Amateur body builder, 58, sues Dragon’s Den star Duncan Bannatyne’s health clubs for £200,000 after he says he tore tricep at gym when he slipped on wet floor doing a press up

• John Plummer, 58, claims he tore a tricep when he slipped on a wet floor 
• He claims the injury left him with reduced strength and later depression 
• According to a High Court writ, Plummer is suing Bannatyne Group PLC
• The Bannatyne Group admitted liability but said the value of the claim was ‘nil’ 

Dragon’s Den star Duncan Bannatyne’s club is being sued for more than £200,000 after an amateur body builder was injured in a fall at a gym.

John Plummer, 58, says he tore the tricep in his left arm when his legs slipped from under him on a wet floor as he warmed up with a press-up.

This left him with permanently reduced strength in his elbow, and he went on to suffer depression, according to a writ issued in London’s High Court.

John Plummer, 58, from Chester-le-Street says he tore the tricep in his left arm when his legs slipped from under him on a wet floor as he warmed up with a press-up

Insurers for the Bannatyne Group plc have admitted liability for the accident on November 28 2017, the company disputes his claim for past and future losses, and values his claim at…nil

Mr Plummer, of Chester-le-Street, near Durham, says the accident happened in his local Bannatyne’s gym, pictured, after he started a press up as part of his warm-up, as he held weights on the top shelf of a three-level weight shelf

But although insurers for the Bannatyne Group plc have admitted liability for the accident on November 28 2017, the company disputes his claim for past and future losses, and values his claim at…nil.

Now the High Court has ordered handyman Mr Plummer to disclose how much he earned for the three years before the accident, and a complete set of his doctor, hospital, and treatment records. The case has also been transferred to the Newcastle-upon-Tyne County Court.

Mr Plummer, of Chester-le-Street, near Durham, says the accident happened in his local Bannatyne’s gym after he started a press up as part of his warm-up, as he held weights on the top shelf of a three-level weight shelf.

Suddenly his legs slipped on the wet floor and he fell, with all the weight on his left arm, he says. He accuses the company of negligence, saying the floor was wet, slippery and dangerous, and it failed to put up warning notices, cordon off the area, failed to stop him from exercising there, and exposed him to danger and ‘a trap’.

His claim for damages includes the cost of treatment during a trip to Cambodia, and the cost of massage in the UK. The papers state that he usually spends the months of December to March abroad.

The health club agrees that its insurers admitted liability in May 2018, but says Mr Plummer must prove the nature and extent of the injury and should also prove the costs of medical treatment, care and assistance, and his losses.

The health club denies his financial claims, and values his lawsuit, totalling £229.363.93 at zero.

His claim for damages includes the cost of treatment during a trip to Cambodia, and the cost of massage in the UK. The papers state that he usually spends the months of December to March abroad

Mr Plummer, whose partner Michelle Thompson runs a hair dressing salon, is described in the court documents as earning an income from three rental properties and before the injury used to carry out maintenance and odd jobs on them.

But since damaging his elbow, he had to bring in contractors to do the work, he says.

He also claims in the court papers that he had been planning to take part in an over-50s body building competition but had to put the plans on hold because he could not train as well in the gym after his accident.

Mr Bannatyne, 73, started his business career with an ice cream van and became highly successful, building up a string of nursing homes, a children’s nursery chain, and health clubs.

The Bannatyne Group is the largest independent chain of health clubs with 71 sites as well as dozens of spas.

He was a familiar face on the television programme Dragon’s Den, appearing between 2005 and 2015, and also took part in I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! And The Real Marigold Hotel

In 2017 he married his third wife, glamorous Uzbekistan-born dental hygienist Nigora Whitehorn, 41,

Mr Plummer declined to comment and Bannatyne Group was contacted by MailOnline.

A company spokesperson for the Bannatyne Group told MailOnline: ‘We cannot comment on ongoing court cases’.

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