This case is a great example of the term ‘vicarious liability’ used in a real life claim for personal injury compensation. Vicarious liability simply means that the negligent actions of a colleague at work is the responsibility of the employer.
So, rather than suing your work colleague for negligence, they should be covered by your employers insurance. Here we will take a look at a case we won on this argument in law.
Miss H contacted us after she sustained soft tissue injuries to her back when she was hit by a box at work. This box had been thrown by a colleague who was aiming for a stack of boxes in the storeroom they were both working in. Clearly the action of throwing boxes is rife with potential danger. Unfortunately Miss H was hit in the back by one of the boxes and was injured as a result.
Irrelevant of whether or not the employer has policies in place to prevent employees conducting themselves in negligent ways, they can still be liable. Ultimately the negligence of a colleague falls on to the responsibility of the employer.
The insurers wisely admitted liability for the claim and we obtained expert medical evidence to support the injuries our client has received. As is common with back injury cases, physiotherapy was needed to assist in the clients recovery. We sorted this on a private basis by funding the treatment and recovering the costs at the end of the claim.
Our clients don’t have to worry about paying upfront for treatment or waiting for ages on the NHS. We can fund it and get it claimed back at the end of the case directly from the opponent.
We disclosed all of our finalised evidence when we were ready but the insurers failed to make an offer within 21 days of submitting the information to them. As such, we issued court proceedings, which is normally the action we take when the insurers fail to come back with an offer quick enough.
Ultimately they should engage in negotiations immediately to avoid the process being dragged out unnecessarily. If they don’t, we issue and serve court proceedings.
We settled the case without the need for a hearing though which is common in most claims, and Miss H was happy to accept her award of £4,400 for her claim.
