Court
S'pore woman hit by falling shop panel in Jurong West while cycling wins negligence suit against store owner
The panel which was made of polycarbonate was estimated to weigh 10kg.
June 24, 2026, 12:33 PM
Top photo from court documents and Mothership reader
A woman in her mid-60s who was hit by a falling shop panel after cycling past a grocer in Jurong West has won her negligence suit against the shop owner.
In a judgment published on Jun. 22, District Judge Evans Ng found that the defendant, Loch Grocer, whose sole shareholder and director is Lee Chee Hoon, was "wholly liable for the accident on Mar. 15, 2023".
Lee argued that Aminah had dislodged the panel while she was cycling past.
However, Judge Evans Ng said the claimant, Aminah Mohamed Kassim, "was cycling at a reasonable speed" and did not swerve to avoid any obstacles before the accident.
Fell off bicycle
Aminah was cycling from Jurong West Street 42 towards Jurong Spring Community Club in the late afternoon when the accident happened.
According to court documents, she said as she cycled past the shop unit at Block 507, Jurong West Street 52, "something hard hit her on her left from behind".
"The impact caused her to lose her balance, and she fell off her bicycle and hit her head against a wall."
Mothership previously reported that after the incident, Aminah went to see a doctor who prescribed her painkillers and told her to look out for signs of head injuries, such as vomiting.
However, the next morning, she vomited and complained of giddiness.
She was sent and admitted to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital.
The shop sells frozen food products and has both indoor and outdoor premises with freezers placed at the outdoor premises underneath a canopy.
Photo from court documents
Fallen shop panel's estimated weight was 10kg
Court documents noted that the shop is west-facing and sunlight would beat down on the freezers from around 2pm.
To shield the freezers, the shop would put up translucent panels in the afternoon.
The rectangular panels were made of polycarbonate, and each was around 2m high and 1.5m wide.
Three panels were put up on the day of the accident.
According to the judgment, Lee said the panels were "very light" and "can be picked up by a child".
However, the judge said: "It is unclear what specimen of a child Mr Lee has in mind."
He estimated the thickness of each panel to be at least 3mm and used an estimated density of polycarbonate to conclude that each panel should have weighed at least 10kg.
Photo from Mothership reader
Defendant owes duty to secure items
The judge added that the defendant owed a duty to take reasonable care to secure items within the shop's control, such as the panels, for the safety of visitors and other parties.
He said that the set-up was "inherently unstable and unreliable" as the height of each panel exceeded the canopy and was compressed into an arch, held between the shop's canopy and the ground.
"A panel with its concave face towards the Shop is likely to fall sharply and abruptly towards the outside if it is unintentionally dislodged."
Footage from a closed-circuit television video (CCTV) camera showed Aminah cycling past the last panel as it "disappeared" from view.
An employee who was deep within the indoor premises did not see or hear the accident.
The judge added that "any passer-by within a metre or so is unlikely to be able to react fast enough to avoid being hit".
Photo from Mothership reader
Theories on how panel fell
Aminah claimed a strong wind could have dislodged the panel, while Lee alleged that Aminah's bicycle had dislodged the panel.
The judge rejected both Aminah's and Lee's theories on how the last panel dislodged.
He said that the outdoor fabric banners were not shown to be fluttering.
He added that a metal trolley was protruding from the middle of the storefront, which meant Aminah would have approached the panel with a sufficient margin after clearing the trolley.
This meant that she was unlikely to have cycled into the panel either.
The judge noted: "I also find that the way in which the panel dropped out of view in the video was inconsistent with what would have happened had the front wheel or the handlebars of her bicycle hit its vertical edge."
He said Lee was given the chance to explain, but the latter could only "guess".
He added that Lee did not identify the employee who put up the sign or get them to testify.
No contributory negligence
Judge Ng said he found no contributory negligence on Aminah's part, as there was no prohibition against cycling on the pathway.
He added that there was no legal requirement for cyclists to wear a helmet if they were not cycling on a road.
"I have reviewed the photographs taken of the area too, and it does not seem inappropriate for cyclists to travel on the relevant pathway and take the precise route that Mdm Aminah did, provided they proceed at a reasonable speed and keep a proper lookout for others."
Judge Ng noted that the costs of the trial shall be reserved until the assessment of damages, which will be conducted in a separate hearing.
