Woman seeks compensation over back injury

A woman who suffered a back injury has launched a legal battle in a bid to secure compensation.

In July 2006, Karen Imber fell on a patch of slippery algae that had accumulated on her driveway, the Guardian Series reports.

The 52-year-old suggests that the problem was caused by water and sewage leaks beneath her home.

A nearby sewage pipe was leaking and the resultant build-up of pressure had caused cracks in the water and gas mains which served her property.

Since experiencing the fall, she has had a number of medical complications.

She remarked: "When I fell I ruptured three discs and from the build-up of sewage I got an ulcer in my stomach and then the infection spread to my gall bladder, which I've had to have removed."

Ms Imber is suing Thames Water - which supplies around 8.5 million customers in the London and Thames Valley area.