A commuter who is suing Tube bosses for £25 million after losing her arm and a leg in an accident ‘placed herself in a position of danger’, lawyers have said.
Sarah de Lagarde, 47, had her right arm and right leg partially removed after she was run over by two Northern Line trains at High Barnet in September 2022.
Ms de Lagarde, who is the global head of corporate affairs at City investment firm Janus Henderson, fell asleep while on the train home at around 10pm when she was woken up by a fellow passenger.
She got off the train and then slipped over, falling down the gap between the train and the platform.
She then called out for help but no one heard her, and she was struck by two different trains.
Ms de Lagarde is now suing London Underground Ltd (LUL), which is part of Transport for London (TfL).
In defence documents submitted to the Royal Courts of Justice and seen by the Evening Standard, TfL has denied liability and claimed she was ‘negligent’ in the way she exited the train and ‘placed herself in a position of danger’.
The documents said: ‘The claimant took a few steps forward on to the platform and then took a few steps backwards, before the rear of her body struck the rear side of the door of the train she had exited from.
‘The claimant continued to move backwards and, approximately seven seconds after exiting the train, she fell into the gap between carriages five and six of the train.’
Lawyers for TfL said shortly afterwards, the driver walked through the train to start his return journey and saw her brown bag wedged between the carriage and platform.
He gave it to lost property but did not investigate it further as the driver ‘did not see or hear the claimant at that point and did not look into the gap, having no reason to do so’.
The documents said the train set off at about 10pm, running over Ms de Lagarde’s right arm.
About five minutes later, a second Northern line train arrived at platform three, crushing Ms de Lagarde’s right leg under its wheels.
Latest London news
- Hottest tube line forecasted where passengers face 32°C carriage hell
- Attacker pulls out huge knife and lunges at young woman in London park
- First picture of teen shot dead after ‘running for his life’ in north London
To get the latest news from the capital visit Metro’s London news hub.
Speaking outside the Royal Courts of Justice previously, Ms de Lagarde said: ‘I was commuting home from work. I fell through the gap. I was run over and crushed by not one, but two London underground trains on the Northern Line.
‘Miraculously, I survived, but it cost me dearly – the first train took my arm, and the second train took my leg.
‘That night I also lost my mobility, my independence, my dignity and, above all, my ability to hug my two young children with both arms.’
An eight-week trial has been set for 2027 and a further hearing is set to take place in September.
Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.
