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As most people’s time at work is limited and often very busy, it is often easy to overlook the safeguards that your employer should be putting in place to maintain your welfare at work should you have an accident. What follows in today’s blog is what you should expect from your employer.

The Health and Safety at work regulations 1999 set out many of your employer’s responsibilities to you as an employee, here are some of the ways they help make your workplace safer:

• They provide that your employer must make a risk assessment to any risks to your health and safety and to make sure that such risks are identified and removed or (at the very least) the risks should be limited in affecting the safety of employees where possible. 
• Following on from this they should make you aware of these risks and how you should deal with them by having an appropriate policy in place.
• Your employer will also appoint a suitable representative who you can approach regarding any health and safety problems who you can voice your concerns to.
• Your employers should back this up by providing written documentation about any risks to you and how these are dealt with by your employer.
• Conscientious employers should provide you with health and safety training when you start work with them and also on every occasion that new potential risks arise.   

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The Sale of Goods and Services Act 1982; ever heard of it? It’s an important piece of modern legislation, and I think it’s safe to say it’s one that affects us all! Have you ever bought a product and it hasn’t worked the way it should? Or even perhaps it hasn’t lasted for as long as it should? I know I’ve certainly been on the end of that frustrating stick – and according to a BBC report, faulty goods are costing consumers on average £78 a year; a staggering £5,000 a lifetime! (source)

So why is this the case? Well according to the report, people are too worried about returning a faulty product through nerves, embarrassment, or fear of intimidation! The Poll from the Department for Business revealed that nearly half of those questioned had at least one faulty product at home. Low value items reportedly tend to be kept, and the highest complained about item were second-hand cars.

Personally, I have no qualms about returning a faulty product – but remarkably the results of the 3000 people spread indicated that men are losing more money than women in failing to return faulty goods! Costs for men was found to be at £89 per year on average, compared to £71 a year for women. Men apparently felt more intimidated, whilst women felt more embarrassed.
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Ok, so we all get it sometimes… Someone cuts you up on a roundabout, or pulls out in front of you from a side road; and you respond with a short expletive and a bash of the horn. But when road rage turns fatal, it’s an altogether different, and tragic, story. I’ve heard of some appalling instances of road rage before, but this story really is such a tragedy:

According to one BBC report, a man from a notorious Glasgow crime family has admitted killing a man in an act of road rage terrible road rage (source).

Twenty-eight year old Paul Lyons (28) rammed Mark Fleeman’s van on the M74 in an act of drink and drugs fuelled road rage, at a time when Lyons was serving a driving ban! Tragically, Mr Freeman suffered fatal injuries after his vehicle was overturned and taken off the road during the incident, just seconds after a desperate 999 call was made to police with the operator allegedly hearing the impact.
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One of the more overlooked ways to make an injury claim stems from if you have been a victim of violent crime and sustained serious injuries. On first glance it’s easy to think that such an accident would be entirely a matter for the Police, however you are entitled to bring a claim for compensation through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), which is a public body set up to compensate innocent victims of crime for their injuries.  

Here’s four easy steps as to how you can claim:
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Asbestos  -we all know, and are all aware, of the hazards  of the silicate that has been removed from countless places over the last few decades since its dangers were discovered. And there can’t be much worse than asbestos worries in schools really, can there…

According to sources form the BBC (source), a snapshot survey of 16 schools has indicated that some British schools continue to fail in meeting the legal requirements to protect children from the dangers of asbestos. The report of 16 schools showed that none of them complied with safety standards in place for managing the harmful substance – which is a concerning fact!

Teaching Unions have since called for a full audit to be carried out on the dangers of the potentially cancer-causing silicate, since government policy in place is for the management of the substance, not its removal. Reportedly however, many schools lack the resources to effectively manage asbestos, leaving them open to serious potential dangers, according to Atac (Asbestos Training and Consultancy Association). Association of Teachers and Lecturers general secretary Dr Mary Bousted has called for an independent body to be set up, to monitor and advise on the management and removal of the substance.
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Some British schools are failing to meet a legal duty to protect their pupils from potentially deadly asbestos.

According to the BBC, a report by the Asbestos Training and Consultancy Association (or ATAC) said that none of the 16 schools it surveyed were meeting health and safety rules on managing the substance.

Teaching unions want a full audit of the danger from asbestos, which can cause a lethal form of cancer. The government’s current policy on asbestos is that it should be left in place and managed rather than removed. However, the survey has revealed that many schools lack the resources to manage asbestos safely.
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National Express has introduced a system to measure the alcohol levels in its coach drivers.

According to the BBC, the breathalyser style device operates to disable the vehicle if the driver is over the limit and the company’s Birmingham control room is then alerted.

The system was put in to place following a National Express employee being found guilty of driving dangerously and with excess alcohol in 2008, after his coach crashed and overturned on the M1.
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It’s a familiar story in the South again today, as heavy overnight snow in parts of east and south Kent has led to hazardous driving conditions and the closure of schools.

According to the BBC, as much as 15cm (6in) of snow has fallen in some areas.

The weather has caused considerable problems for those using the M20, A2 and A258 and rail passengers have also been warned to expect cancellations.

Eurotunnel has suspended services at Folkestone after safety concerns were raised about getting lorries on to trains in the snow.
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Gordon Brown has today provided more details of plans to ensure that everyone in England who suffers from cancer receives dedicated one on one specialist nursing.

According to the BBC, the Prime Minister stated that the move would transform the experience of patients.  In his speech at the health research charity, The Kings Fund, he stated regarding the proposals that “We must push forward with new and ever more stretching guarantees to secure for every family the right to get the best possible personalised health care when and where they need it”. In addition to this Mr Brown confirmed that the guarantees given would be legally enforceable.

These proposals would include the right for anyone with suspected cancer to see a specialist within two weeks of diagnosis and a commitment to ensure all cancer tests will be completed and results given in one week. Additionally Mr Brown said that one to one specialist care at home for cancer sufferers could “transform their experience” and would benefit £1.6million people.
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There are to be further improvements made in the care of premature babies in the East Midlands, health bosses have announced.

According to the BBC, £1.7 million has been invested in a new specialist transport service so babies can be quickly and safely transported to the appropriate unit after a review of the nine primary care trusts in the East Midlands identified areas for improvement.

Around 5,500 premature and sick babies require special attention and this investment will ensure that not only are the specialist hospitals at the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham and Leicester Royal Infirmary able to maintain their high standards of care, it will also mean that other neonatal units in the region are able to care for babies according to their needs and that the children can be moved from unit to unit much more easily, depending on the severity of their condition.
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