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When it comes to accident at work claims, it’s natural to wonder how much compensation you could receive.
Many different accidents can happen in the workplace, including slips, trips, and falls and being struck by moving objects or vehicles. As we shall see in this guide, your employer has a legal duty to, as much as reasonably possible, prevent incidents like this from happening.
If they fail to do so, you may be able to make a personal injury claim for the effects of their negligence on your physical, mental, and financial wellbeing.
This is an area in which our panel of personal injury solicitors have significant experience and expertise, and they can help you to get the full amount of compensation you deserve. For more information, please read on, or. if you prefer, contact our advisors directly:
- Call us on 0333 000 0729
- Contact us via our query page
- Using the Live Chat feature below anytime
Jump to a Section:
- Eligibility Criteria For Accident At Work Claims
- Injury At Work Advice – Examples Of Evidence
- Accident At Work Claims Time Limit
- Accidents At Work Compensation Examples
- No Win No Fee Accident At Work Claims
Eligibility Criteria For Accident At Work Claims
While you are in the workplace, your employer owes you a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Per this duty, they must take reasonable steps to help prevent you from coming to harm. This could include ensuring you have been provided appropriate training to complete your work duties and risk assessing the workplace regularly.
If they fail to do so, it is said that they “breach” this duty. In other words, they don’t meet the standards expected of them. In some cases, this breach can to lead injuries or worse.
All accident at work claims need to meet the following eligibility requirements in order to be valid:
- You were employed by the third-party in question.
- They breached their duty of care.
- This breach of duty caused you harm that could have been prevented.
To discuss the eligibility of your case today, you can contact one of the advisors on our team using the details above.
What Types of Accidents At Work Could I Potentially Claim For?
There are many ways that you could be injured in an accident at work. Some examples may include:
- Ladder accidents – Various jobs involve having to use a ladder, such as retail jobs or if you work in a warehouse. If your employer was aware of a faulty ladder but had taken no steps to fix or replace it, this could lead to you falling off a ladder and injuring yourself.
- Slips and trips – Your employer may also be liable if you tripped or slipped at work. For example, if your employer failed to secure some cable wires, this could cause you to trip on them and suffer a leg injury.
- Defective machinery – If your employer failed to regularly maintain vital machinery at your job, this could lead to it malfunctioning and you could become injured.
No matter the nature of the accident or the injuries you suffered, you must prove that your injuries were directly caused by your employer.
Contact our advisors today to find out whether you may be eligible for compensation. They may also be able to connect you to a work injury lawyer from our panel.
Injury At Work Advice – Examples Of Evidence
In order to make a successful injury at work claim, you will need evidence to improve your chances of being awarded compensation. Whether you suffered harm from a slip, trip or fall, or a manual handling injury, it is still essential that you can provide proof of your injuries and the duty breach that caused them.
After an injury at work, our advice would be to gather some of the following forms of evidence:
- Witness contact details: Ask for the contact information of any witnesses to your accident. Their statements can provide evidence of what happened and who was liable.
- Medical evidence: A medical professional can put together a report that proves the extent of your injuries. Hospital records can also show that you were injured.
- Photographs: You could gather photographic evidence of your injuries and any hazards in the workplace that may have caused your accident.
- Media: You could request footage from CCTV cameras if your workplace has any CCTV installed on the premises.
- Workplace logbook: Any workplace with ten or more employees should have an accident logbook on site where details of your accident should be recorded. This could be used a evidence of your claim.
Speak to our advisors for free advice on gathering evidence. Furthermore, they could put you in touch with an expert accident at work solicitor from our panel.
Accident At Work Claims Time Limit
There is a three-year accident at work claim time limit. This runs from the accident date and is set out in the Limitation Act 1980. However, some accident at work claims will have exceptions applied to them. These include:
- Those who lack the mental capability to handle their own claim will have the time limit suspended. In the event that they regain this mental capability, the time limit will run from the date of recovery.
- Those injured as minors will have the time limit suspended until their 18th birthday, from which they will then have until their 21st birthday to begin a claim.
The court can also appoint a litigation friend to claim on the injured party’s behalf, at which point the timeline will resume.
To see whether you are still within the time limit to start a personal injury claim, you can contact our team of advisors.
Accidents At Work Compensation Examples
Payouts for successful accident at work claims usually include general damages and special damages. General damages compensate you for the pain and suffering caused by your work accident injuries.
The table below includes some accidents at work compensation examples from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This is an official text that gathers compensation amounts from previous cases and breaks them down according to injury type and prognosis.
