Clubber wins £28,000 for dancefloor fall

Angela Spalding, 40, fell to the ground after she was shoved and slipped on the wet floor.

The former chef claimed she has been unable to work and has suffered depression, anxiety and panic attacks since the incident at the Love2Love nightclub in Inverness.

Papers lodged at Inverness Sheriff Court claimed she was "no longer to manage domestic cooking let alone work in a commercial kitchen".

Ms Spalding had lodged a 100,000 claim against CFG Leisure, which owned the club at the time of the accident in November 2007.

The two parties were set to meet during a civil hearing, but have now settled out of court, despite the leisure group claiming Ms Spalding should have taken reasonable care to look where she was placing her feet.

The injured woman's lawyer, Peter Brash, said she had never wanted to go to court but said the case was more "a matter of principle".

He said Ms Spalding was glad the whole episode was over, adding: "She wanted an admission that she had been injured due to the fault of the nightclub in allowing the dancefloor to become wet and slippery.

"As it is, she has accepted the first offer that was made to her to settle her claim."

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Mr Brash said 28,000 had been agreed with the insurers of the company that owned the club at the time.

However, it is unlikely Ms Spalding will be paid the full amount because the company has since gone into liquidation.

There will also be a deduction to take account of state benefits to be repaid as Ms Spalding, who now cares for her autistic son, received a disability living allowance as a result of the accident.

Mr Brash added: "In our experience, slips on wet floors in nightclubs are a fairly common type of accident, often leading to serious injury with long-lasting consequences.

"It is easy to criticise people who fall over in nightclubs for having 'had a few', but the clubs have a responsibility to their customers, especially when the clubs depend on sales of alcohol for their livelihood.

"In this case, for the purposes of the settlement, Ms Spalding has accepted that she was 25 per cent to blame for the accident."

The club had been owned by 3D Entertainment Group, which changed its name to CFG Leisure in April 2009. Six months later it went into liquidation. No-one associated with the company was available for comment.

Mr Brash said the firm's insurers will have to pay part of the settlement, with Ms Spalding having to recover the rest from the liquidators.

The court papers stated she was "immediately in distress" after the fall.During the 30-minute wait for paramedics she was approached by staff asking her to sign a piece of paper which suggested she was pushed, and the fall was not caused by the wet floor.

She signed because she was concerned she would not be allowed to leave without doing so. Her wrist was fixed by pins and she was in hospital for four days.

Since then, the court papers state, the flexibility of her wrist was limited and her fingers were stiff, while she has suffered complex regional pain syndrome.

It was claimed her condition was unlikely to improve.

CFG Leisure had stated the claim was "excessive", adding: "She could and should have avoided standing or dancing so close to other persons so as to avoid the risk of being knocked by them."