Sometimes when you make a claim, winning or losing comes down to one simple thing – was your employer aware, or should they have been aware, of a danger or a hazard? Claims can only be successful where we can prove a breach of important health and safety legislation. Your employer has to have been negligent and has to have breached the duty of care they owe to you.
So what if your employer was, or should, have been aware of a dangerous or defective piece of equipment at work?
If your employer knew that equipment at work was dangerous or defective but they continued to let or make employees use it, you have a very strong chance of winning the claim. When it comes down to if they ought to have known about it, it can come down how this is so. If a supervisor knew about it and failed to report it to a manager, then that supervisor being negligent can fall on to the employer overall.
Knowledge is power – and if there is knowledge of a problem, you should be able to succeed with a claim for personal injury compensation.
Even if you knew about the dangers but had been told by your employer to continue using the equipment and to just ‘take extra care’ for example, the employer can still be negligent. The legislation is clear on defective and unsuitable work equipment. It reads as follows:
5. (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is so constructed or adapted as to be suitable for the purpose for which it is used or provided.
6. (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.
If the equipment is not suitable or is not in an efficient state / working order / repair, there is a breach of these regulations.
An example could be where a wheel keeps falling off of a trolley and you are told to keep using it. If it then falls off and causes an accident, you can make a claim. Or perhaps a lathe keeps releasing a job because the grips are not working properly – again, if you are told to use it, you can make a claim.
How do employer liability claims work?
It’s normally very simple – we submit a Claim Notification Form directly to your employer or to their insurers and ask that they accept liability within 30 working days. We send you to see a medical expert who will provide a report for us to value the claim. Once they have accepted liability and we have all the medical and losses / expenses evidence needed, we settle on the best terms we can.
It really can be as simple as that – and remember, you’re protected by law when making a claim so you should have absolutely nothing to fear when pursuing one. Employers should legally be insured – all we’re doing is claiming from that insurance.
