By Jo Anderson. Last Updated 31st July 2023. This guide will explain the various steps you could take during the accident at work claim process. In the workplace, your employer has a duty of care to take reasonably practicable steps to ensure the environment in which you work is safe and hygienic. Therefore, if your employer does breach their duty of care, and as a result, you are injured, they could be found to be liable. Also, under these circumstances, you may be eligible to make a compensation claim for your pain and suffering as well as financial losses resulting from your injuries.
Please continue reading for advice on the action you could take following an accident at work. Moreover, we will examine when you could make an accident at work claim and how much compensation could be awarded for different injuries.
The Accident At Work Claim Process Explained
Please contact us today if you believe your employer or former employer may owe you compensation for a workplace injury. An advisor can assess your case to see whether your claim could be valid. Depending upon the result of this assessment, our advisors could place you in contact with one of our personal injury lawyers.
Please use the details below to reach us:
- Call 0800 073 8801 to speak to an advisor
- Contact us online
- Or use the live support feature below to ask us a question
Select A Section
- Types Of Accidents At Work
- How Could An Accident At Work Injure You?
- When Could You Make An Accident At Work Claim?
- What Does The Accident At Work Claim Process Involve?
- Calculating An Accident At Work Claim
- Learn More About The Accident At Work Claim Process
Types Of Accidents At Work
Various accidents could occur in the workplace, for example:
- Slips, trips and falls
- A manual handling accident
- Being struck by a moving object
- Being struck by a vehicle
- Falling from a height
- An injury involving the use of heavy machinery
- Exposure to hazardous substances
There are various pieces of legislation that aim to prevent these types of accidents and keep workers safe:
- The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA) – This outlines the duty of care that employers owe to their employees. It states that they must take reasonably practicable steps to ensure the safety of their employees, such as providing proper training and ensuring maintenance is carried out in the correct time frame.
- The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 – This explains the duty of employers to carry out risk assessments.
- The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 – This provides guidance, mainly for employers, on avoiding, assessing and reducing the risk of injury from manual handling.
- The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 – This explains an employer’s duty to provide suitable personal protective equipment (PPE) to employees if a risk assessment indicates that PPE is required to minimise risk to a worker’s health and safety.
- The Work at Height Regulations 2005 – Aims to prevent falls from a height.
- The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 – refers to the prevention of defective work equipment.
Please get in touch with us at Accident Claims UK to see if you are eligible to begin the accident at work claim process.
How Could An Accident At Work Injure You?
An accident at work could result in various injuries depending on the cause. Some of these injuries may include:
- A head injury resulting in brain damage.
- Fractures and broken bones, such as a fractured leg.
- Soft tissue injuries.
- Chemical burns.
- Respiratory illnesses.
- A spinal injury, such as a slipped disc.
- A crush injury.
- A mental injury.
When Could You Make An Accident At Work Claim?
Upon beginning the accident at work claim process, it is important to determine whether you could be eligible to receive compensation.
The following statements must be true to potentially make a successful injury at work claim:
- Firstly, your employer owed you a duty of care at the time and place of the accident
- Secondly, they breached their duty of care.
- Finally, this breach caused an accident in which you sustained injuries.
How Long Do You Have To Claim For An Accident At Work?
The Limitation Act 1980 lays out the personal injury claims time limit. You generally have three years to start a claim, which begins from the date you were injured or the date you became aware of the connection between your injury and negligence.
There are a few exceptions to these time limits; contact our advisors to enquire further.
What Does The Accident At Work Claim Process Involve?
If you have had an accident at work and are eligible to pursue a personal injury claim, there are certain steps you can take and evidence you could collect to help support your case, such as:
- You could make a report of the accident in the accident book. A copy of this report could then be used as evidence in your claim, as it could provide crucial details about the accident.
- Collect the contact details of anyone who witnessed the accident, as they could provide a statement at a later date.
- Gather any video footage of the accident occurring, such as CCTV footage.
- Take photographs of the accident site and any visible injuries you’ve suffered.
