I have had a little accident at work and need some advice

[Green]

Hi All

I had a little accident at work today and will be laid up for 8-10 weeks.
Will I still get my full pay?

I have tried looking on the web but there are so many no-win-no-fee sites it hard to find any real proper advice.


Cheers

 

[Jake]

Oh dear - sounds nasty but I hope it isn't too bad.

It depends on what attitude your employer takes, and whether they have either a policy of paying more than sick pay entitlements for accidents at work, or even a formal contractual scheme.

Otherwise, it is down to the sick-pay provisions in your employment contract, or if there aren't any, then statutory sick pay (which is very low).

I would talk to your employer and see what they say.

You need to make sure that the accident is recorded in their accident book (and maybe reported to the HSE as well, I don't know the rules there) just in case.

 

[Blister]

It depends on your company's sick pay policy

I was off for 10 weeks after a bike accident , and received 20 days full pay, less all allowances .

Then SSP , statutory sick pay for the remainder of my time off :roll:

Deep Joy :?

 

[Green]

thanks guys

You have confirmed my worst fears, If it's legally down to the employer then i'm not gonna get owt.

I really dont know what to do now and I cant get to my contract as it's in the attic and I have a bloody great plastercast on my foot.



Any good websites for this sort of legal stuff?


thanks

 

[bluezephyr]

http://www.swarb.co.uk/phpbb/

This site might help

 

[Chris Knight]

As Jake says, I'd talk to your employer first but even in these straitened times, I suspect many employers would rather continue paying someone a wage - especially if they were a valued employee - than deal with a claim involving the HSE etc..

 

[Finial]

I had a little accident at work today


Do you want to tell us what happened?

 

[Green]

I would like to tell you but am considering legal action and am not sure if posting on a public forum will affect my case.

TBH the shock is wearing off and I am getting more and more angry (and sore) by the minute as the problem that led to the accident had been pointed out many times to the management and no action taken.

I have to go back in to hospital tomorrow AM and have the bones pinned

Got to look on the bright though, I am no longer able to go christmas shopping

 

[cant-weld-wood]

If the accident is work related and clearly not you're fault then you should be paid full pay so long you supply doctors sertificate.
I had plastic boxes fall on me some one else loaded the van
i sufferd a damaged nerve in the injury i was of nearly six months as i could not do any lifting.
I was paid at least 5 of them months full pay.


it was nice being paid to watch the tv.

 

[RogerS]

I would like to tell you but am considering legal action and am not sure if posting on a public forum will affect my case.

That makes sense.

TBH the shock is wearing off and I am getting more and more angry (and sore) by the minute as the problem that led to the accident had been pointed out many times to the management and no action taken.

Well, I'm no lawyer but .......

.......

Keep your cool (very difficult, I know). If it has been pointed out to them many times then they'd be pretty daft not to look after you well. Do you have a union? Just a thought.

 

[joiner_sim]

As it has already been said, as difficult as I know it may be, it would be best to talk to your employer first. That's unless you do want to go down the legal action route.

You may find your employer agrees to pay you in full for the time taken off and that would be the end of it.

 

[busy builder]

First things first...

All accidents should go in the company accident book.
All accidents must be investigated
A witness will be required to the accident.
All serious accidents that mean you need time off work must be reported to the HSE.
Both you and your employer will be jointly responsible.....despite what anyone else tells you, although responsibility will/may be split between you.

Regardless of your accident, you must inform your employer (and union official) because if it was avoidable then actions may need to be put in place to stop a re-occurance.

Asking for advice on here is really a waste of time and won't really help you. I used to be responsible for the employment of about 150 men and people who had accidents were always trying to put the blame elswhere until the accident was investigated and actions taken to stop a re-occurance. Sayng all, that though, unless its investigated you and your employer cannot do anything to stop it happening again and some other soul getting hurt.

 

[toolsntat]

If you do not get any pay could you get incapacity benefit??
And also if you are paying council tax and get the benefit you don`t need to pay it but you do have to register for it now and not after your better :wink: :wink:


Andy
Or is that only when your self-employed?? :? :?

 

[Finial]

This may be a public forum but you need not say who your employer is or who you are or where the accident happened. so i can't see how it can hurt your case to say what happened. Up to you of course.

Your employer should by law have liability insurance so there is a good chance of getting anything you are owed. But he may not want to pay or claim and may deny liability. If he doesn't pay voluntarily, it will be up to you to force the issue by taking legal action, if you have a case. First you need to know whether he was negligent. Was the accident foreseeable? if something similar had happened before, it probably was. And he should have done his risk assessment, which you are entitled to see. Could it have been prevented without too much difficulty?

So what had he done to minimise the risk? On the face of it, not enough. Very likely he was at fault and liable. Were you also negligent? Possibly, if you failed to follow clear safety instructions, or use even basic common sense. To that degree, any award you might get could be reduced. Usually the employer is liable after a preventable accident as there are clear legal duties on him, more so than on the victim, and very often the injured employee was at risk through no fault of his own.