Take note that the table below should be viewed as a guide only and the first entry in the table is not taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Severity | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Injuries Plus Special Damages | Very Severe | Up to £1,000,000 or more | Not a JCG figure. |
| Paralysis | Tetraplegia (also known as Quadriplegia) | £396,140 to £493,000 | Mid-range covers cases where person feels no physical pain, is fully aware their disability, will likely live for 25 years or more, has retained their senses, and needs help with bodily functions. More pain may move the value to the higher end, while loss of awareness may decrease it. |
| Paraplegia | £267,340 to £346,890 | Value will change according to extent of pain, degree of independence, depression, life expectancy, and impact on sexual function. | |
| Shorter Durations | £60,210 | Includes cases where the person dies within a short period for unrelated reasons. | |
| Neck | Severe (iii) | £55,500 to £68,330 | Fractures, dislocations, severe soft tissue damage, and/or ruptured tendons that lead to chronic conditions and significant and permanent disability of a permanent nature. |
| Moderate (i) | £30,500 to £46,970 | Includes fractures or dislocations which cause severe and immediate symptoms. Spinal fusion may be necessary. | |
| Back | Severe (iii) | £47,320 to £85,100 | Disc lesions, fractures, or soft tissue injuries leading to long-term disability that may be painful, impair agility and sexual function, or cause depression, personality changes, unemployability, or an increased arthritis risk. |
| Moderate (i) | £33,880 to £47,320 | Cases where residual disability is of less severity than that in (iii) above. | |
| Wrist | b) | £29,900 to £47,810 | Significant and permanent disability that allows for some useful movement. |
| Ankle | Severe | £38,210 to £61,090 | Long period of treatment, in plaster, or with pins and plates inserted. Significant residual disability remains in the form of ankle instability and a limited ability to walk. |
If you successfully receive general damages, then you may also receive special damages as part of your compensation for an accident at work. They compensate you for the expenses or financial losses you’ve experienced due to your injuries. Examples of losses that may be covered by your claim include:
- Loss of earnings if your injuries have forced you to take unpaid time off work.
- The cost of medicines, treatments, or physiotherapy.
- Travel expenses to medical appointments.
Evidence to help you claim special damages as part of your compensation may include documents such as bank statements or wage slips.
Contact our advisors for free today for more advice on how much work accident compensation you could potentially claim. You can find their details at the top of this guide.
No Win No Fee Accident At Work Claims
One of the key features associated with our service is that our panel of accident at work solicitors can work on your case under a No Win No Fee arrangement. This means that anyone with a valid claim can seek compensation, irrespective of their financial situation.
Under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), you will only need to pay legal fees to your solicitor if they manage to successfully secure compensation for you. This gives you peace of mind and assures you that we will only take on your case if it has genuine prospects.
To get started, speak to an advisor right now for a free initial consultation. There’s no obligation when you speak to them, and you can ask as many questions as you wish until you feel comfortable proceeding.
- Call us on 0333 000 0729
- Contact us via our query page
- Using the Live Chat feature below anytime
Learn More About Accident At Work Claims
Expenses and benefits for compensation for injuries at work
This takes you to the UK Government website, where you will find information on compensation for work injuries. You will find out whether you need to report such an incident to HM Revenue & Customs.
Citizens Advice Accidents at work overview
This link takes you to the Citizens Advice website, where you will find plenty of helpful information regarding accidents at work, including getting Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) when you cannot work.
Government’s Health and safety at work
This takes you to the Government’s A-Z guide on health and safety at work, including fire safety in the workplace, Health and Safety Executive (HSE), workplace temperatures, smoking at work, running a business from home, recruitment and disabled people, health and safety using farm vehicles and machinery, and health and safety on ships.
HSE Information about health and safety at work
This is a link to the UK’s official Health and Safety Executive (HSE) website. It has lots of information on health and safety at work.
NI Direct Accidents in the workplace
This link provides plenty of useful information for those in Northern Ireland that suffer accidents in the workplace, including reporting an accident at work, accident at work sick pay, and where you can get help.
Below, you can find some other guides that you may find useful:
- If you’ve stepped on a nail at work, this guide offers insight into your legal rights. Find out if you can claim compensation, average compensation payouts for foot injuries, and how to make a No Win No Fee claim.
- If you’ve suffered an injury at work caused by an accident with a pallet truck, you could be entitled to compensation. Learn all about your legal rights and potential compensation payouts here.
- Tiredness and fatigue can be major causes of accidents at work. You can head here to find out more in our detailed guide and what your legal rights are if this is the main cause of your injury.
Thank you for reading our guide to accident at work claims.
