Compensation awarded following estate agent's negligence

By Charlotte Henshall, Katrina Elsey

Published August 28, 2024In: Personal Injury

Our client fell through a hole in a rotten decking during a house viewing organised by an estate agent. She sustained a fracture to her right ankle and had to wear a moon boot for 8 weeks.

A claim was brought against the estate agent for failing to ensure the safety of those who were viewing the property.

The property belonged to someone who had died. Therefore, the estate agent had control of the property and with that, a duty to ensure the premises were fit for viewings to take place.

Charlotte Henshall, worked in the Personal Injury department as part of her training, and handled the claim. She negotiated with insurers until they increased their initial offer of £2,500 to £8,000. The compensation will cover physiotherapy to rehabilitate the claimants ankle which now feels weak, especially in cold weather.

Estate agent liability

The estate agent has legal liability to ensure the safety of the properties they manage and are in charge of. Estate agents should conduct detailed safety checks before listing a property and before each viewing. They need to address any identified hazards promptly to prevent accidents and keep detailed records of any inspections they have had to carry out to demonstrate compliance with safety standards.

Estate agents should particularly be conducting detailed risk assessments where the property belonged to someone who has died. This is because there will likely be no one with enough knowledge about the property to inform the estate agents of any defects and risks to safety.

Once any hazards are identified by the estate agent, prevention can include, but is not limited to, a physical barrier, a warning sign, escorting the viewer around the property and / or a document highlighting the areas of concern for the viewers consideration.

The estate agent in this case was aware of the hole in the rotten decking, and had warned her to “watch the decking” before the viewing. However, a warning alone is not always sufficient. Nothing had been done to prevent an accident. The hole was not pointed out to the claimant and once she headed out to the garden the estate agent stayed in the house. Our client had to walk over the decking to access the garden. On her way back inside the house she fell though the hole in the rotten decking. It wasn’t until she shouted out in pain that the estate agent came outside.

If the estate agent had taken the time to properly risk asses the property before conducting any viewings, the hazard (i.e. the hole in the rotten decking) could have been managed and the accident could have been avoided.