Whether you agree with health and safety or not, we live and work in a world full of rules and regulations. Working at height potentially poses a risk to health and safety and this is why the Government introduced the Work at Height Regulations, which came into force on the 6^th April 2005. The regulations apply to all working at height instances where there is a risk of a fall that is liable to cause personal injury.

It is clear why the Government decided that more regulation in the area was necessary. According to statistics posted on the Health and Safety Executive website, falls from heights accounted for 46 fatal work accidents and around 3,350 major injuries in 2005/06. It was said at the time that falls from heights was the single biggest cause of workplace deaths and one of the main causes of major injury. As the statistics suggest, if you fall from height we are generally talking about serious injury or death. Obviously not all falls from height will lead to serious injury; it will depend on the height in question and the circumstances of the particular case. Injuries could be relatively minor but if you have sustained injury which was not your fault, it is still your right to claim.
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Every day we put our trust in the NHS and the professionals that we consider to be able to address and help aid us with any medical needs. However, unfortunately, sometimes mistakes are made which can result in awful circumstances where an individual is left with a life changing injury.

One of the hardest aspects of medical negligence claims is that with any medical procedure there will always be inherent risks which would be extremely difficult to make a claim for; so one of the first things to establish is whether what has happened was something that was explained to you as an inherent risk and something that unfortunately could not have been avoided or whether it is something that would not have happened had the negligence occurred.

There are many different circumstances that can arise under the general heading under “Medical Negligence” and in this blog I will focus on an occasion when a professional has failed to read results properly.  At one time or another most of us will have undergone or will undergo a test at the hospital – be this an x-ray, MRI scan, ultrasound – and we all understand that the sole purpose of these is to produce results that indicate what is wrong with us to enable further and appropriate treatment.
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We are The Injury Lawyers – and we offer a dedicated personal injury service that is tailored just for you and your individual needs!

A lot of people are a little shy about making a claim, so this is a quick article about what we can do for you and to try and put your mind at ease if you have been injured in an accident that wasn’t your fault.

Don’t be shy to ask!

If you think there is a chance that you might be owed compensation, don’t be shy about getting in touch with us. Don’t think to yourself that you are being ‘daft’ because you may not have a case – you never know unless you ask. So give us a call on our claims helpline on 0800 634 75 75 for a free and informal, no obligation, chat about what has happened. Remember – you could be owed thousands of pounds in compensation.
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Road traffic accidents proceed through something called the Road Traffic Accident Protocol, which involves your claim being electronically submitted to the other side’s insurance through an online portal. Once the claim has been submitted through this portal, they have 15 working days (so around 3 weeks) to respond formally with their admission or denial of liability.

But what happens if they don’t respond in this time frame? And what happens if they deny responsibility?

In both of these circumstances the claim “falls out” of the portal system. In the case where they just simply do not respond the claim will then proceed through the personal injury protocol. Under this protocol the Defendants have just around 4 months to investigate the claim and respond with their decision.  In many claims, such as rear end shunts or other cases where it is extremely clear that a party is at fault, it is unusual for the claim to fall out as many insurers try to get these resolved as quickly as possible (another reason that they sometimes try and contact you directly!). Insurers may want the claim to fall from the portal for their own reasons; however this is of course frowned upon and seen as insurers not complying with the “spirit of the protocol” set down by the Ministry of Justice.
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If you have had an accident that was not your fault, and you are thinking of making a claim, here is one piece of advice I need to give you that could save your claim – have medical attention! Whether it’s a quick visit to your GP or nipping down to your local walk-in centre or to hospital, you should always see someone as soon as possible after your accident.

It’s important for two reasons – one is to make sure you’re OK, and the other is for evidence purposes. We will send you to see an expert that is qualified to prove us with a medico-legal report. This report serves two main purposes – it allows us expert lawyers to value your claim, and it also serves to prove that your injuries were caused as a result of the accident.
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Personal injury does not just mean physical injuries – psychological injuries can be just as life changing and sometimes can be worse because they cannot just be “seen and assessed”.

