Woman secures more than £17,000 after fall in Charlie Miller Salon in Edinburgh

A pensioner’s holiday of a lifetime was nearly grounded after a fall in a beauty salon.

Anne Stevenson was given a pair of flip flops to wear by staff following a pedicure at WomanKind based in the Charlie Miller salon in Stockbridge, Edinburgh. 

While she was walking from the treatment room at the back of the salon to the front she fell on a wet floor which had no warning signs displayed. 

The 81-year-old said: “When I landed on the floor I knew I had done something to my ankle but I didn’t know how bad it was going to be. 

“The beauty assistant who had carried out my treatment was excellent and put pressure on the wound to try and stop the bleeding and called for an ambulance. 

“It was four days before I was due to fly to Canada and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to go.

“My brother and I had been planning this for nearly a year, it was a holiday of a lifetime as we are both getting on and want to experience as much as we can.”

The paramedics tried to treat Anne at the salon, but after an initial assessment they decided she needed to go to A&E at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for further treatment.

There she had x-rays which confirmed she hadn’t broken any bones but needed stitches. 

After a few days Anne contacted the salon to update them about her injury and ask if they could help cover the cost of having the wound treated while on holiday.

Salon’s management confirmed they wouldn’t be able to do that, but did offer her a free manicure and pedicure.

Anne said: “I just thought what are you on, I mean really.

“They had no concept at all of how serious the injury was or how to deal with people in this situation.

“I knew it wasn’t going to heal overnight and my biggest fear was it would get infected.

“The hospital staff were very firm and told me repeatedly I would have to have it redressed regularly to stop this from happening. 

“I spent some time researching places I could get this done while on holiday as well as buying extra bandages and dressings.”

Big companies shouldn’t be allowed to behave like this

Anne was still able to travel on her bucket list holiday with her brother, but her injury meant they couldn’t do some activities and she had to rely on a wheelchair to get around.

Throughout her holiday she had to pay to have her ankle dressed several times and, despite her best efforts, the cut became infected and she had to be given two courses of antibiotics.

After paying thousands of pounds to treat an injury which was caused by an accident which wasn’t her fault, Anne decided to contact Digby Brown to see if we could help.

The firm had previously helped her so she knew we would thoroughly investigate the case to secure the best outcome.

Our legal team based in Edinburgh gathered medical records from Scotland and Canada and arranged for an orthopaedic surgeon to examine Anne’s injured ankle. 

The solicitor also investigated the long-term impact the injury would have on her physical health, ability to continue to be independent and if she would now need extra help with daily tasks.

Just over a year after the accident a pre-litigation offer of £7,000 was made but rejected as it did not accurately reflect the ongoing impact the injury had on Anne’s life. 

A second offer of £17,600 - over £10,000 more - was made and accepted. 

Anne said: “All I wanted was for Charlie Miller’s management to acknowledge and recognise how serious this fall was and the impact it’s had.

“The lack of compassion they showed was wrong, businesses shouldn’t treat people that way. 

“I still have issues with my ankle, it does swell up and is uncomfortable and I now get some help around the house. 

“Digby Brown was efficient, my solicitor was very professional and listened to everything I had to say and always kept me informed about the case. 

“It can be hard to take on a big company and many people would give up without the support of Digby Brown but they helped me get justice.”