You will have to prove him at fault. Witnesses will help, but don't necessarily have to have seen the accident itself. For example a witness could give evidence of other incidents or lack of training or whatever. And you are a witness too.

An investigation by the HSE could also help any claim you make, so you could contact them and find out if the injury has been reported, and if so are they going to investigate, they don't in less serious cases. They might even prosecute or serve an enforcement notice, which would make your case almost cast iron.

But it is also worth discussing the matter with your employer. He is more likely to be receptive while the blood is still on the floor.

 

[joiner_sim]

after 5 days off the accident should be reported to the HSE under RIDOR.

 

[Jake]

A piece of advice which I nearly gave earlier, but I was hesitant to because of the hostility that comes with being a lawyer and giving such advice: if you feel this wasn't entirely your fault, write down exactly how how you saw it happened. If you think of something else after ten minutes or an hour, add that - do not change what you wrote before, just keep a journal of your recollections. The worst thing you can do is to think that you are somehow compromising yourself by recording your recollections (this is presuming that you are in the right). If you can get your colleagues to back you upabout the prior knowledge, get that recorded as well, as best you can without compromising them.

And please, ignore the idiots who insist that lawyers who can help you with personal injury claims are necessarily ambulance chasers. Maybe ignore the ones that chased you in your ambulance, but if the truth is as you are now saying, please find a good lawyer as soon as you can - this really is not my area, but I may be able to help you find a reputable firm if you pm me.

 

[BradNaylor]

Green,

This is a situation where a good lawyer is essential. It sounds like you could have a genuine claim against your employer. This is not a case of some scumbag 'tripping' over a paving stone and trying to fund their ciggy habit through a spurious claim against the council.

And please, ignore the idiots who insist that lawyers who can help you with personal injury claims are necessarily ambulance chasers. Maybe ignore the ones that chased you in your ambulance, but if the truth is as you are now saying, please find a good lawyer as soon as you can - this really is not my area, but I may be able to help you find a reputable firm if you pm me.

Jake,

No need to be so touchy!

No-one's ever suggested that all lawers involved in personal injury claims are disreputable vultures, just some of them.

Particularly those with a high profile who advertise in the redtops and on commercial radio...





...or specialise in acting for ex-miners.

Dan

 

[Jake]

No need to be so touchy!

I'm just amazed that I managed to be that coherent after two pints, four bottles of wine between two, and a very large brandy!

No-one's ever suggested that all lawers involved in personal injury claims are disreputable vultures, just some of them. ...or specialise in acting for ex-miners.

That one is now in deepest deep doo-dah.

 

[thomvic]

Green
What you have had is not a "little accident." If it has resulted in you being in a plaster cast and probably needing pins in your foot then it is a very serious accident. It has the potential to lead to a claim for substantial compensation. You and your employer need to treat it as such.

For your part you need to consult a solicitor. If you are a member of a union, it should act for you in this respect. If you are not a member of a union then consult a solicitor specialising in industrial injury claims. The best of these are not "ambulance chasers." If you have ever used, to your satisfaction, a local solicitor then approach him/her first. He/she will refer you to a specialist if that is what is required.

Your employer, for his part, has a statutory obligation to report the accident to the HSE. If the accident is minor it need only be reported after it has resulted in you having 3 days off work. However, if it is classed as serious, and injuries to feet, ankles etc. usually are, then it should have been reported as soon as possible and he should have commenced a formal investigation. It is also a condition of your employer's employee liability policy that it should notify his insurer as soon as possible.

You should understand your employers very difficult position here. If he agrees to pay you anything other than any contractual sick benefit plus statutory sick pay then he may be deemed to be admitting liability by his insurers and the HSE. That could invalidate the insurance cover for this incident. You are probably aware of a similar clause in all motor insurance. This is no different. So, if your employer seems unsympathetic, it may be that he has to distance himself from the issue for legal and financial reasons.

I hope that helps and that you recover quickly.

 

[busy builder]

after 5 days off the accident should be reported to the HSE under RIDOR.

Yes, but you don't have to wait 5 days. They will record any accident that is reported to them, and may investigate if the company has a 'record' of previous 'accidents'.

It seems to me that you will need legal advice if you are off for such a long period. Even if the employer pays you your full pay he could be then admitting liability, although a tribunal will look at all sides and make a decision on the evidence presented before them.

A true story: Whilst I was working on a Corus (British Steel) site in the North East, at an engineers safety (monthly) meeting (to improve safety on site) they related an incident where a contractor had climbed up the outside of a scaffold and fallen off, seriously hurting himself.

When it went to court everyone thought this would be clear cut...the injured contractor was at fault 100%.

Not so, the ruling was the contract company and Corus were held 60%liable as the injured contractor had not been fully instructed how to access the scaffold, i.e using the ladder provided.

We all thought this unbeleivable as it is common sense that going up/down a scaffold you use the ladder provided. Just goes to show not everything is black and white.
Hope this helps. regard Andrew