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Can you make a claim if you get injured in a public place? If a property owner, business or council was negligent and that negligence caused your injury, then yes, you can make a public liability claim in Victoria. It doesn’t matter whether it happened at the supermarket, on a council footpath, or at a friend’s barbecue; what matters is whether someone failed to keep you reasonably safe.

Below, we’ve set out what you need to know if you’ve been injured in a public place in Victoria, from the first phone call to the final settlement.

Quick Answer

You can make a claim if a property owner, business or council was negligent and it caused your injury.
You have three years from when the injury is discovered to lodge a claim under the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic).
Compensation can cover medical costs, lost earnings, care and assistance, and (if your injury is assessed as “significant”) pain and suffering.
Common examples include slips, trips and falls in shops, on footpaths, in car parks, in hotels, in pools, and on playgrounds.
The strongest claims move fast. Evidence of the hazard disappears within days.

Can You Claim Compensation If You’re Injured in a Public Place?

Public liability law rests on a simple idea: anyone who occupies or controls a public space owes visitors a duty of care. Supermarkets, councils, hotels, gyms, event organisers and even private homeowners hosting a party all have to take reasonable steps to keep the people who use their space safe.

You have a claim when that duty is breached, and the breach causes your injury. That means proving four things: a duty of care existed, it was breached (the hazard wasn’t fixed, warned about, or removed within a reasonable time), the breach caused your injury, and you suffered a real loss as a result.

The existence of a hazard isn’t automatically negligence. A spill mopped up within minutes of occurring is very different to one left for an hour with no warning sign. That’s usually the crux of a public liability claim. Not whether the hazard existed, but whether the occupier acted reasonably once they knew, or should have known, about it.

Common Examples of Public Place Injuries

Public liability claims cover a wider range of situations than most people expect. Some of the most common we see at Henry Carus + Associates include:

Slips, trips and falls: wet floors in shopping centres, uneven footpaths, poorly lit stairwells and loose matting cause the majority of slip and fall accident claims in Victoria.
Shopping centre and supermarket injuries: unattended spills, falling stock, faulty trolleys, and obstructed walkways.
Hotel and accommodation injuries: broken furniture, poorly maintained pools, unsafe balconies and inadequate security.
Council and footpath injuries: cracked pavement, tree roots, missing signage around roadworks, and poorly maintained public parks.
Playground and pool injuries: faulty equipment, unsupervised hazards, and pools without adequate fencing or lifeguard cover.
Dog bites and animal attacks in public spaces or on private property you were lawfully visiting.
Balcony collapse accidents: a serious and often catastrophic category, usually linked to poor maintenance or non-compliant construction.
Boat and jet-ski accidents: on Port Phillip Bay, the Yarra, or Victoria’s lakes and waterways, where operator negligence or poorly maintained hire equipment causes injury.
Injuries sustained on aeroplanes: falling luggage, service trolley incidents or turbulence-related injuries fall under the Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act 1959 (Cth).

If your injury doesn’t fit neatly into any of these categories, that doesn’t mean you don’t have a claim. Contact our team to discuss your circumstances.

How Much Compensation Can You Get for a Public Place Injury?

There’s no set figure, and any website that quotes you one before reviewing your medical records is guessing. What drives the value of a public liability claim is the severity of your injury, how it affects your ability to work, and how much ongoing treatment and care you’ll need.

Compensation is generally made up of several heads of damage:

Medical expenses: past and future treatment, surgery, rehabilitation and medication.
Lost income: wages you’ve already lost, plus any reduction in your future earning capacity.
Care and assistance: paid or unpaid help you’ve needed with everyday tasks because of your injury.
Out-of-pocket costs: travel to appointments, equipment, home modifications.
Pain and suffering: but only if your injury meets Victoria’s “significant injury” threshold (more on that below).

Medical expenses and lost income don’t require you to clear any threshold. If you’ve genuinely incurred the cost or lost income because of someone else’s negligence, it’s recoverable. Pain and suffering is the exception, and it’s the head of damage most people ask about first. We’ve set out how that threshold works in the next section.

What Is the Time Limit for a Public Liability Claim in Victoria?

The time limit for a public liability claim in Victoria is generally three years from the “discoverable date”, which is the date you knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that you were injured, that the injury was caused by someone’s negligence, and that it was serious enough to justify making a claim. This comes from Limitation of Actions Act 1958 Section 27D (Vic).

For most slip-and-fall or similar accidents, the discoverable date is the day the accident occurred. You know straight away that you’re hurt and how it occurred. A 12-year longstop also applies from the date of the incident itself, regardless of when the injury was discovered.

Three years sounds generous, but claims are far easier to prove in the first weeks than in the final months. Evidence gets harder to obtain the longer you wait.

