Training is important – without it, you wouldn’t really be able to know how to do certain things safely and correctly. In a workplace setting it is invaluable and it’s a requirement when it comes to anything that could cause you harm in the workplace.
Many of our own clients have had accidents at work because they have been poorly trained or not trained at all – you can make a claim for compensation if this has happened to you.
Don’t feel that it was your own fault because it was something you consider daft – if you didn’t know, you didn’t know; and if you’ve ended up injured, you should have known!
Alright, there is always an element of common sense. But here are some common examples of work injury claims that have been successful and were caused by a lack of training:
- Injuring your hand because you placed it in to a dangerous part of the machinery to retrieve a stuck job. If you weren’t trained to know that you should never put your hand in that part of the machine, how were you to know?
- Lifting a box and using your back as oppose to your knees, straining your back as a result – without manual handling training, how were you to know how to safely lift the load?
- Being injured by a piece of wood flying off and hitting you because you placed it in a saw, it hit a knot in the wood, and caused it to be thrown in to your body. Unless you were trained to know that appropriate clamps or help from a colleague to hold down the other end was required, how can you be to blame?
There are lots of examples, and it can come down to all sorts of different things, commonly:
- Inadequate / no training for using work equipment
- Inadequate / no training for the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) you have been provided with
- Inadequate / no training in manual handling
Ultimately, it’s your employer’s job to make sure that you are fully trained in how to do your job safely. Regular retraining / refresher training for certain things is also a requirement. Tests are a good way of making sure that the training you have received has gone in correctly, and you may be asked to sign something once you have received training; so only sign it if you feel you have been fully trained and you fell you are confident to do the task at hand.
If you have been injured at work through a lack of adequate training, you may have a strong case for claiming compensation from your employers insurance. Your employers have a legal obligation to have a policy of employers’ liability insurance. This insurance is there for the sole purposes of you making a claim from it if you are injured at work through no fault of your own, dependant on the circumstances. So don’t worry about suing your employer – they should have insurance, and it’s there to claim from.
You are also legally protected for making a claim. You cannot be sacked or treated any differently whatsoever, so don’t worry about doing it. In fact, we find that nowadays most employers are quite happy for you to make a claim as they have the insurance in place for the whole purposes of you making a claim from it. We get a lot of calls from people who have been told by their employers to get an injury lawyer and make a claim – it’s a common and simple process.
For advice as to whether you can make a claim, call our free claims helpline on 0800 634 75 75 today.
