Accident at work claims have this uncertainty about them with our clients and personal injury victims. The main ambiguity surrounding work accident claims is:
- Should one make a work accident claim against your own employer?
- Will it affect your job?
- Will the staff or the employer treat you differently after a claim for personal injury is made?
- All good questions and this article will try to answer some of these and help you take the correct steps in making an accident at work claim.
Let us put your mind at rest – making an accident at work claim should NOT affect your job position for the following reasons:
Your employer will have UK insurance to pay accident at work claims made by workers.
Your employer is required by the law in the United Kingdom to have some form of mandatory insurance for the risk of injuries to employees like yourself – so your employer will only pay the excess on its insurance policy for any claim made against it.
Your employer cannot dismiss you or treat you unfairly for making an accident at work claim.
It is likely to be automatically considered unfair dismissal should your employer attempt to dismiss you as a result of an accident at work. Your employer is well aware of this and cannot unfairly treat or dismiss you. You have the right to put forward an accident at work claim.
Procedure to follow when an accident at worktakes place.
When you are injured at a workplace carry out the following as soon as possible:
Get help. Ask for a first aider to have a look at your injury or to assist you. No matter how big or small an injury is always get it treated by a first aider and they will be able to evaluate your injury and assess whether you require paramedics or you need to go to the hospital. Either way the first aider will know what steps to take. The first aider may also log the accident and ask you to sign the accident book (if injury permitting). If possible do fill out the accident book as this will be your record as to when, how, what injury and maybe why the accident happened. If this is not carried out by the first aider you should ask for the accident book and either fill it out yourself or get someone to do it on your behalf.
Get hospital or GP treatment. First aid treatment is only temporary and should not be substituted for any expert medical advice or treatment. Doctors are doctors. Not only will you get expert treatment you will also have a medical record which will be available for your solicitor to refer to at a later date. The solicitor will require this medical record in order to pursue the compensation. Take a photo of the injury (if applicable) as this could also be used by the solicitor. What you are doing here is taking the correct steps in gathering information and details that your personal injury solicitor could use and build a solid foundation for your case.
- Record as much information as you can at the scene of your accident.
- Take the contact details of any witnesses to your accident.
- Take photos on your mobile phone where possible.
- Complete an Accident Book Entry where relevant and keep a copy.
What to do throughout the accident at work claim process:
- Keep track of any costs or payments you have made as a result of the injury.
- Remember that most personal injury cases are subject to strict time limits, and so ensure requests and correspondence are managed effectively. We can take care of most of this for you, but please do respond to the solicitor requests for information as promptly as possible.
Take your time as in almost all cases you will need to start court proceedings within three years of the injury. After three years the chances of making a successful claim are very low. Carefully select the best personal injury solicitor to act on your behalf for your accident at work claim. After all, work accident claims can run into thousands, if not tens of thousands of pounds and getting this right the first time round is extremely important.
The three year rule can usually only be waived if you are:
- Suffering from mental disability
- Under 18 years of age
- Suffering from a disease which takes a long time to develop
For more information please visit our work accident claim page, or start comparing.