- Request a copy of your medical records. This could help with proving the type of injury you suffered and the treatment you will need.
If you’re eligible to claim for an accident at work, one of our solicitors may be able to help you gather evidence to help support your case. They could also guide you through the personal injury claims process.
To see if one of our solicitors could help you, you can contact our advisory team today.
Calculating An Accident At Work Claim
For a successful accident at work, the payout could include up to two potential heads of claim: general and special damages.
For any physical or psychological pain and suffering, you could be compensated under general damages. Additionally, you could receive special damages for reimbursement of certain financial costs caused by your injuries. This could include past and future loss of earnings or the cost of adapting your home if your injuries caused disability. It is important that you keep evidence, such as bank records, payslips and receipts.
The compensation amounts in the table below are taken from the 16th edition Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), updated in April 2022. This covers general damages only. Accident at work solicitors use this document to assist them in valuing settlements for injuries. However, you should remember that the amount awarded for a claim is determined by its unique set of details.
| Injury And Severity | Notes On This Injury | Settlement |
|---|---|---|
| Brain Damage – Moderately Severe (b) | The person will need constant care, substantially depend on others and will be very seriously disabled. | £219,070 to £282,010 |
| Neck Injuries – Severe (a)(i) | The injury may be associated with spastic quadriparesis, incomplete paraplegia or where the person has little to no neck movement and severe headaches. | In the region of £148,330 |
| Neck Injuries – Severe (a)(ii) | These injuries can involve serious fractures which lead to disabilities of considerable severity. | £65,740 to £130,930 |
| Chest Injury (b) | A traumatic injury which leaves the person with permanent damage to the chest, lung(s), and/or heart. The person’s life expectancy will be reduced. | £65,740 to £100,670 |
| Chest Injury (c) | An injury to the chest and the lungs which causes damage and some continuing disability. | £31,310 to £54,830 |
| Hand Injury – Serious (e) | The injury could reduce the hand to about 50% capacity. | £29,000 to £61,910 |
| Hand Injury – Severe Fractures to Fingers (f) | Fractures which could potentially lead to partial amputation, disturbed sensation and reduced mechanical function. | Up to £36,740 |
| Arm Injuries – (b) | The person will suffer an injury that results in permanent and substantial disablement. | £39,170 to £59,860 |
| Elbow Injury – Less Severe (b) | The injury could have impaired the function of the elbow. However, major surgery will not be required. | £15,650 to £32,010 |
| Ankle Injury – Moderate (c) | This may include injuries such as fractures and ligamentous tears which result in less serious disabilities. | £13,740 to £26,590 |
To learn more about the accident at work claim process regarding compensation awards, contact our team of advisors.
Learn More About The Accident At Work Claim Process
For help navigating the accident at work claim process, it could prove beneficial to use a solicitor under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a type of No Win No Fee agreement. This means that you won’t have to make any payments for a No Win No Fee solicitor’s services should your claim be unsuccessful. Therefore, this agreement eliminates any upfront or ongoing payments for the services of a solicitor.
Alternatively, for a successful claim, a No Win No Fee solicitor can take a small amount of the compensation. This is calculated as a legally capped percentage and is often referred to as a success fee.
Please get in touch with us to discuss your claim. Our advisors can assess your claim and, upon a valid assessment, may be able to connect you with one of our No Win No Fee solicitors.
Please contact us today to see if you can claim compensation for your workplace injuries:
- Call 0800 073 8801 to speak with a claims advisor
- Contact us online
- Or you can ask us a question by using the live support feature below
Related Work Injury Claims
These guides to workplace accident claims from our website could provide you with further information:
Part-Time Worker Accident Claims Guide
How Much Compensation Can I Claim For A Leg Injury?
Will Suing My Employer Create Problems
These external links may also prove useful:
An NHS guide to broken leg injuries
The law relating to working at height – an HSE guide
A Health and Safety Executive guide to managing risks and risk assessments at work
Thank you for reading our guide to the accident at work claim process.