Ice and snow in winter must be cleared from outdoor areas to prevent visitors from slipping over and injuring themselves, while measures should also be taken to prevent ice, snow and water from being trampled inside petrol stations. Petrol hoses on forecourts should recoil automatically after use and not be allowed to trail along the ground due to the risk of trips, falls and injuries.
Our firm has a team of personal injury lawyers with experience of successfully claiming compensation for accidents at petrol stations. If you have slipped and fallen over or been otherwise injured at a petrol station through no fault of your own, contact Bartletts for free legal advice that you can rely on: