A businessman who suffered horrific brain damage when he tumbled down stairs at a bar in Manchester city centre has successfully sued them for compensation.
The man was enjoying a night out with former work colleagues when tragedy struck at Pulse Bar, in Dantzic Street, in June 2011.
He was leaving the first floor area after drinking six or seven pints when he fell headlong down a flight of stairs leading to the street outside.
The man, in his 50s, fractured his skull and suffered brain damage so severe he is now incapable of looking after himself.
London’s High Court heard he is so vulnerable that Judge Richard Pearce ordered he must not be identified in reports of the case.
Lawyers on his behalf sued the bar’s owners, Pro-Nation Ltd - who the judge found 100 percent liable to compensate the man for his injuries.
Although the amount of his payout has yet to be assessed, he will need care and support for the rest of his life and the award may well run into millions.
Rejecting claims that the man was drunk and incapable when he fell, the judge said: “One person’s ‘six or seven’ pints may be another person’s ‘large amount’”.
The friends who were with him described him as “essentially normal” and “not visibly affected by his drinking”.
Pro-Nation said the club was set in a typical 19th Century Manchester warehouse and there was nothing dangerous about the staircase.
But the judge said the stairs were not fitted with “a visible and identifiable handrail” as recommended by building regulations.
Had a “properly constructed” rail been in place, the man could have easily grasped it and averted disaster, he added.
The presence of a curtain at the top of the stairs also meant that he would not have seen the handrail until the last moment.
He lost his balance as he took his first step downwards and there was nothing he could do to prevent his headlong fall. The man was a “visitor” of the club and Pro-Nation had failed in its duty to keep him reasonably safe, the judge ruled.
He added: “I reject the allegation that he contributed to the accident through his own blameworthy conduct. I therefore conclude that he should recover damages in full for the injuries sustained in the accident”.
Pulse Bar has since closed. Pro-Nation Ltd have been contacted for a comment.
