Margaret Buxton, 84, was injured when automatic doors at the Tesco Extra Store in Nottingham trapped her right leg and threw her to the floor in May 2008.

Following the incident Mrs Buxton underwent surgery. She was readmitted to hospital in November 2008 after collapsing at home, but died in December 2008.

Mrs Buxton's daughter reported that Mrs Buxton had never fully recovered from the accident.

Solicitors in Nottingham were instructed and the case was settled out of court, with Tesco agreeing to pay undisclosed damages. A Tesco spokeswoman told the press: 'The safety of our staff and customers is always our top priority. This was a terrible accident that we investigated fully at the time and this is now settled with the family.'

Diane Massey of DSM Legal solicitors says "Although this is quite an unusal case it does highlight the fact that there are risks associated with being in a public environment.

Each year we deal with a large number of accidents involving supermarkets and stores. Most of the accidents are caused when people either trip over obstacles left in the aisles, or slip when spillages aren't cleared up. Elderly and disabled people can be particularly vulnerable to serious injury"