By Lewis Cobain. Last Updated 12th November 2024. If you have been injured as a result of an accident at a zoo, or have become sick by contracting an illness from an animal at a zoo, you could be entitled to make a zoo accident claim.
Zoos should be safe places to work, as well as being educational and entertaining places to visit. However, they are home to potentially very dangerous animals. This may include predatory animals which may attack in the event that they feel threatened or attacked.
If you have been injured at a zoo and think you are entitled to make a zoo accident claim, contact the specialist personal injury team at Legal Expert.
Select A Section
- What Is A Zoo Accident Or Zoo Injury?
- Zoo Keeper Accidents And Injuries
- Fatal Accidents At A Zoo
- Child Accidents At The Zoo
- Zoo Accident Compensation Claims – Evidence Examples
- What Can Be Claimed For After An Accident In A Zoo?
- Zoo Accident Injury Compensation Amounts
- Zoo Accident Compensation Claims For No Win No Fee Solicitors
- Helpful Links And Resources
What Is A Zoo Accident Or Zoo Injury?
Common questions we are asked in relation to this type of claim can include “what is a zoo accident”, “what is a zoo injury” and “are zoos safe for visitors?”. The last of these is perhaps the easiest to answer.
Zoo’s across the country have very large numbers of visitors each year and almost all will have an extremely enjoyable time. Zoo accidents and injuries include a multitude of circumstances ranging from incidents involving the animals themselves to general hazards leading to a leisure attraction injury. As a popular attraction with a lot of people visiting, they are prone to people suffering a variety of different injuries.
Zoo Keeper Accidents And Injuries
By law, all employers owe their staff a duty of care. This means that they are legally responsible for the health and safety of their staff members whilst at work. This extends to providing the right equipment and training to be able to carry out their work in a safe way.
This duty of care is set out under the UK’s Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974. However, there are other pieces of legislation that may also cover employees working in zoos and other jobs with animals. If you have suffered an injury or illness, you could make a zoo accident claim.
Employer’s Liability
Employers liability covers things such as providing the correct training and updating it as required, providing any specific training for situations that are (potentially) hazardous, and providing safety equipment, such as specific clothing.
They must also regularly update their risk analysis for any hazardous activities. These hazardous activities should also only be carried out by the appropriate tasks. They should also ensure that the buildings which house any animals are secured and safe for employees as well as animals. Employers should also put up the right safety signs.
There is an assumption that any employee working with (potentially) dangerous animals do assume some degree of risk by doing so. However, this does not absolve employers of their liability. To make a zoo accident claim, talk to our team today.
Fatal Accidents At A Zoo
Fatal accidents at a zoo can happen when the necessary safety processes and procedures have not been followed correctly, or when staff act in a negligent way. They can happen to either zookeepers, other members of staff, or visitors.
There have been several high profile incidences of animals breaking or getting loose, or people falling into animal enclosures at zoos around the world. The most recent incident of a human death at a Zoo in the UK was the Hamerton Zoo tiger attack in 2017. The animal attack happened in Hamerton Zoo and involved a tiger mauling a keeper to death. The Hamerton Zoo accident showed the importance of following health and safety procedures.
In the case of a fatal accident, there are three legal entities that can bring a personal injury claim. These are those who were dependent on the deceased, the deceased’s immediate family, the deceased’s estate. You can find out more information about making a fatal accident compensation claim in our guide.
Child Accidents At The Zoo
Taking your child or children to either a large zoo, wildlife park, or a smaller petting zoo should be an experience that is both exciting and educational. For many children, especially those living in cities, visiting the zoo could be the first time that they will have been able to come close to wildlife.
Getting to interact with a variety of animals and wildlife can be very educational for many children. However, their excitement and interest could cause children to become distracted and not pay attention to what is going on around them.
As such, children can be susceptible to slips, trips, and falls at a zoo when running around, if they are not supervised properly. Child accidents at the zoo can include physical injuries as well as illnesses and can be caused in a variety of different ways.
If your child has had an accident or injury, the team at Legal Expert could help you get the compensation for accidents at a zoo that your child is entitled to.
Zoo Accident Compensation Claims – Evidence Examples
Successful zoo accident compensation claims will require evidence. You will need to gather evidence of both an accident occurring and your injuries.
Below we have listed some examples of evidence that could be collected for zoo accidents claims:
- Medical evidence – Zoo attacks could result in significant injuries. Any notes from your doctor or hospital can act as proof of any harm caused by the incident.
- Witnesses – Given that zoos are public places, someone else may have witnessed your incident. If you can obtain their contact details, a solicitor can get in touch for a statement during the personal injury claims process.
- CCTV footage – Zoos may have CCTV footage, which you are entitled to request. The footage can provide evidence of an incident happening and who was liable for causing it.
Additionally, we would recommend that you seek legal advice. Working with personal injury solicitors can ensure that all bases of your claim are covered. Furthermore, they can help you prepare evidence and ensure you get the personal injury compensation you might be owed. Get in touch for more information.
What Is The Time Limit For Zoo Accident Compensation Claims?
