An accident compensation payout has been awarded to a man who suffered chemical burns to his feet after purchasing a new pair of shoes.
Chris Heleine bought the shoes, called Sperry Top-Siders and made by American shoe manufacturer Collective Brands, from a shop in Leeds in April 2009.
Mr Heleine paid around £170 for the shoes, which he purchased to take on holiday to Menorca the next week. However, once he began wearing the new shoes, he noticed that painful blisters began to develop on the soles of his feet.
Within just a few hours of first putting on the shoes, the blisters had become so bad that Mr Heleine was forced to attend hospital every day for a week in order to undergo treatment. There, his blisters were treated and his dressings were replaced daily, but he has still been left with severe scarring on the soles of his feet as a result of the chemical burns caused by the footwear.
Mr Heleine appointed a solicitor who sent the footwear to a lab to be tested, and it was revealed that they contained a high level of a chemical which is known to be a possible skin irritant.
According to The Yorkshire Post, the victim requested an accident compensation payout from the US makers of the shoes, and the case has recently been settled out of court.