Have you suffered an injury at work?

If the answer is yes then you may be entitled to make a claim for compensation.  This is an informative guide on what you need to do if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident whilst at work.

Your employer is also vicariously liable for the actions or failures of your co-workers which may have resulted in an accident because of their negligence.

If you have had an accident at work, you must report it to your employer as soon as possible and make sure they record it in the accident book. If they don’t do this, or if there isn’t an accident book, then make sure you write down the details of the accident and keep a copy for your records as this can help your case at a later date.

If you can’t report the accident because you are too ill, ask a colleague to do it for you.  You should also try and locate any witnesses to your accident and take photographs of where the accident took place or of any machinery or equipment which was defective as this will make it easier to build your claim.

There are other types of claims you can bring if your injury or illness has developed over time at work, such as a repetitive strain injury and upper limb disorders.

These types of injuries can affect the joints, muscles, nerves and tendons of the hands, arms and legs. They can be caused by:

• a physical overload from repeated use of the hands or limbs
• application of repeated pressure

You may be able to bring a claim if you can show:

• that there was a foreseeable risk of a clinical condition and your employer did not take adequate or reasonable steps to prevent the injury or illness from occurring over a period of time.

You can also bring a claim for work-related stress and whilst a personal injury claim for psychiatric injury can be quite difficult to prove, you may still have a claim.  In any event you should speak to your employer if you are experiencing any type of stress at work.

You must seek medical attention if you have suffered an injury and ensure that you provide accurate details of how you were injured as this will be recorded in your medical records and if you decide to bring a claim your employer’s representatives will be entitled to have access to your medical records so it is essential that all contemporaneous evidence is accurate and consistent with the accident circumstances.

If you think that conditions at your workplace are unsafe, talk to your trade union or contact the Health and Safety Executive. If you think you are in serious and immediate danger at work, you have the right to protect yourself.

We understand that it can become difficult for someone making a claim against their employer and to continue working for them and we can provide you with further advice on this issue if it is causing you problems at work or the injury or illness caused by your employer’s negligence  has led to you being dismissed at  work.

I represented a client who successfully recovered a claim for damages arising from an accident at work when he fell from a stool whilst stacking shelves.  The case was in dispute from the outset and settled only days before trial.  This is just an example of the wide ranging type of accidents at work we deal with at Nayyars Solicitors.

We specialise in claims involving accidents at work and you can get in touch with Nayyars Solicitors today and speak to a member of our team to see if you have a case.

Annie Rana.

Solicitor.