Do you work in a safe environment? Does your job require you to take physical risks that could cause you harm? Despite taking all the safety measures, work accidents do occur. And they often cause physical, emotional and financial distress to the employee and their family. From bullying to assault, lacerations to fractures, spinal injuries to burns, amputations to fatalities, the list is endless. If you’ve been involved in some sort of work accident, you can raise a claim against your employer and demand compensation for the same.
What is a work injury?
If you’ve been injured at work or during the course of your employment and the type or place of work is a significant contributing factor to the injury, this personal harm incident falls under ‘work injury.’
What kind of accidents can you raise a claim for?
- Slip, trip and fall
- Faulty or poorly maintained equipment
- Negligence of safety regulations by employer or employee
- Working with toxic or illegal substances
- Harm caused by coworkers
- Bullying or assault
- Poor or insufficient training provided
- Injury caused by operating a heavy vehicle or machine
- Industry-specific syndromes that occur due to usage of power tools, overexertion due to lifting, pulling etc.
- Diseases caused due to work exposure where there is a direct causal link
- Mental anguish caused by the injury
These are some of the ways that personal harm can be caused to a worker. If the employer is directly or indirectly liable, you must hold them accountable and seek legal advice to raise a claim. It is the employer’s responsibility to provide proper training, follow safety procedures, hold employer’s insurance, ensure proper maintenance of the equipment and tools, and not put the worker under any sort of pressure to take health risks.
More often than not, employers tend to neglect the health and safety regulations and do not accept liability. In such situations, you would have to take this matter up in a court of law and hire an expert lawyer to represent you. Law Advice compensation solicitors are accredited specialists in personal injury law and can provide you with the best advice and representation in this matter. Your lawyer’s expertise and experience is immensely important since the success or failure of your case and the settlement value you receive depends on that. Inexperienced lawyers can misguide you, cause delays in getting justice, cause you to lose a case, or under-settle in a negotiation.
If your employer refuses your claims and does not agree to an informal settlement, you must prepare for such an occurrence by gathering enough evidence. The burden of proof primarily lies with the complainant and in order to do your part efficiently, you must know your rights.
You have the right to
- seek medical treatment for the injury or disorder.
- get a medical certificate.
- return to your job if your doctor allows it.
- take a paid leave of absence during your recovery phase.
- get disability compensation if you’re unable to work temporarily or permanently.
- get legal representation, file a claim against your injury, and appeal the decision if you disagree with it, in a court of law.
If you’ve suffered from an unfortunate safety incident at work, hire an expert solicitor and start a comprehensive investigation. With proper evidence and specialist reports, a good lawyer can see you through to a win and get you a fair settlement amount to relieve your financial burden and aid your treatment. Your decision to prosecute can also help protect several other workers from going through a similar ordeal.