Woman's faulty bed sex fall claim rejected at High Court Published duration 9 November 2018

image copyright Getty Images image caption Claire Busby said her super king-size double divan was in a "defective state" (stock image)

A woman left paralysed after being "catapulted" from her new bed during sex has lost a seven-figure damages claim.

Claire Busby, 46, suffered spinal injuries when she landed on her head after shifting position and falling from the super king-size double divan.

She said a "defective" product supplied by Berkshire Bed Company, trading as Beds Are Uzzz, was to blame.

But a High Court judge ruled the case was a "tragic accident".

Rejecting her case, Judge Barry Cotter found the bed was "not defective", and the claim had failed.

'Heard a snap'

The court previously heard Ms Busby, of Maidenhead, Berkshire, was having sex with her then partner John Marshall a week after the bed was delivered.

image copyright PA image caption Claire Busby suffered spinal injuries when she fell from the super king-size double divan

She told the court she had been kneeling before she "swung her legs" out from underneath her, causing the bed to give way.

"I spun around, I put my hand down and then I felt like I was catapulted off the back," she said.

"I fell to the side and heard what felt like a spring in my body snap".

Mr Marshall said he had been badly affected by the accident,

'Most unfortunate positioning'

Ms Busby claimed the bed had not been properly assembled when it was received in August 2013 - which was denied by lawyers for the company.

The firm had argued the lovers had "simply lost balance and toppled backwards" as a result of being too close to the edge of the mattress.

In his ruling, Judge Cotter said the "simple accident" was caused by "a most unfortunate and unusual combination of positioning on the bed and movement," he said.

The judge said Ms Busby had no means of support, other than placing her arm down on the bed, as she attempted to swing her legs around from underneath her in what was "not an easy manoeuvre".

He added: "Having carefully considered the totality of the evidence I am not satisfied that the difference in level between the two divans played any part in Ms Busby's loss of balance backwards.

"Rather, I am satisfied that this was a simple but tragic fall; she simply overbalanced probably in part because she was sitting on a mattress as opposed to a firm surface, and underestimated the amount of give underneath her body."

Richard Manders, director of Berkshire Bed Company, said: "We are delighted the court has ruled in our favour.

"We are sorry that Ms Busby was injured and we wish her and her family well for the future."