Supermarket Trolley Accident Claims

The store supplies the trolleys and is responsible for keeping them in a reasonable condition. Where an injury is caused by the equipment itself rather than by how someone used it, liability generally sits with the retailer.

That covers a wheel that seizes and pulls the trolley sideways, a sharp edge or rust perforation that cuts you, a child seat with a broken restraint, and a frame that collapses under an ordinary load. It also covers trolley bays that are overfilled or badly sited, and trolleys left loose in a car park where wind can move them.

• Trolley maintenance and inspection records for the store.
• Any log of trolleys withdrawn from service, and why.
• The trolley itself — ask that the specific one be retained.
• Photographs of the defect before the trolley goes back into the stack.
• Any earlier reports of the same fault.

If someone simply pushed a trolley into you carelessly, the supermarket has not necessarily done anything wrong, and a claim against the store may not succeed. That is an uncomfortable answer, but it is the honest one.

It is not always the end of the matter. If the trolley was defective in a way that contributed to the collision, or if the aisle was so obstructed that a collision was likely, the position changes. Where a member of staff was pushing the trolley or a cage, the store is responsible for its employee.

Injuries to small children falling from trolley seats are among the more serious accidents in this category, because of the height and the hard floor beneath.

Where the restraint was missing, broken or ineffective, that is a defect in equipment the store provided. A claim on behalf of a child can be brought by a parent or guardian acting as litigation friend, and the three-year limitation period does not begin until the child's eighteenth birthday.

The single most useful thing you can do is make sure the specific trolley is not returned to the stack. Once it goes back among hundreds of identical ones, proving which trolley was defective becomes almost impossible.

Report it, ask that the trolley be taken out of service and kept, photograph the fault, and get the accident book entry. Ask in writing that CCTV be preserved as well.

Can I claim if a faulty shopping trolley injured me?

Yes. The supermarket supplies the trolleys and is responsible for keeping them in reasonable condition, so injuries caused by seized wheels, sharp or rusted edges, broken child restraints or collapsing frames generally fall to the retailer. The important step is making sure the specific trolley is withdrawn from service and kept rather than returned to the stack.

What if another customer hit me with their trolley?

A claim against the supermarket may not succeed, because the store has not necessarily done anything wrong. The position changes if the trolley itself was defective in a way that contributed to the collision, if the aisle was obstructed so as to make a collision likely, or if the person pushing it was a member of staff — the store is responsible for its employees.

My child fell from a trolley seat. Can I claim for them?

Where the restraint was missing, broken or ineffective, that is a defect in equipment the store provided and a claim can follow. A parent or guardian can bring it on the child's behalf as a litigation friend, and the three-year time limit does not start running until the child turns eighteen.