A man who was badly injured when a metal goalpost fell on his head has been awarded £41,500 in damages after his case was heard in the Court of Appeal.

Michael Hall, 45, was playing football with his son at a caravan park in the Lake District. Mr Hall was in goal when the framework fell forward and collapsed on him. He sustained serious injuries to his teeth and jaw.

Mr Hall brought a claim against the owners and operators of the caravan park. Initially this was dismissed and he therefore took his case to the Court of Appeal where the decision of the lower court was overturned.

The Court heard that when the accident happened the goal was not properly pegged down. Campers regularly took the pegs from the goalposts to use as tent pegs. The judge decided that it would have been relatively easy for the operators of the caravan park to make a daily check on whether the pegs were in place or not. If this had been done, the absence of the pegs would have been discovered and Mr Hall’s injuries avoided. Mr Hall was awarded £41,500 in compensation.

Owners and controllers of land open to members of the public have a duty of care to ensure people’s safety. If through no fault of your own you have been injured on property open to the public, you may be entitled to compensation.