Under Section 2 of the Health and safety at work act 1974 employers are under a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the health safety and welfare of their employees at work is maintained. Therefore, if you have been injured whilst at work you may be entitled to compensation. Certain injuries sustained at work can be incredibly debilitating and can, of course, affect your future job prospects and therefore compensation may be a necessity.
There are many different ways that you can be injured at work especially taking in to account the range of industries and sectors that are out there. However, whether you work on a building site with extensive heavy machinery or you’re working as a care worker there is always the risk of sustaining an injury.
Of course in the majority of cases your employer will have protected you against these by putting in place policies, guidelines and by providing adequate training. However, it is hard to make everything 100% safe and therefore sometimes these measures simply do not protect you against danger. So who do you pursue if you are injured at work?
Normally it will be your employer- but don’t panic! You cannot be laid off for pursuing a claim as it is your legal right to do so. Under the Employers Liability Act, it is compulsory for employers to have liability insurance to cover exactly these types of claims. Therefore, many large companies will often encourage you to make a claim as its the insurers that will investigate and pay out for the claim.
Of course there are factors that need to be considered when deciding whether you have a claim – these include things such as when you were last trained, the specific accident circumstances and the extent of the injuries suffered. A common question is what happens if it is a fellow colleague that has injured you. For example; a colleague walked away from a ladder that you were working up and consequently you fell. In this occasion you will not be pursuing that person who walked away but your employer as they are vicarious liable for the accident. This means that your employer is liable for negligence caused by another employee (within reason!) at work – this is also why employers have extensive policies in place to ensure employees act responsibly whilst at work.
So, if you feel that you have been injured at work because of somebody else’s negligence at work (either your employers direct or a fellow colleague) please contact us today. We have extensive experience in accidents at work and can ensure things get moving as soon as possible.
