Suffering an accident at work can be an unsettling experience. The effect it can have on your day-to-day life, what it might cost you and whether you can receive compensation for it could be on your mind. That’s why we’re looking at how much compensation you could seek after an accident at work.
What to do and what options you have for help might not always be clear, but getting in touch with a personal injury lawyer can help you in realising any possible recourse or aid available to you. They could also let you know whether you might be able to claim and, if so, how much compensation you can get.
Our advisors offer free legal advice and offer an estimate of what you could claim. What’s more, if you have a favourable claim, they could connect you with a solicitor from our panel.
Our panel of solicitors can let you know what steps you can take and aid you in getting the appropriate compensation for your claim.
Call now on for a free initial consultation or click the banner above.
Choose A Section
- How Much Compensation Could I Get For An Accident At Work?
- Examples Of Common Work Accidents
- How Can I Prove A Duty Of Care Breach?
- How Do I Use A Calculator To Determine How Much Compensation For An Accident At Work?
- Am I Eligible To Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor?
- More Information On Compensation For An Accident At Work
How Much Compensation Could I Get For An Accident At Work?
The awarded compensation is dependent on the nature of the injury and the circumstances of the work accident.
Any payments would be made not just to compensate you for the inflicted injury, but for any costs you’ve incurred due to the injuries and any changes you’ve had to make to your life. As such, life-altering injuries can call for greater compensation.
Do not be put off from an inquiry because you feel the injury is minor or non-physical. Any injury that arises from negligence, or a failure of the provision of the duty of care owed to you, can be grounds for compensation. If you were injured physically or suffered mental harm due to employer negligence, you could claim.
Getting in touch could be the best way to know what you could be owed and what constitutes a breach of duty of care. Why not click the banner at the top of the page for more information?
Examples Of Common Work Accidents
The most common non-fatal injuries at work in Great Britain (by accident kind for 2020/21) were as follows:
- Slips, trips or falls on the same level (33%)
- Lifting, handling or carrying (18%)
- Struck by a moving object (10%)
- Acts of violence (8%)
- Falls from a height (8%)
Who, if anyone, is to blame might not always seem clear: slips happen and muscle strains from manual handling may seem like they come part and parcel of any manual work.
It’s important to know, though, that while you are at work, your employer owes you a duty of care.
Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, they are required to do everything they reasonably can to ensure you can carry your work out as safely as possible.
Some of their duties may include:
- Conducting risk assessments and making you aware of said risks
- Ensuring you & your colleagues receive proper training
- Providing PPE wherever necessary
Regularities Of Accidents In The Workplace
Common accidents can arise from a breach of an employer’s duty of care.
If an employer is aware of trailing wires in the area you’re working in but fails to reduce or remove the risk, this could mean they had breached their duty. If they weren’t aware of the wires because they’d failed to conduct necessary risk assessments and asked you to work in that environment regardless, you could claim if you suffered an injury as a consequence.
Asking you to use dangerous machinery, and not informing you of hazards, could mean they had neglected to inform you of risks you were being exposed to.
Assigning you manual handling duties without giving you proper health and safety training would mean they had not provided you with proper training. This could also be true if you’re asked to work with equipment you were not properly trained to use.
Accidents can happen, but they can arise from a lack of provision of the duty of care that you’re owed at work. If a breach of duty of care causes you injury, you could be owed compensation for the accident at work.
How Can I Prove A Duty Of Care Breach?
Actions begin, ideally, from the day of the injury. However, many claimants discover later than the accident date that their injuries were caused by negligence. You may also find that you’re ready to make a claim some time after the accident. There’s generally a 3-year time limit to start a personal injury claim so it’s important to collect evidence at the earliest opportunity.
There are steps you should take following an injury such as:
- Seeking medical treatment
- Logging the incident in the work report book
- Taking notes or photos of the incident
- Getting the contact details of any possible witnesses
All these actions could go a long way towards your case.
How Can We Help You?
The process might seem daunting—especially if you have not completed any of the recommended steps—but your personal injury lawyer can help you work through what’s needed. It’s important to note that you don’t need to use the services of a solicitor to claim. However, it can be helpful to have someone with solid legal knowledge and experience alongside you.
They can:
- Go through the details of the case and help you organise evidence.
- Reach out to any potential witnesses.
- Handle the requests of evidence; including CCTV or any proof of faulty machinery in question.
- Arrange for an independent medical assessment for you.
- Help you assess liability and prove a breach of duty of care.
