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Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery (ENT Surgery) is the study of disorders in relation to the ears, the nose and the throat – rather obviously. This is done by an ENT Surgeon. If you have sustained injury as a result of negligent treatment or care from an ENT Surgeon then you may have a course of action in medical negligence. Although this is relatively uncommon, patients can still receive sub standard care and it could even be that a mistake has been made during surgery. This can lead to often serious injuries and distress for the patient.

Negligence in this area can be from a wide range of sources. Initially negligence could arise from a failure to diagnose a condition. Negligence can also come from sub standard treatment or actual surgical mistakes. For example if you sustained nerve damage as a result of negligence during treatment, you may be able to make a claim. There are other potential injuries such as damage to bones surrounding the eye/skull, permanent loss of smell etc. Clearly with surgery there are certain risks and in this sense clinical negligence cases are more complex. The potential injuries are severe.
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If you are pursuing a personal injury compensation claim then you probably want to know the possible value of your claim (i.e. how much compensation you will receive). You may receive something called a “pre-medical offer” from the Defendant.

A pre-medical offer is simply an offer to settle your claim before you have been examined by a qualified and professional medical expert. It’s important to note that the Defendant is not being nice or amicable by making a pre-medical offer; it’s more than likely they’re only trying to save themselves some money.
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If you have fallen down a manhole or stepped on a manhole cover that was defective, sustaining injury, then you may be able to make a claim for compensation. Some people tend to walk around manhole covers for no apparent reason. Considering the number of claims we deal with involving manhole covers, this is probably not a bad idea. However at some time or other we have all walked over manhole covers. We expect the cover to be safe as it forms part of the pavement.

The companies responsible for the manhole cover are under a duty to ensure that the cover is safe. There is a duty to ensure that passers-by are not injured due to a defect or missing manhole cover. It is often the water board, electricity board or local council who is responsible. To ensure that the cover is safe and remains safe, a system of inspection should be in place. This means that the manhole cover should be inspected regularly and if necessary, repaired or replaced. As soon as a defect is found it should be repaired as soon as possible. Obviously if a defect is found and it cannot be rectified immediately, there should be some warning of the hazard. We would expect the manhole cover or manhole itself to be cordoned off.
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Most of us, at least those of us who drive, will have practised the emergency stop. Its part of learning to drive after all. But the question is when should it be applied and in what circumstances would it be unreasonable to perform an emergency stop?

Clearly an emergency stop is required and is reasonable in the case of an emergency, such as if a child or person ran out into the road.
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Claims for compensation are governed by rules and regulations. When we initiate a claim we proceed under something known as a protocol. A protocol is a set of guidelines or rules that should be followed both by the Claimant and the Defendant. In order to start the claims process we gather information from you (as the Claimant). We then prepare what is known as a “letter of claim”. This is a formal letter setting out the nature and circumstances of the claim. In the letter we detail the circumstances of the accident, allegations of negligence, funding arrangements, and important documents that should be disclosed if liability is not admitted etc.

The letter of claim is ordinarily sent directly to the Defendant. In some cases it could be sent to the Defendant’s insurers (for example if the Defendant was a dissolved company). Under the protocol (the set of rules) the Defendant then has a period of 21 days to acknowledge the Claimant’s letter of claim. This is simply an acknowledgement of the claim. It is also normal for the Defendant to pass the matter to their insurers. Following the 21 day period, the Defendant or their insurers have a period of 3 months to investigate the claim and provide a response. If no such response is provided in the allocated period, the Claimant (well, the Claimants solicitors normally) can consider making an application to Court for pre-action disclosure. This is known as a PAD application in short.
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In a claim for compensation you have a duty to do mitigate your losses. This means that you have a duty to keep your losses to a minimum. You can, of course, recover compensation for your injuries and for the losses you incurred as a result of the accident. Your losses could be anything from damaged clothing, requiring care and assistance, paying for medication etc. The duty to mitigate your losses also extends to your physical injury. If there is something that you could do to minimise or reduce the length of your injury, then you should do it; especially if it is offered to you.

This can be better explained by using physiotherapy as an example.

Say for example you are injured in a car crash that was not your fault. Another vehicle drove into the rear of your vehicle and as a result you sustained a whiplash type injury. It is likely that the other side will offer to pay for a course of physiotherapy treatment for you. If this is offered and you decline the treatment then the Defendant could (and most probably would) argue that you are failing to mitigate your losses. By having physiotherapy treatment the idea is that your injury may resolve earlier. For example with physiotherapy treatment you may make a full recovery from the injuries you sustained in the accident within 6 months. Without such physiotherapy treatment you may not recover from the injuries you sustained in the accident until 9 months after the accident.
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We deal with all types of personal injury claims including accidents at work. If you have slipped down stairs at work, sustaining injury as a result, then you may be able to claim compensation. People are often reluctant to pursue a claim against their employer and while this is certainly understandable, if you have sustained injury through an accident which was not your fault, it is your right to claim compensation. It is also important to note that the general rule is that you must issue Court Proceedings on a claim or settle the case within 3 years of the date of the accident. Therefore it is better to make a claim sooner rather than later!

There are many regulations in place which employers should comply with.

Employers are under a duty to keep employees safe and free from harm during the course of their employment. If you slipped down stairs at work then initially we would look at what caused you to slip. Did you slip because the floor was left wet? Did you slip or fall because there was a defect with the stairs? Did you slip because you were carrying something which impeded your view of the stairs? There are many possibilities but if one of the above happened then it is likely that you do have a claim against your employer.
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If you sustained injury at work and it was not your fault, you may be eligible to claim for compensation as your employer is under a duty to keep you safe and free from harm.

Obviously there are a number of measures that should be taken to ensure that you are not injured at work. Employers should make sure that the working environment is as safe as possible – this could be done by reducing the risks.

In an office environment a potential tripping risk may exist, such as by tripping over bags, boxes, wires etc. The employer should put processes/procedures in place to reduce the risk – such as a policy that bags must be kept fully under desks where they do not pose a tripping hazard.
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At The Injury Lawyers we deal solely with personal injury claims. You can normally only make a personal injury claim if you have sustained an injury and it was not your fault. Therefore if your employer did not give you protective equipment, such as gloves or a hard hat, and as a result you have sustained an injury, then you may be able to claim compensation. However a failure to provide gloves in itself would not give rise to a successful claim. You can only claim if you have been injured as a result.

Depending on the nature of your job, gloves could be a form of personal protective equipment (PPE). PPE is designed to protect workers from harm or reduce the risk of injury occurring. Gloves could protect you from vibration, dangerous chemicals, sharp objects, or abrasions from rough materials for example. If you were not given gloves at work and you regularly used vibratory tools, you may develop injury as a result (such as vibration white finger). So if the failure to provide gloves causes or contributes to an injury, then it is likely that you do have a claim against your employer.
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Here at The Injury Lawyers we deal solely with personal injury claims – we are therefore experts in the personal injury field. If you are wondering whether you have to be off work to make a claim for compensation, put simply, the answer is no. If you are injured in an accident that was not your fault, you could be eligible to claim compensation. It does not matter whether or not you took time off work.

It could be that your injuries did not affect your work and therefore you may have been able to continue in your employment. With minor injuries, for example minor whiplash injuries, people may not have to take any time off work. Whether or not you do need to take time off work will depend on the nature and severity of your injuries and also the nature of the job that you do. If you do heavy manual work then you may be less able to fulfil your duties. However before taking time off speak to your employer as they may be able to offer you an alternative role while you get better. This is often referred to as “light duties”. You may be able to work but you may not be able to do anything heavy.
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