Once you’ve received medical treatment for your injuries, you may be in a position where you want to seek compensation for your suffering. In order to be eligible for compensation, there are a number of requirements that you must meet. These include being able to prove that you suffered as a result of third-party negligence and having sufficient evidence to demonstrate it.
It’s important that before you make a claim, you’re aware of the time limits that could affect whether you’re eligible or not. The usual personal injury claims time limit is 3 years. This is either effective from the accident date or whenever you realised that you suffered as a result of the accident.
If your child was injured in a zoo accident but they’re not yet of age to make legal proceedings, you could make a claim on their behalf by acting as their litigation friend. This way, you can secure them with the compensation that they deserve, which could also be accessed by yourself in the meantime to cover medical bills and any other injury-related expenses that may crop up.
What Can Be Claimed For After An Accident In A Zoo?
If you have suffered an accident or injury at the zoo and are thinking of making a compensation claim, you could be wondering how much you can claim, and what can you claim for. We will look at the first part of this in the following section, here we will look at what you can claim compensation for after an injury in a zoo.
Whilst each and every claim may have different circumstances which determine the amount of compensation you will get, we can look at the categories which may determine how much you are entitled to. These categories are:
- General damages: these are calculated from and paid out based on your actual physical injury or illness resulting from your animal attack or other circumstances leading to injury or illness. This will often form the bulk of your settlement and will also include any physical pain or suffering you experienced. It may also be awarded for emotional distress. It will take into account the long-term effects this will have on you.
- Special damages: this covers everything else which you may be able to claim compensation for. They include things such as medical bills and other special circumstances. This could include the cost of care, medication, or domestic help.
- Loss of earnings: this can include compensation for loss of earnings and benefits which you have suffered as a direct result of your illness or injury in a Zoo.
The above categories form the most common types of compensation you could claim for a Zoo accident or injury.
Zoo Accident Injury Compensation Amounts
Zoo accident compensation claims can be made up of two heads of loss: general damages and special damages.
As mentioned in the previous section, general damages compensate for the injuries suffered. This can include psychological injuries such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in addition to physical injuries.
As part of your case, you may be invited to an independent medical examination so that a report can be produced. This medical report will help those advising you assess the level of injury compensation your zoo accident claim could attract. Factors that influence the size of injury compensation include the severity of the injuries, how bad the symptoms are and how long they last. The prognosis for the future is also important.
A document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) can also be useful in determining the level of general damages. This contains suggested compensation brackets for various injuries. As they are guidelines, no figures are guaranteed, but you may find the following table of example JCG entries useful.
Please note that the first entry is not from the JCG.
| Injury | Severity | Compensation Bracket |
|---|---|---|
| Several Severe Injuries and Financial Losses | Severe | Up to £1,000,000 plus |
| Brain Injury | Very Severe | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Moderately Severe | £267,340 to £344,150 | |
| Amputation of Arms | Loss of One Arm (i) Amputated at the Shoulder | Not Less Than £167,380 |
| Loss of One Arm (ii) Above Elbow Amputation | £133,810 to £159,770 | |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder | Severe | £73,050 to £122,850 |
| Moderately Severe | £28,250 to £73,050 | |
| Back | Moderate (i) | £33,880 to £47,320 |
| Moderate (ii) | £15,260 to £33,880 | |
| Ankle | Moderate | £16,770 to £32,450 |
Compensation for a zoo accident may also include special damages, although they are not present in every case. They compensate for the financial losses caused by the injury, and some examples include:
- Loss of earnings, both in the past and the future
- Care costs
- Rehabilitation treatment fees
- Home or vehicle adaptations
- Travel expenses
You will need to provide evidence of these financial losses with documents such as bank statements, payslips and receipts.
We offer a free case assessment for any zoo accident claim, so why not call today?
Zoo Accident Compensation Claims For No Win No Fee Solicitors
You could potentially be eligible for compensation if you suffered injuries while at the zoo. You may wish to have the support of personal injury solicitors to help with your claim. Solicitors can help gather supporting evidence, ensure your claim is filed in full and within the time limit. However, you may be concerned about paying high upfront fees.
A No Win No Fee solicitor may not charge upfront fees for their services. Under the typical No Win No Fee arrangement, your solicitor usually won’t ask you to cover any ongoing fees either. When they successfully help you recover compensation, they take a success fee from the award. This is capped by the law. Should a No Win No Fee solicitor fail to secure you compensation, they usually will not ask for a fee to cover their services. Your solicitor may provide their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
To discuss zoo accident claims and what led up to your injuries, get in touch with our advisors. They are experts in personal injury claims and can give you free legal advice about zoo accidents.
To get in touch:
- Call 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online.
- You can chat to us using the box at the bottom of the screen.
Helpful Links And Resources
Child Accident Claims
Find out how to make a successful claim for accidents and injuries to children with our guide to child accident claims.
Dog Bite Animal Claims
Have you been bitten by an animal, such as a dog, find out how to secure the compensation which you deserve with animal bite injuries.
Horse Riding Accidents
Were you injured at the Zoo whilst participating in an animal ride? If so, this guide to horse riding accident claims could help you.
NHS Guide To Animal And Human Bite Injuries
Find out how to treat human and animal bite injuries with this guide from the NHS.
Thanks for reading our zoo accident compensation claims guide.
