Every owner or occupier of public and private property in Northern Ireland has a duty to take reasonable care for the safety of visitors. For example, if you are a postman and injure yourself by falling down an open manhole in the path to someone's door you may be eligible to make a public liability compensation claim.

If buildings are publicly or indeed privately owned, the same applies. Reasonable care has to be taken for your safety as a visitor. For example a handrail on stairs should be securely fixed and windows should be safe to use and tiles shouldn't fall off the roof.

On the roads in Northern Ireland, the highway authority, which may be the district or borough council, has a duty to maintain the surface of roads and footpaths for your safety.

They have to inspect the roads and footpaths at reasonable intervals, and carry out repairs to defects.

If you have suffered a trip or fall, photograph the defect that caused you to fall. Use a ruler or other everyday object of a standard size, such as a coin or matchbox, to show the height / depth of the defect.

You may also wish to take photographs of the area where you fell, for example, if there was insufficient lighting, a transient hazard such as ice, oil or water or the lack of signage of a hazard.

Were you injured in a commercial property such as a shop or leisure venue? If so you will need to find out if they have an accident book and record the accident with them.

Start your claim by completing the online claim form and one of our claims staff will contact you very shortly.