Electrician Jason Garner sues for $1m over Goldfields Plaza fall

An electrician claims a fall down stairs at a busy southeast Queensland shopping centre has left him unemployed and unable to enjoy life’s simple pleasures.

An electrician is suing his former employer, the manager of a southeast Queensland shopping centre and construction giant Hutchinson Builders for more than $1 million over claims a fall down an unsafe staircase has left him unemployed and unable to enjoy life.

Jason Paul Garner, 56, lodged the claim in the Supreme Court of Queensland on September 30 this year.

The claim conjointly names as defendants Garner’s employer, Glanmire outfit CBD Corporation Pty Ltd, trading as Brisbane Electrical Contractors and Engineering, Hutchinson Builders, and centre manager CHP Management Pty Ltd.

Goldfields Plaza Shopping Centre. Picture: Real Commercial

Hutchinson Builders were undertaking building work at Goldfields Plaza Shopping Centre and subcontracted Brisbane Electrical to carry out some of the job.

According to Mr Garner’s claim, the injury occurred at the shopping centre on November 12, 2018, inside a locked basement accessible via a set of stairs.

Mr Garner alleged the wooden stairs were “dimly lit, cluttered with rubbish, unstable” and did not have a hand railing.

About 10am, as he was ascending the stairs, “one of the stair goings shifted from under (Mr Garner) causing him to twist his left knee,” the claim said.

Mr Garner claimed he suffered a medial meniscus injury and soft tissue injury to the left knee and aggravation of degeneration to the left knee, as well as adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood.

The claim said Mr Garner underwent surgery on March 29, 2019 and still suffered from impaired use of the knee.

His injury and inability to work since June, 2020, following a WorkCover Queensland placement, allegedly left Mr Garner with “anxiety and depression, low self-esteem, feelings of hopelessness, social withdrawal, reduced confidence and motivation, relationship issues, increased irritability (and) reduced concentration and memory”, the claim stated.

Mr Garner claimed the three defendants were liable as the risk of injury from the stairs was “foreseeable (and) not insignificant”.

Mr Garner is seeking at least $1.1 million from the three defendants.

The exact quantum of his claim is not publicly accessible.

The defendants have filed their notice of intention to defend the claim, but not their full defence as at the time of publication.