Case name & citation: Vincent v Woolworths Ltd [2016] NSWCA 40
Court: New South Wales Court of Appeal
Area of law: Negligence, Occupational Health and Safety, Employer’s Duty of Care
Case Facts (Vincent v Woolworths)
In the case Vincent v Woolworths Ltd [2016] NSWCA 40, the plaintiff, employed by Counterpoint, was responsible for checking product placements in Woolworths supermarkets. For this task, Woolworths had provided her with a safety step approximately half a meter in height. While performing her duties, the plaintiff stepped back into a customer’s shopping trolley, fell, and sustained an injury. She then sued both Woolworths and Counterpoint.
Issue
Were Woolworths and Counterpoint liable for the plaintiff’s injury?
Judgement in Vincent v Woolworths
At the trial, the court rejected her claims. The NSW Court of Appeal upheld the trial judge’s decision. It agreed that Woolworths owed the plaintiff a duty of care to avoid unnecessary risks, specifically the risk of significant personal injury. However, the court found that while the risk of injury was not insignificant, a reasonable person in Woolworths’ position would not have taken precautions to prevent this particular harm, given the common supermarket practice in place. Moreover, Woolworths was entitled to expect that the plaintiff, as a visiting merchandiser, would take reasonable care for her own safety.
Regarding Counterpoint, the court noted that while employers do have a duty to account for the possibility of inadvertence or lack of thoughtfulness by their employees, this does not diminish the employer’s entitlement to expect their employees to exercise care when performing straightforward tasks. Therefore, the plaintiff’s appeal against both defendants was dismissed.
Reasoning
The appeal was ultimately dismissed on the grounds that the task at hand was simple, and the use of the step was deemed something that an adult employee could be expected to handle safely without additional intervention from the employer.
List of References:
- https://www.hbalegal.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/HBA-Legal_Coles-v-Harris_July-2018.pdf
- https://inbrief.nswbar.asn.au/posts/7be4753ee4e26b4fd93440f8192d2d1b/attachment/clpu97.pdf
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