Travelling funfair worker who says his foot was deformed after falling from a gigantic ride called Freakout could receive £100,000 after suing his boss in the High Court

• Michael James, 41, was helping his boss dismantle the £350,000 spinning ride

A travelling funfair worker who claims his foot was left deformed after falling 8ft from a giant ride has won his fight for compensation and could receive £100,000. 

Michael James, 41, was helping his boss dismantle the £350,000 spinning ride called ‘Freakout’ at a site in Essex in 2019 when he slipped from a wet rail and crashed to the ground.

Mr James sustained serious injuries, including fractures and multiple dislocations, which left his foot ‘obviously deformed’ and left him unable to work and using a walking stick. 

He sued his former employer at the Shaw’s Leisure travelling funfair and after a trial at the High Court in London has now been awarded a damages payout by a judge.

The exact amount he will receive is yet to be decided, but according to court documents Mr James, of Plumstead in south London, is claiming up to £100,000 for his injuries.

Michael James sustained serious injuries which left his foot ‘obviously deformed’ left him using a walking stick

Mr James, 41, was helping his boss dismantle the £350,000 spinning ride called ‘Freakout’

The ‘Freakout’, a 21 metre high twist on the classic pirates ship ride, featuring four swinging cars on a pendulum which swings and rotates

The court heard Mr James had been working for Surrey family-owned fairground firm Shaw’s Leisure for about five months when he suffered his accident in September 2019.

He was working with his boss Asa Shaw to dismantle the ‘Freakout’, a 21 metre high twist on the classic pirates ship ride, featuring four swinging cars on a pendulum which swings and rotates, spinning thrillseekers around.

But Mr James was not wearing a harness and fell when a seized nut he was trying to turn with Mr Shaw suddenly loosened, causing him to lose his balance and slip, falling about 8ft to the ground.

Mr James was left lying on the wet ground, had to wait two hours for an ambulance and said he did not see his former boss Mr Shaw since he drove off from the fairground in Burnham-on-Crouch afterwards, until they faced each other in court.

Mr James fractured the bone on the top of his right foot and dislocated all of his toes, leaving him initially with an ‘obvious severe deformity,’ his lawyers said in claim documents.

He underwent surgery to insert wire into his foot and again for the insertion of plates and screws, finally being discharged from hospital about three weeks after his fall.

Since then, the former roofer has continued to struggle with his mobility, uses a walking stick, suffers constant pain in his right foot and is restricted in his ability to work while standing up.

Suing Shaw’s Leisure, which has been operating funfairs for over 60 years, he claimed that he had had ‘no choice’ other than to help Mr Shaw when he asked for help in loosening the seized nut.

But Mr James said he should not have been made to stand and work on a wet handrail at height without protective equipment, because it was ‘foreseeably dangerous.’

Giving evidence, Mr Shaw – who was Mr James’ day to day boss, the general manager of the funfair company and son of its owner – denied any blame, claiming he was ‘very safety conscious.’

Mr James said he should not have been made to stand and work on a wet handrail at height without protective equipment, because it was ‘foreseeably dangerous’

Suing Shaw’s Leisure, Mr James claimed that he had had ‘no choice’ other than to help Mr Shaw when he asked for help in loosening the seized nut

The judge said Mr James (pictured) is entitled to compensation from his former employer

He said he had been trying to loosen the nut himself and had gone to his cab to get another tool when it became stuck, telling Mr James to leave it to him.

When he returned, Mr James had already fallen.

‘I was very cross because what he had done, he caused himself,’ he told the judge.

‘It was stupidity. I had no sympathy for him because it was stupidity. Perhaps that’s a bit harsh, but that’s the way I looked at it.’

Ruling on the case, the judge, Senior Master Jeremy Cook, accepted Mr James’ account as the truth and found that Mr Shaw had fabricated his story to dodge the blame.

‘I find it inherently unlikely that a good worker like the claimant, who usually did as he was told and followed directions, would take it upon himself to attempt to remove the nut,’ he said.

‘So having considered the entirety of the evidence in context I conclude that the claimant’s account of the accident is correct and that Mr Shaw has made up his account to minimise the defendant’s liability.

‘In the circumstances I have no hesitation in concluding that this was an unsafe system of work. The claimant should not have been asked to perform this task because it was foreseeably dangerous.’

The judge said Mr James is entitled to compensation from his former employer, but the amount will be decided at a later date, if not agreed between the parties outside of court.

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