Hilton agrees to pay ex-chef in slip and fall claim

HILTON TRINIDAD LTD has agreed to compensate one of its former junior chefs in a legal settlement resolving her personal injury claim.

Phillipa Nottingham, a 54-year-old former Commis Chef II, was injured in a fall at the hotel on December 31, 2017.

She claimed the incident occurred while she was performing her job duties, pushing a trolley between the hotel’s main kitchen and the bridge kitchen, when she slipped on wet tiles near the swimming pool.

She was treated at Port of Spain General Hospital for a fractured right wrist and later diagnosed with nerve damage. The injury, she alleged, left her unable to continue working as a chef. She was terminated by Hilton in October 2020 and received just over $48,000 in workers’ compensation.

Nottingham sought damages including loss of future earnings, pain and suffering, and breach of the employer's duty of care.

However, in its defence, Hilton denied liability, arguing that Nottingham deviated from her assigned duties, took a “shortcut” to the bridge kitchen, and failed to wear proper footwear. The hotel also contested the cause and extent of her injuries, insisting the area in question was safe and equipped with non-slip tiles.

A trial on June 10 was aborted when attorneys for both sides informed Justice Frank Seepersad they had arrived at an agreement.

Despite the hotel’s denial of responsibility, the matter was settled without an admission of liability. The agreement includes a confidentiality clause, barring the parties from disclosing the settlement terms. A 28-day stay of execution has been granted.

Criston J Williams and Chantan Alleyne-Charles represented Nottingham, while Ramnarine Mungroo, Raphael Morton-Gittens and Christian Matthew Chandler represented Hilton Trinidad Ltd.