The building industry can be a dangerous place to work and many workers in this industry are contract workers meaning that they work on numerous sites from week-to-week which they may not necessarily be familiar with. When builders are contracted to work on a particular site they must adhere to the health and safety rules and procedures on that site.
For example, builders may be responsible for making sure any scaffolding erected is safe. There is also a responsibility to keep tools and equipment out of traffic routes where they may cause obstruction for other people to trip on – whether it’s a colleague or a member of the public. When working on site there may be other firms of contractors on site or other workers who work at that particular site on a permanent basis. This is why contractors are required to have an induction and health and safety briefing before commencing work.
I have worked as a contractor briefly and I know how slack the induction can be. After this you may be free to work on the site. I guess this is one of the major problems with contract workers. The firm employing the contract workers obviously want the contractors to get on with the work as soon as possible. Inductions and health and safety briefings are often very brief from my experience. This means contractors are working on a site they are not familiar with and they may not be fully aware of what is going on around them. They are also not fully aware of the procedures on site.
This area overlaps with contract law and there is an implied duty of care and skill on the contractor to perform the work to a reasonable and competent standard. If you become injured due to the negligence of a builder then you may have a genuine claim for compensation. You could be working for a company who has contract builders on site. If the builders leave tools on traffic or pedestrian routes and you inadvertently trip over the tools and sustain injury, a claim may be possible as the workplace traffic route regulations apply.
Should a building be erected and not be safe, there may be a right to claim if a person becomes injured. Builders are required to have insurance in place for the purpose of paying out compensation to any injured victims. You cannot claim in negligence for pure economic loss – this would be where a building is defective and remedial work is required – but no personal injury has been sustained. This was re-affirmed in the case of Robinson –v- PE Jones (Contractors) Limited. There are time limits to claim in contract and to claim in negligence.
To discuss a potential work injury claim, contact The Injury Lawyers today. We offer free no obligation advice and deal with all types of personal injury claims.
