McDonald's franchise held liable for injuries after Cape Town woman slips on wet floor

The Western Cape High Court has ruled in favour of a Cape Town woman who sustained serious injuries after falling at a McDonald’s franchise owned by MSA Devco (Pty) Ltd in Milnerton.

Gail Patricia Morrison slipped and fell on a wet floor while at McDonald’s and injured her knee back in February 2017. 

Morrison had gone to the establishment with Peter Mervyn Winspear to discuss work-related issues when she unexpectedly lost her footing and fell on a damp section of the dining area.

She was wheeled out of the restaurant on a stretcher and rushed to Milnerton Medi-Clinic where she underwent an operation on her right ankle and left knee.

She instituted legal action against the renowned fast-food chain, arguing that the restaurant failed to adequately protect its patrons.

Amongst other issues raised, she said the restaurant failed to ensure that the floor of the premises was dry and safe to walk on; failed to ensure that warning signs were placed to indicate that the floor of the premises was wet; and failed to cordon off the section of the floor of the premises that was wet.

In court, Morrison testified that she looked around to see whether there were any yellow warning notices and saw none. She added that she wore comfortable sandals with non-slip ripples, and she was walking at a normal pace when she fell.

Meanwhile, Winspear testified that he saw a lady holding a mop but there were no wet floor notices on the floor.

He added that the lady holding the mop was the only person who witnessed the fall, and she apologised.

In its defence, the restaurant said Morrison likely acted with negligence, claiming she had a responsibility to stay aware of her surroundings and modify her walking speed accordingly.

The eating outlet further relied on its three employees, Sandy Snyman, Mbuyiseli Duna, and Phumza Gcayiya to counteract Morrison and Winspear's version of events.

Snyman, who was employed as a restaurant manager for McDonald’s at the Bellville branch, testified that she was at the restaurant where the incident happened.

She said when she arrived at the restaurant, she noticed a wet floor notice which was placed in the path on the floor next to the new McCafé Coffee Bar. According to her, nobody was busy mopping the floor when she arrived at the restaurant.

Duna testified that there were two wet floor notices, one which was approximately three meters away from where Morrison was seated and the other one was on the wet floor close to the entrance of the restaurant, which according to Duna, ought to have been noticed by Morrison when she entered the restaurant.

However, the shift manager, Gcayiya, gave a different testimony and said there were no wet floor notices in the area where Morrison was lying. Instead, she said the wet floor notices were positioned in another area.

Looking at the evidence, Judge Pearl Deidré Andrews said the person who was in the best position to assist the case, “the lady with the mop”, was not called to give evidence as she had apparently witnessed the incident.

"Consequently, I am not persuaded that the defendant (MSA Devco) took reasonable steps to prevent the incident from occurring," said Judge Andrews.

Judge Andrews ordered MSA Devco to pay Morrison for damages after her fall at the restaurant.

However, the trial regarding the assessment of these damages has been postponed.

sinenhlanhla.masilela@iol.co.za

IOL