What Is a “Significant Injury”? (Wrongs Act Thresholds)

To claim pain and suffering (formally called non-economic loss) in Victoria, your injury has to meet a “significant injury” threshold set out in the Wrongs Act 1958 S. 28LB (Vic). Broadly, that means:

More than 5% whole person impairment for most physical injuries.
5% or more impairment for spinal injuries.
10% or more impairment for a primary psychiatric injury.

Meeting the threshold isn’t a matter of opinion. It’s assessed by an approved medical practitioner using the American Medical Association’s impairment guides, and confirmed either by agreement between the parties or by an independent Medical Panel if it’s disputed. You’ll typically need a certificate of assessment confirming that your injury is significant before you can claim pain and suffering.

This threshold catches people off guard. It doesn’t affect your right to claim medical expenses or lost income. It only gates the pain and suffering component, which is often the largest single item in a serious claim. Getting the medical evidence right from the outset is one of the main reasons people engage a lawyer early rather than after the insurer has already made an offer.

What to Do If You’re Injured in a Public Place

Get medical treatment first. See a doctor or attend an emergency department even if the injury seems minor. Your medical record is the foundation of any later claim.
Collect evidence on the spot if you safely can. Photograph the hazard, your injuries, and the surrounding area. Get the names and contact details of any witnesses.
Report the incident. Ask the venue, employer or council for an incident report, and keep a copy or reference number.
Request CCTV footage early. Most systems overwrite footage within days to a few weeks. A written request as soon as possible is often what preserves the one piece of evidence that decides a disputed claim.
Get legal advice before you accept anything. Don’t sign a waiver, don’t give a detailed statement, and don’t accept a quick settlement offer before you understand what your claim is actually worth.

Evidence in public liability cases has a short shelf life. The mopped floor, the fixed handrail, or the deleted footage all disappear fast, which is why acting within days can change the strength of a claim.

Do You Need a Lawyer? How We Help

You’re not legally required to have a lawyer to bring a public liability claim, but liability in these cases is almost always contested. The occupier’s insurer will argue the hazard wasn’t there long enough to act on, that you weren’t paying attention, or that your injury doesn’t meet the significant injury threshold. Going up against that without independent advice usually means settling for less than the claim is worth, or missing a step that weakens the whole case.

At Henry Carus + Associates, we act for people across Melbourne and regional Victoria who’ve been hurt through no fault of their own. We gather the evidence while it still exists, deal with the insurer on your behalf, and give you a straight answer about what your claim is likely worth.

We work on a no-win, no-fee basis, and the first consultation is free. For additional peace of mind, we offer all clients a unique 90-day satisfaction guarantee, which allows you to start the legal process, and if for any reason you wish to end our agreement, you can.

Need Advice About a Public Liability Claim?

If you’ve been injured in a public place in Victoria, the strongest thing you can do is act early while the evidence still exists and before you say anything that could undermine your claim.

Henry Carus + Associates offers a free, no-obligation initial consultation for clients across Melbourne and regional Victoria. Call our team today to talk through what happened.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do public liability claims work in Victoria?

You need to show a property owner, business or public authority owed you a duty of care, breached it by failing to fix or warn of a hazard, and that this breach caused your injury. If those elements are met, you can claim medical costs, lost income, care costs and, for significant injuries, pain and suffering.

What is the time limit for a public liability claim in Victoria?

Generally three years from the date you knew, or should have known, that you were injured and that the injury was caused by someone's negligence, under section 27D of the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 (Vic). A 12-year longstop applies from the date of the incident.

How much compensation can I get for a public liability claim?

There's no fixed amount. It depends on the severity of your injury, your medical costs, lost income and care needs. Pain and suffering is only payable if your injury meets Victoria's significant injury threshold under the Wrongs Act 1958.

Who pays my medical bills if I'm injured in public?

You can generally claim reasonable medical expenses as part of a successful public liability claim, regardless of whether your injury meets the significant injury threshold. Medicare or private health cover may pay upfront, with the claim reimbursing those costs.

What evidence do I need for a public liability claim?

Photos of the hazard and your injuries, witness contact details, an incident report, CCTV footage requested early, and your medical records from the first appointment onwards. The sooner this evidence is gathered, the stronger the claim.

Do I need a lawyer for a public liability claim in Victoria?

It's not compulsory, but these claims are almost always contested by insurers, and the significant injury threshold requires the right medical evidence from the outset. Most public liability lawyers, including Henry Carus + Associates, work on a no-win, no-fee basis, so getting advice doesn't cost you upfront.

Can I claim for an injury at a hotel or shopping centre in Victoria?

Yes. Hotels, shopping centres and other commercial occupiers owe visitors the same duty of care as any other public space. Common claims involve unsafe pools, broken furniture, inadequate security and slips on unmarked wet floors.

Can I sue after a slip and fall in a public place?

Yes, if the occupier was negligent (for example, they knew about a hazard and failed to fix or warn of it within a reasonable time). You'd need to show the four elements of a public liability claim: duty of care, breach, causation and loss.