While you’re at work, your employer needs to take reasonable steps to keep you from becoming injured from lifting heavy items. If your employer fails to take appropriate steps to protect you from lifting injuries such as providing proper training and/or equipment and you’re injured as a result, you could be compensated for any subsequent suffering.

In this guide to lifting injury claims, we’ll show you when you might be eligible to claim compensation against an employer, how the claims process works, and what you could be compensated for.

We are here to support you if you are considering suing your employer for your injuries. Initially, an advisor will review your claim with you during a no-obligation telephone consultation. If the merits of your claim are strong enough, we could appoint one of our accident-at-work solicitors who’ll represent you on a No Win No Fee basis. In our experience, that should make your claim much less stressful.

If you’ve been injured while lifting heavy items at work and would like to discuss your options, please call our team on 0800 6524 881 today. If you’d like to learn more before calling, please read on.

Am I Eligible To Claim Compensation For A Lifting Injury At Work?

To file a successful lifting injury claim for compensation you have to prove negligence was the cause of the injury. To check whether this is the case, a solicitor will assess whether:

• Your employer breached their duty of care towards your safety; because
• They were negligent in some way; and
• As a result, you have sustained some form of injury from lifting.

Our team can help if you’re not sure whether you’re eligible to make a lifting injury claim. Therefore, please call today and ask them to review your case for free.

Examples Of Lifting Injuries Attributed To Employer Negligence

As lifting injury claims don’t usually involve any form of accident (like a fall at work for example), it might not be immediately obvious that your injuries were caused by negligence. Therefore, we’ve added a few examples of employer negligence that could result in a claim, below:

• If your employer failed to consider changes that reduce the amount of stooping, twisting and reaching required in your role.
• Where you had not been trained on safe manual handling techniques (or your training wasn’t refreshed).
• Where you were asked to move items that you were not physically capable of.
• If machinery or equipment that could make moving items safer was not considered.
• If you had to retrieve heavy items that were stored above shoulder height.
• Where you had to continually carry out repetitive tasks involving lifting without regular breaks.
• If you raised concerns about the safety of your role that were not taken on board.

Of course, there are many other examples that could lead to a claim so please get in touch with our advisors today if you’d like to check your eligibility to make a compensation claim.

Common Injuries Caused By Lifting At Work

According to the Health and Safety Executive, more than one-third of workplace injuries are caused by manual handling incidents. Generally, they either result in musculoskeletal injuries or Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSIs). Some of the more common injury claims our solicitors help with include those relating to:

In many cases, lifting injury claims will be based on relatively minor injuries that will cause pain and discomfort for a matter of weeks or months. However, some injuries such as a lower back injury from lifting, can be life-changing and cause the claimant to suffer for years. These cases can have a dramatic impact and prevent the claimant from participating in their normal activities or continuing to work.

How Much Compensation Do I Get For A Lifting Injury At Work Could I Claim?

No two lifting injury claims are exactly the same simply because each claimant will inevitably have suffered differently. Therefore, when your solicitor calculates how much compensation for a lifting injury at work you could claim, the amount would be based on general damages (pain and suffering) and special damages (costs and expenses).

In general, if you win your claim, your settlement could be based on:

• The physical pain caused by your lifting-related injuries and any subsequent treatment.
• Any wages you’ve lost because your injuries reduced your ability to work.
• Any psychological injuries like distress or depression.
• Care costs if you needed somebody to help you with ordinary tasks while you were recovering.
• Travel expenses such as public transport fares if your injuries prevented you from driving.
• Medical and physiotherapy costs.
• Future loss of earnings if your injuries will continue to affect you in the future.
• The cost of changing your home (installing ramps or safety rails etc) to help you cope with an ongoing disability.

If your lifting injury claim is taken on by one of our solicitors, they’ll discuss how you’ve suffered in some detail. They’ll do so in an attempt to make sure that everything is included in your claim and to try and secure the most compensation possible for your injuries.

Compensation Calculator For Lifting Injury Claims

Until your claim has been assessed by an independent medical expert (as typically required in an accident at work claim), your solicitor won’t be able to tell you what payout you might receive. However, our compensation calculator will give you some idea of which compensation range your injuries might fall into:

These figures are not guaranteed so please use them as guidance only at this point. For a more personalised compensation estimate, please call our team for a no-obligation case review.

Evidence To Support A Lifting Injury Claim

Even if your employer is apologetic at the time you’re injured, their insurance company is likely to take the stand that unless you can prove how you were injured at work, they will not pay any compensation. Therefore, you’ll want to supply evidence to show how you sustained your lifting injuries, how serious they are, and who was to blame. This could include:

• Medical notes. It is important to try and get your injuries assessed and treated properly. After that has been done, your medical records could be requested to prove the severity of your injuries.
• Correspondence with your employer. If you emailed or wrote to your employer about your concerns, these messages could be used as evidence to support your claim.
• Photographs or CCTV footage. Any evidence that shows an accident happening or the cause of your injuries could be useful. Therefore, try to take pictures or obtain any relevant security camera recordings.
• Witness information. Your colleagues may be asked by your solicitor for a statement that might help prove your working conditions led to your injuries. Therefore, you should ask them if they can provide their contact details for you to forward to your solicitor if necessary.
• Accident report forms. You should report an accident at work to your employer as soon as you can. Legally, they need to keep an accident report book for any incidents on their premises. You should be given a copy (or you can request one) that could be used as evidence by your solicitor.

Lifting Accident Claims Time Limits

You’ll need to abide by strict time limits if you decide to claim for a workplace lifting injury. The normal limitation period for these claims is 3-years. This will start from:

• The date of your accident if your injuries were apparent immediately; or
• The date your injuries were diagnosed by your GP or a hospital doctor.

As you could miss out on any compensation due if your claim is made too late, we’d suggest that you begin the claims process as soon as you can.

Can My Employer Sack Me For Claiming Against Them?

Employment laws are in place to ensure that you are not discriminated against for making a personal injury claim against your employer. As a result, you cannot be dismissed, demoted, picked on or singled out for making a lifting injury claim. If that were to happen, you may have grounds to seek further compensation for unfair or constructive dismissal.

If you decide to claim with one of our solicitors, they will handle all communication with your employer so you won’t ever have to discuss your claim with them directly.

Starting A Lifting Injury Claim

Have you decided to sue your employer for your lifting injuries and suffering? If so, we’re ready to help. If you call our team on 0800 6524 881, we’ll review your claim for free and explain your options on a no-obligation basis. If your claim is viable, you could be represented by one of our experienced workplace injury solicitors. Remember, if your claim is accepted, you’ll be represented on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you need any further advice on lifting injury claims, our advisors are available 24 hours a day via live chat.