Adelaide council worker’s breathtaking compensation win after she tripped and fell while working from HOME

A council worker who broke her arm and injured her leg when she tripped over her puppy gate while working from home has won a workers’ compensation claim.

Lauren Vercoe, an asset programmer for the City of Charles Sturt Council in Adelaide, was working from home on September 19, 2022 when the accident happened.

Mrs Vercoe had installed a 60cm metal pet gate in front of the doorway of her conservatory, which she used as a home office.

The fence was installed to keep a colleague’s puppy, who she was dog-sitting, away from her rabbit.

Mrs Vercoe started work around 8.30am and got up about an hour later to make coffee.

But as she stepped over the fence, one of her feet hit it, causing her to lose her balance.

She tried to break her fall but failed and landed with her full weight on her right knee and right side, experiencing “immediate and extreme pain.”

Her husband called an ambulance and she was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital, where she was treated for a broken arm, a suspected dislocated shoulder and a sore right knee before being discharged later that day.

Her initial claim for damages against the Local Government Association Workers Compensation Scheme was dismissed in October 2022.

But a South Australian Employment Tribunal ruling on October 18 found Ms Vercoe’s injuries were a result of her work.

Assistant Vice President Magistrate Jodie Carrel found the fall occurred during an “authorized coffee break at her workplace.”

“This was something Ms Vercoe said she would have done if she had been working in the office around the same time as she had no set times for short breaks during her working day,” Magistrate Carrel noted.

The decision noted that it did not matter that Ms Vercoe had installed the pet fence without notifying her employer.

“The fact that Ms Vercoe caused the danger in the workplace the day before, and without the knowledge of the Council, does not rule out that it is an employment-related cause,” Magistrate Carrel noted.

The verdict was in line with Ms Vercoe’s claim that she ‘fell while on paid break’ and that her ‘injury arose out of or in the course of her employment’.

“Ms. Vercoe stated that it was irrelevant whether the municipality had supplied the pet fence, was aware of the pet fence, or instructed Ms. Vercoe to install the pet fence,” the ruling said.

‘There is simply nothing that limits the application of the workers’ compensation scheme as a result of an injury that occurred as a result of a characteristic of the workplace that is not known or permitted by an employer. ‘

Ms Vercoe’s husband called an ambulance and she was taken to the Royal Adelaide Hospital, where she was treated for a broken arm, a suspected dislocated shoulder and a sore right knee before being discharged later that day.

Two years before her accident, Ms. Vercoe changed her cover photo to a photo of a young girl with angel wings, accompanied by a quote from poet Erin Hanson (pictured)

In her testimony, Ms Vercoe also shared screenshots of a council video on flexible working arrangements that encouraged employees to ‘take regular breaks, ‘get outside in the sun’ and ‘enjoy time with the dog’.

Magistrate Carrel also criticized the law firm which initially rejected Ms Vercoe’s compensation claim for suggesting ‘she had exaggerated her evidence when it suited her’.

“Ms Vercoe is rather an employee who has done her best to continue after suffering a significant injury,” Magistrate Carrel noted.

Mrs Vercoe has returned to work after six weeks.

The amount of compensation she owes will be determined later.

Two years before her accident, Ms Vercoe changed her social media profile to a photo of a young girl with angel wings, accompanied by a quote from poet Erin Hanson.

‘What if I fall? Oh, but my love, what if you fly?’ reads the caption.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ms Vercoe for comment.