Areas being worked on by local authorities or maintenance agencies can always be dangerous. Holes in the ground could be a serious hazard, as well as exposed cables or bits of concrete and / or building materials, being a tripping hazard.
Generally the people doing the work will deploy cordons and cones to prevent people inadvertently accessing those areas and injuries themselves; which brings me on to the most common types of accident claims involving road or street works.
Inadequate Cordons / Barriers / Cones
If an area is not adequately secured by those doing the work, you may have a successful claim for personal injury compensation in the event you accidentally access a dangerous area and injure yourself. If you were to fall due to a hole or trip over something as the work site isn’t properly secured, those in charge may be liable.
Another common circumstance is where barriers have fallen to the ground due to not being secured properly. You may not notice this and you may end up tripping over a flattened barrier or post.
Dangerous Access Ways / Inadequate Warning
Sometimes we see designated traffic routes for pedestrians or cars to navigate through areas being worked on. Whilst these areas should be safe, debris or other materials could end up straying on to an access way and cause an injury.
These areas should be the safe routes, but that doesn’t mean to say that something won’t happen or something might be missed!
Sometimes warning signs may be appropriate if the ground in an area you can access is not what you’d usually expect. Perhaps it’s very gravely or rough if surface tarmac has been removed. An injury caused due to a failure to properly warn people of a potential hazard may also lead to you being eligible to claim compensation for injuries.
Who is at fault?
This can sometimes be tricky to determine. We’d instantly think the local authority if the work is being carried out on public land, but the liability may rest with a private company who may be contracted on behalf of a council to work on the area.
Sometimes there may be several companies doing different things on a site, which can make it even more difficult to determine who might be at fault! It’s helpful if you can make a note or take photos of the details of any signs that may indicate the name of a company or companies working on an area.
