How Much Compensation For An Accident At Work?

While you’re at work, your employer has a legal duty of care to try to protect your well-being. This duty is established by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. If they don’t follow the regulations and you’re injured in the workplace as a result, you could seek compensation from them. Determining how much compensation for an accident at work you could get if you’re eligible, and the process of claiming it will be explained in this guide.

We are experts in claiming compensation for accidents at work and are here to help you. To begin, we’ll review your options over the phone and provide free legal advice. You’re not obliged to take action, but we could appoint a personal injury solicitor to help if your case appears viable. Should your case be taken on, your solicitor will make the process less stressful by providing a No Win No Fee service. That means you won’t pay for their work upfront, and your solicitor’s fees will only be payable if your employer pays you compensation.

If you’re ready to proceed with a claim right away, please call our advisors on 0800 6524 881. Otherwise, please read on to find out more about workplace accident claims.

How Much Compensation For An Accident At Work?

The amount of compensation for an accident at work you could claim depends mainly on what injuries have been sustained and how badly they’ve affected you. Your solicitor will consider two heads of loss when determining what settlement is appropriate:

• General damages. Here, they’ll look at what pain, suffering, and loss of amenity were caused by your injuries.
• Special damages. This element will focus on how you’ve lost out financially. If you’ve paid medical expenses, incurred travel costs or lost any earnings because of your injuries, they could be claimed back here.

Importantly, an independent medical assessment is usually needed for injuries at work. This is something that helps determine how much compensation for an accident at work you should ask for and can usually be booked locally by your solicitor. A medical expert will review your injuries and how they’ve affected you. They will then forward a report assessing your prognosis to all parties involved in the claim.

Injury At Work Claim Calculator

Please use the injury claim calculator in this section to see what level of compensation might be awarded for your work injuries. Although the payouts are based on compensation guidelines advised by the Judicial College, as all workplace accidents and injuries are essentially different in their type and severity, please use the figures below as examples.

Please bear in mind, though, that claim values will vary from case to case. If your claim is taken on, a more personalised compensation estimate will be provided after your injuries have been properly assessed.

What Accidents At Work Could I Claim Compensation For?

No workplace will ever be completely free from all risks. However, as we’ve shown already, your employer must take action to try and protect you as much as possible. If they don’t, and you’re injured as a result, you could take action. Some examples of accidents at work that may lead to a compensation claim include:

• If you slip in the workplace and injure yourself, where no warning signs were used.
• Where you suffer an industrial illness caused by exposure to chemicals due to poor ventilation and lack of suitable PPE (face masks, etc).
• Where your foot is broken by workplace machinery because you weren’t provided with steel-toe cap boots.
• If you are injured by objects falling on you due to stock being stacked unsafely.
• If you lose a limb because of a faulty safety rail on workplace machinery.
• Where you sustain a Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) after prolonged periods conducting the same tasks, and where no measures were taken to reduce the risks to your health.

However you’ve been injured, you could take action against your employer if the incident that caused you to suffer resulted from their negligence.

Types Of Workplace Negligence That Could Result In Compensation

There are several things employers can do to try and make your workplace as safe as possible. If they fail to do them, they may be deemed negligent and that could mean you’re eligible to claim compensation for an accident at work.  Some of the steps that could be taken to make your workplace safer are:

• Regular risk assessments.
• Training staff on the company’s health and safety procedures.
• Providing adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) where needed.
• Allowing adequate rest breaks to avoid tiredness.
• Ensuring staff have ample training on their role.
• Maintaining workplace equipment.
• Repair faulty machinery and equipment promptly.

If your employer has failed to carry out one of the above and that has led to an injury in the workplace, you could claim compensation. Please call or use live chat to find out more.

Am I Eligible To Claim Compensation For A Workplace Accident?

Before a solicitor will take on your workplace injury claim, they’ll need to verify whether your claim is suitable. To do this, they’ll try to establish whether your employer breached their duty of care because:

• Their negligence led to an accident at work; and
• As a direct result of that negligence, you were injured whilst working.

If both criteria are met, your claim could be taken on, and your solicitor could help you to seek compensation for your injuries.

Evidence To Strengthen A Workplace Injury Compensation Claim

If you’re eligible to file a workplace injury claim, it’s essential that you can demonstrate how the accident at work that led to your injuries happened and who was to blame. The types of evidence that could help include:

• Photos. To show the aftermath of the accident and to help explain what happened.
• Medical reports. Your hospital records can help to prove the extent of your injuries.
• Accident reports. Legally, companies need to use an accident reporting system to record incidents. Your report could prove where and when the accident took place.
• Witness details. Where liability is denied, your solicitor could ask witnesses for a statement to see if they corroborate your version of events.
• Security camera footage. Securing any CCTV footage is another good method of proving how your accident at work occurred.

The more evidence you can supply to help you claim compensation for an accident at work, the better your chances of being compensated. Our advisors can review any evidence you’ve collected to see whether you’ve got enough to take action or whether more is needed before you can start your claim.

Workplace Injury Claims Time Limits

Any form of compensation claim will usually have a time limit associated with it. For workplace injury claims, this is usually 3-years from:

• The date that the workplace injury occurred; or
• Your date of knowledge. In cases of industrial injuries, for example, this could be several years after you were exposed to chemicals or conditions that have led to your illness.

We would suggest that you begin your claim as soon as you become aware of your injuries. That’s because there may be an opportunity for your solicitor to request that private medical treatment be paid for by an interim payment before your compensation claim is finalised to help you recover sooner.

Can I Be Sacked After Claiming Compensation For An Accident At Work?

If you are making a genuine claim, your employer should not dismiss you, punish you, demote you or treat you unfairly simply because you have brought that claim. If they do, you may have grounds for a separate employment claim and, depending on the circumstances, this could include unfair dismissal or constructive dismissal.

Please call a specialist if you’ve any concerns about claiming compensation for an accident in the workplace. They’ll assess your case for free and explain your options.

Do I Need A Personal Injury Solicitor To Claim Accident At Work Compensation?

Your employer is highly unlikely to process your compensation claim themselves. Instead, they’ll refer it to their insurance company. No matter how simple you believe it is to claim accident at work compensation, an insurer is unlikely to award any settlement unless you show them how your employer’s negligence caused you to suffer.

The claims process can be tricky and might need technical, legal, or medical evidence. We believe you’ll have a better chance of winning your claim if you’ve got a personal injury solicitor on your side.

If one of our solicitors accepts your case, they’ll manage it from start to finish. You won’t need to answer any questions from your employer’s insurers because your solicitor will do that for you. They’ll update you regularly and answer any questions you might think of. Importantly, your solicitor won’t settle a claim just because a compensation offer is made. Instead, they’ll fight your corner to try and make sure you are compensated fairly for your injuries.

To begin a claim today, call us on 0800 6524 881 for a free case review. Thanks for reading our guide on how much compensation for an accident at work might be awarded, and if you have any questions, please get in touch.