There are plenty health and safety rules and regulations we have in place that employers are legally bound to adhere to. But despite our country’s fairly sterling reputation for safety we still take on and win large volumes of cases for falls from height in the workplace.
So let’s look at some of the regulations and where you may be entitled to make a workplace claim for personal injury compensation. You could be entitled to thousands of pounds from a falling accident in the workplace.
The law
The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations have a specific section dedicated to falling from height. They read as follows:
So far as is reasonably practicable, suitable and effective measures shall be taken to prevent any person falling a distance likely to cause personal injury;
There are some further specifics when it comes to traffic routes and covering pits and tanks, but the above is enough to allow you to understand how clear the law is when it comes to falling from heights. Its self explanatory really.
When it comes to working at height we have additional regulations that are rather aptly called The Work at Height Regulations. These cover specifics about the employer’s duty when it comes to people who are instructed to carry out work at height where there is an obvious risk of danger.
They cover areas such as:
- Adequate risk assessments
- Training and supervision
- The provision of equipment – such as safety harnesses or ladders
Actually, when it comes to work equipment, we also have The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations which say that any work equipment provided must be suitable and not dangerous or defective. So if a fall is caused due to dodgy ladders, we can apply more regulations to ensure we can get the insurers to accept liability. A harness or other safety equipment can be classed as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and its use, suitability, and effectiveness is governed by The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations.
I appreciate that all these regulations I’m throwing at you can be a little confusing! But trust me, the more regulations there are, the better – it means we have a stronger chance at proving negligence.
Your rights
So what can you do if you have fallen from a height at work and you have been injured as a result? If your employer has breached any regulations like those above in failing to allow you to safely navigate a workplace or through a failure to safely conduct working at height, you may have a claim for personal injury compensation.
Employers should be insured for these eventualities and all we are doing is claiming from the policy of insurance that is there to cover you. So call our free claims helpline on 0800 634 7575 for help and advice today.