The duty of care isn’t always on your employer. Employees should also take steps to protect their own and others’ safety. For example, you shouldn’t take reckless safety risks at work. You couldn’t claim if you’re entirely at fault for your injuries. However, if you are partially liable for your injuries, you could still claim.
This process can be time-sensitive, so it’s important to seek out legal advice, even if just to see if you have a case. If you’d like to know how long you might have left to claim, click the banner at the top of the page.
How Do I Use A Calculator To Determine How Much Compensation For An Accident At Work?
To give you a general idea of what you might claim, we’ve added the below compensation table. It illustrates potential compensation amounts that are set out in what is known as the Judicial College Guidelines. This is a publication that outlines a range of potential awards for various injuries. Solicitors use it to help value general damages.
General damages compensate you for the psychological and physical injuries you suffer as a result of another party’s negligence.
The below compensation table shows examples of injuries that could occur due to accidents at work.
Injury Notes Potential Award
Minor Brain Or Head Injuries Minimal (if any) brain damage. £2,070 to £11,980
Psychiatric Damage (Moderate) The prognosis will be good. £5,500 to £17,900
Hand Injuries (Moderate) Deep lacerations, soft tissue injuries, penetrating wounds and crush injuries. £5,260 to £12,460
Back Injuries: Minor (i) A full recovery/a recovery to nuisance level within 2 to 5 years without surgery. £7,410 to £11,730
Back Injuries: Moderate (ii) That deal with ligament and muscle damage causing backache, for example. £11,730 to £26,050
Leg Injuries (Moderate) That lead to multiple fractures or severe damage to the limb. £26,050 to £36,790
Facial Disfigurement: Less Significant Scarring In regards to one scar that can be camouflaged or a number of small scars. £3,710 to £12,900
Facial Disfigurement: Less Severe Scarring Significant disfigurement and psychological reaction. £16,860 to £45,440
Fractures of Jaws (iii) Simple fracture and a complete recovery. £6,060 to £8,200
Moderate Toe Injuries Straightforward fractures or a worsening of a pre-existing degenerative condition, for example. Up to £9,010
The figures in the compensation table above are only guidelines and don’t take into account your own case and what costs you might have personally incurred.
Special damages is the head of claim that compensates you for financial losses associated with your injuries. It could also cover you for any future potential losses. This can include:
- Loss of earnings while you cannot work
- Travel costs for any medical treatments
- The costs of accommodations or changes you have to make, such as lost holiday deposits or home adaptations due to a disability
If you received care or will need care going forward, it could be covered.
Every case is different. Sometimes injuries take years to manifest and the full extent of what it will cost you might not be realised until later.
What compensation you might get for a work accident caused by employer negligence will be dependent on factors such as what costs you might continue to incur and any changes you’ve had to or will have to make to your life.
Am I Eligible To Use A No Win No Fee Solicitor?
Questions you have about the process and the viability of your own case can be addressed if you get in touch with our advisors. They could connect you with a solicitor from our panel. When talking about a potential claim with a solicitor, expectations should be explained and presented to you upfront: the process, possible outcomes to your case and what you’d need to do to going forward.
Our panel work on a No Win No Fee basis for every claim they take on. Under a No Win No Fee agreement, if your claim were to lose, there’d be no solicitor’s fee to pay.
If your claim were to win, the fee would only be taken from your compensation. What’s more, this fee is capped by law.
Other benefits of No Win No Fee include no upfront solicitor’s fee and no ongoing solicitor’s fee either.
Ask us how much compensation you could receive
Our panel of personal injury solicitors work to make the claim as easy as possible for you.
They’d handle things on your behalf, from collecting evidence to communicating with the defendants about settlement agreements.
As our panel work on a No Win No Fee basis, they would not advise you to proceed with a case unless they didn’t feel you had a high likelihood of winning.
For a free consultation or any other additional questions, follow the banner below or contact us through our site.
More Information On Compensation For An Accident At Work
There are several resources that offer additional aid on what you can do following an accident at work.
The NHS gives advice on when you should go to A&E.
They also have advice on how to know if you’ve broken a bone.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) enforces health and safety legislation in Great Britain. They also provide statistics on health and safety at work.
For more work accident claims advice, you can check out other guides we have:
- Should I Take The First Compensation Offer After A Workplace Accident?
- What Is The Accident At Work Procedure?
- How Do I Claim Compensation For An Injury At Work?
- How To Sue Your Employer After A Workplace Accident
- How Do I Find The Best Accident At Work Solicitors?
- Increasing Your Chances Of Winning A Work Accident Claim
- Using An Accident At Work Claims Calculator
- Could I File A Claim If I’m Injured At Work?
- No Win No Fee Injury At Work Claims