Shufersal Found Liable for Customer Injury, Ordered to Pay Compensation

A Beersheba court has ruled that the Israeli supermarket chain Shufersal must pay significant compensation to a customer who was injured after slipping on cleaning fluid in June 2018. The incident occurred at a Beersheba branch of the supermarket.

The plaintiff sustained an injury to her dominant hand, resulting in a permanent functional disability of 11.8%. She filed a lawsuit in 2022 seeking damages.

Shufersal denied responsibility, initially attempting to blame the cleaning company servicing the branch and alleging the customer was grossly negligent for proceeding despite seeing the cleaning in progress. The supermarket chain also filed a third-party claim against the cleaning service.

However, the cleaning company's lawyers argued that their modern equipment left no excess moisture and that another shopper might have spilled the liquid. They also pointed to their contract, which limited their liability to direct errors made by their staff.

Judge Yaron Golan ruled in favor of the injured customer, noting that Shufersal's refusal to provide security camera footage was interpreted as an attempt to conceal evidence, which prejudiced their case. The court dismissed Shufersal's claims against the cleaning company, as no fault was proven on their part.

Shufersal was ordered to pay approximately 170,000 shekels in compensation, minus a 5% contribution attributed to the plaintiff's own negligence. Additionally, the supermarket chain must cover 39,000 shekels in legal costs for the plaintiff and 15,000 shekels in expenses for the cleaning company. Lawyers for the injured customer highlighted the ruling's importance for supermarket safety standards, while the cleaning company's defense stated the court prevented large chains from unfairly shifting blame to contractors.