However, it is this that can also make including a claim for psychological injury incredibly difficult even if it is something that you consider is affecting your life just as much as your physical injuries. Some of the main hurdles to overcome are listed below however, it is always best to speak with a personal injury specialist direct if you are wishing to include this type of injury in your claim.

Recognised Condition

The condition that you are suffering has to be a recognised illness that a medical professional would diagnose. This includes things such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, depression and anxiety. If the injury is not diagnosed it is incredibly difficult to include it in a case, which is understandable. For example; you wouldn’t try and make a claim for a broken leg if there is no proof in your medical records that you have had to have treatment for this injury!
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There is a lot of competition when it comes to personal injury lawyers – and this can be incredibly confusing when you find yourself in the situation looking for someone to help you when you are considering making a claim. One of the main things to remember is that this solicitor will be with you from the beginning of your claim right through to the end and therefore it should always be someone that you feel comfortable and happy with.

One of the main ways of ensuring that the company you instruct is the best one to run your claim is to contact and instruct a firm direct. What I mean by this is that often your insurance company or a claims management company will try and direct you to one of their solicitors who will start pursuing your claim without you even having spoken to them before!

At first glance this may not appear as strange as I am making it, but would you really trust another person to buy a car for example without you first seeing the car and ensuring that it is the right one for you? Although a very different service, the principle is clear. Always ensure you speak with the personal injury firm direct before proceeding with any claim.
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If you have been injured in an accident at work, such as by slipping on a wet floor, you may be able to claim compensation. Ordinarily the claim would be against your employer presuming that they own the premises in which the accident occurred. This could differ in certain circumstances. For example if you worked in a council building which let offices out to various companies. Under the terms of the contract your employer is likely to be responsible for the offices which they let. Say for example your accident occurred in the corridor or in the communal kitchen area – this may be an area which the council are responsible for. However if the accident occurred at your place of work and this is your employers own building, any claim would be against your employer.

In terms of slipping on a wet floor at work, we would consider whether there was any warning of the danger. Was there a wet floor sign in place? If a wet floor sign was not in place then it would be more difficult for the Defendant to deny liability. Even if there was a wet floor sign, this does not necessarily mean that you cannot claim. We would query whether the wet floor sign was clearly visible or whether it was obstructed. In law you often hear the phrase “every case is different”. Well this is true and this is the reason you need to speak to a team of experienced and dedicated personal injury lawyers.
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Whiplash is one of the most common injuries sustained in road traffic accidents plainly because the action of a hit vehicle is almost always going to throw persons forward and quickly back again – the very motion that creates this type of injury.

Whiplash is a strange injury, in that it is something that doesn’t show itself straight away! You can be absolutely fine the day of the accident and yet wake up the next morning unable to look left and right. Unfortunately, this is just something that happens and is something that a lot of people worry about as medical attention may not be sought until a few days after the collision! However, this is something that occurs in the majority of road traffic cases and therefore should not be something that holds you back from making a whiplash injury claim.

One of the most common questions that we are asked here at The Injury Lawyers is how much is my claim worth?
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Accidents in supermarkets are one of the most common types of accidents we see as personal injury lawyers. I suppose we can all see why this is the case. Supermarkets can be extremely busy places – the sheer volume of people coming through the doors, the sheer amount of products, the numbers of staff – accidents are bound to occur. We have come across a wide range of supermarket accidents including accidents involving roll cages, accidents caused by spillages, accidents caused by items falling off shelves etc.

Accidents at supermarkets come under the scope of occupier’s liability. Basically the supermarket owes you (as a lawful visitor) a duty of care. This is a duty to keep you safe and free from harm while you are on their premises. This duty means that the store must be kept safe to prevent visitors from sustaining injury. If a spillage occurs on the floor then this clearly poses a slipping hazard. A wet floor sign should be erected and the spillage should be cleaned up as quickly as possible. Of course other factors are important such as whether the wet floor sign was clearly visible, if erected at all at the time of the accident, the time between the spillage and the clean-up operation etc.
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