Leeds County Court: Man behind council compensation claim "littered with inconsistencies" must pay £10,750

Christopher Bell brought a claim for personal injuries against Leeds City Council in July 2018, claiming he had fallen on an uneven manhole cover in the city centre and had sustained a knee injury. Seeking compensation of £10,000, he alleged that he had taken several weeks off work due to his injury and needed weeks of physiotherapy treatment.

The council defended the claim due to concerns over discrepancies in the documents and accounts given by the claimant, with council legal officers noting Mr Bell’s medical records showed he had reported an “excruciating” knee injury seven days before the alleged tripping accident.

The 33-year-old initially denied the earlier injury took place, but a recording of an NHS 111 call relating to that injury was obtained by the council. Further investigation revealed he had not taken any time off work after the alleged tripping incident and had only attended a single physiotherapy treatment session.

Mr Bell subsequently dropped his claim, stating he had been in a “bad place” with physical and mental health issues when he brought it. The council asked Leeds County Court to rule on whether he had been dishonest in pursuing the claim, in order to discourage further spurious claims and to protect public funds.

District Judge Judy Dawson found that Mr Bell’s case was “littered with inconsistencies and discrepancies” and the discrepancies were in every instance ones which would increase the potential value of his claim, concluding that the claim was “fundamentally dishonest”. Mr Bell, of Sunnybank Court, Yeadon, was ordered to pay the council’s legal costs of the proceedings in the sum of £10,750.

Coun Debra Coupar, the council’s deputy leader and executive member for resources, said: “This result is a clear warning to anyone considering making a spurious compensation claim against the council that we remain fully committed to safeguarding public funds and will always look to pursue such dishonest claims in the courts. I would like to thank the efforts of the council’s legal team and everyone who worked on this case, successfully protecting the interests of the people of Leeds and taxpayer money.”