At work, your employer is under a pretty heavy duty to look after your health and safety, and make sure you are not injured whilst working. When I say heavy, I mean there are a lot of workplace rules and regulations that employers must abide by, and breaching any of these regulations can pave the way to you making a work injury claim for personal compensation.
Let’s look at crushing injuries caused in the workplace
The biggest example will be work equipment. Work equipment is covered by The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998. Let’s look at a few regulations and how they can apply – hopefully this should give you some insight to maybe ‘self assess’ whether you have a claim or not:
Suitability / Broken Equipment
4 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is so constructed or adapted as to be suitable for the purpose for which it is used or provided.
(4) In this regulation “suitable” means suitable in any respect which it is reasonably foreseeable will affect the health or safety of any person.
5 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.
The above may be applicable where work equipment is not suitable and can therefore cause a crushing injury, or where a piece of machinery is broken and so causes a crushing injury. A simple example would be if a part of machine where to fall off and land on your hand.
Training
9 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that all persons who use work equipment have received adequate training for purposes of health and safety, including training in the methods which may be adopted when using the work equipment, any risks which such use may entail and precautions to be taken.
Training is obviously very, very vital. If you don’t know how to use a piece of machinery safely, and you are perhaps cleaning it and place your hand in something that then moves and crushes your hand, there could be a claim to make.
Access to Dangerous Parts
11 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that measures are taken in accordance with paragraph (2) which are effective — (a)to prevent access to any dangerous part of machinery or to any rotating stock-bar; or (b)to stop the movement of any dangerous part of machinery or rotating stock-bar before any part of a person enters a danger zone.
(2) The measures required by paragraph (1) shall consist of – (a)the provision of fixed guards enclosing every dangerous part or rotating stock-bar where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so, but where or to the extent that it is not, then (b)the provision of other guards or protection devices where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so, but where or to the extent that it is not, then (c) the provision of jigs, holders, push-sticks or similar protection appliances used in conjunction with the machinery where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so, but where or to the extent that it is not, then (d) the provision of information, instruction, training and supervision.
12 — (1) Every employer shall take measures to ensure that the exposure of a person using work equipment to any risk to his health or safety from any hazard specified in paragraph (3) is either prevented, or, where that is not reasonably practicable, adequately controlled.
This part of the regulations are fairly self explanatory to cover the breadth of making sure you can’t accidentally put your hand in something that will cause a crushing injury. The duty is there to make sure you cannot inadvertently access a dangerous part – so if you do, you may have a claim for compensation.
Stop Controls / Emergency Stop Controls / Isolation
15 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that, where appropriate, work equipment is provided with one or more readily accessible controls the operation of which will bring the work equipment to a safe condition in a safe manner.
16 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that, where appropriate, work equipment is provided with one or more readily accessible emergency stop controls unless it is not necessary by reason of the nature of the hazards and the time taken for the work equipment to come to a complete stop as a result of the action of any control provided by virtue of regulation 15(1).
19 — (1) Every employer shall ensure that where appropriate work equipment is provided with suitable means to isolate it from all its sources of energy.
Sometimes, it’s impossible to prevent all areas from being inadvertently accessed. Stop controls, or emergency stop controls, are designed to prevent or limit an injury by cutting off any motion of a piece of equipment when a dangerous occurrence happens. If your hand became stuck and there was something coming towards you, an emergency stop control should hopefully prevent an injury.
As always, for free legal advice call our claims helpline 0800 634 7575 today.
Reference: www.legislation.gov.uk
