Grandmother suing gastropub for £200,000 after breaking leg when slipping on ice and cake

Grandmother, 69, is suing gastropub for £200,000 after she broke her leg and was left ‘disabled’ when she slipped on spilled ice and cake at friend’s birthday party

  • Anne Andlaw claims she slipped in a puddle of ice at the Cherry Tree in Dulwich
  • The 69-year-old spent weeks in hospital with broken leg and fractured knee cap 
  • She is now classed as disabled, and says staff did not attempt to clean the floor 
  • Lawyers for Redcomb Pubs & Bars Ltd deny blame and say she was ‘intoxicated’

A grandmother who claims she broke her leg when she slipped on spilled champagne ice and birthday cake in a gastropub is suing for £200,000. 

Anne Andlaw, 69, claims she slipped in a puddle of ice from champagne cooling buckets and ‘greasy foodstuffs’ at the Cherry Tree in Dulwich while at a friend’s birthday party in October 2016. 

The pensioner spent weeks in hospital and rehabilitation after the fall left her with a broken leg and fractured knee cap. 

Now classed as disabled following the incident, she needs extra support with her domestic and social life. 

Lawyers for Redcomb Pubs & Bars Ltd who managed the pub at the time, deny blame and say she was ‘intoxicated’ at this time. The pub has since changed hands, and is now under the management of Young’s.

Anne Andlaw, 69, claims she slipped in a puddle of ice from champagne cooling buckets and ‘greasy foodstuffs’ at the Cherry Tree in Dulwich in October 2016

According to paper filed at Central London County Court, Mrs Andlaw arrived at the party to find all of the wine and food had already been eaten and the party table ‘cluttered with empty bottles and ice buckets.’ 

Her barrister Anthony Johnson said the incident happened at around 11:30pm when she got up to leave.  

‘Suddenly and without warning, her feet slipped out from underneath her as if she was on an ice rink,’ he says in claim papers.

‘She slipped up in the air and landed very heavily on her right hand side, immediately suffering extreme pain.

Now classed as disabled following the incident, Mrs Andlaw needs extra support

Now classed as disabled following the incident, Mrs Andlaw needs extra support 

The incident happened at the Cherry Tree pub in East Dulwich in October 2016

The incident happened at the Cherry Tree pub in East Dulwich in October 2016

‘When the lights came on at the end of the night it could be seen that the floor area around the table was covered in water and ice cubes, which had presumably been spilt from the ice buckets that were on the table. 

‘There were also other greasy foodstuffs, including what appeared to be birthday cake, visible on the floor around the table.

‘The staff had not attempted to clean or dry the floor in any way and there were no wet floor signs displayed at all.’

Lawyer Hannah Hale, representing Redcomb Pubs & Bars Ltd, denies that the table was cluttered or that the floor was covered in spilled food and drinks. 

‘The defendant denies that the area was covered in water and ice cubes and greasy foodstuffs including birthday cake at the end of the night,’ she said.

She added that the area was checked by the deputy manage who ‘will confirm there was no spillage in the areas where she fell or at all.’

‘The accident occurred at approximately 11.30pm, by which time Mrs Andlaw’s group, including Mrs Andlaw, were intoxicated,’ she added. 

‘The duty manager will state the party were regularly attended to throughout the course of the evening and there was no evidence of a spillage.

‘At no time in the immediate aftermath of the accident did she herself suggest to the [staff] that she had slipped on a spillage of water and or greasy foodstuffs.

‘Having participated in the party activity, she was on notice of the hazard she and her companions had created and should have taken more care and or actively brought the state of the floor to the attention of the defendant so that steps could be taken.’  

The case reached the courts last month and a full trial of the claim is expected at a later date.