Mr B was employed as a handyman. He was tasked was to clear the yard of debris. Previously, his employers had washed out a lorry containing chemical waste into the yard. There were drains present but one of the drains was missing its manhole cover. Apparently, the manhole cover had been removed to carry out works in the yard and had not been replaced. Mr B’s employers did not warn him of the content of the fluid on the ground which was chemical mixed with water. Whilst clearing the yard Mr B stepped on the ground where the drain was missing its cover, and this could not be seen due to the water and fluid on the ground. Mr B’s foot went down into the drain which contained the chemical. Despite him wearing his work safety boots Mr B sustained chemical burns to his foot which were extremely painful and left him with scarring. He attended hospital and following debridement of the blisters was referred to the Plastic Surgery team for dressings over a period of weeks. The Claimant required some care and assistance at home from family members to navigate the stairs as well as bathing and dressing.
Following correspondence from Tilly Bailey & Irvine the Defendants accepted that they had breached their duty to their employee in failing to replace the missing drain cover and had therefore exposed their employee to a danger or trap and a foreseeable risk of injury.
A medical report was obtained, and he was also recommended to use dressings on his foot for up to a further year. Once the injury had been valued and negotiated with the Defendant insurers Mr B recovered a sum of compensation a little under £10,000. This included damages for his injury, loss of earnings and the costs of future dressings for his foot.
Sometimes in the workplace an accident is just that, an accident. However, an employer does owe its employees a duty of care whilst they are carrying out their employment. If an accident is due to a failure to ensure that employee’s safety because of something the employers have done or omitted to do then liability would be established. If an employee, then suffers an injury as a result of that breach i.e. proved that their omission or act had caused the injury then compensation can be recovered. A Claimant would be compensated for the injury they sustained and any financial loss such as loss of earnings, care and treatment or expenditure such as travel to appointments and prescription or medication charges.
A claim normally takes between 12- 18 months dependent upon the speed of your recovery and whether or not liability is admitted straight away. If liability is initially denied and Tilly Bailey & Irvine still consider you have reasonable prospects, they will continue to investigate your claim in order to establish whether there is potential in succeeding and to either negotiate a settlement with the Defendant or, where necessary, to issue proceedings in the Court. Not all firms will proceed in the face of a denial of liability but here at TBI we believe in fighting for the recourse an injured person deserves.
If you have an accident at work, you should always seek advice. Not every enquiry will proceed to a successful conclusion. Your employers may or may not be liable but Tilly Bailey & Irvine will always give you full and proper advice so that you can decide whether to pursue a claim against your employers.
If you have been involved in an accident at work, contact us on 01429 225200 for a free initial interview where we can advise you whether you believe you have a valid claim.
Call: 01429 225200