Accident at Work Claim – What is it Worth?

For a lot of clients who approach us about making a claim for compensation following an accident at work, it’s not specifically about the money, but about getting closure and ensuring the accident doesn’t happen again.

Having said that, after suffering injuries in an accident at work, many people find they are financially worse off due to a loss of earnings and the cost of care and other aspects brought about because of their injuries. For this reason, the value of their claim is of interest for recovering those costs.

How much compensation can you get for an accident at work?

Every accident at work claim is different due to the multitude of ways accidents in the workplace can occur as well as the different levels of injuries that can come from them.

Minor injuries, such as superficial wounds, can be worth several thousand pounds. For example, one client we assisted, who suffered minor injuries to their fingers while at work in a factory, secured around £5,000. We also secured £5,000 for a waitress who suffered burns from a defective coffee machine.

Injuries which require slightly longer recovery time or time away from work can be worth between £8,000 and £20,000. We acted for a lady who was employed as a cleaner and sustained injury on a defective door during the course of her employment. She sustained injury to her finger and recovered £8,000 in compensation.

We recently acted for a client who was employed as a machine operator and, during the course of his employment, sustained injury when his colleague trapped his hand in a cherry picker. The claim comprised the injury itself together with loss of earnings and other expenses, eventually recovering over £15,000 in settlement.

Accidents in the construction industry are all to frequent. One client suffered an injury to his hand when a colleague swung round striking the client’s hand with the digger bucket. Liability was admitted and we arranged the for the client to be examined. They accepted an offer of £20,000.

Injuries that result in the need for minor surgery can be worth tens of thousands of pounds. One client who required surgery to their wrist after an accident at work was awarded £50,000.

Serious injuries including blindness and brain injuries can be worth can be worth upwards of half a million pounds or more. We assisted two separate clients who suffered brain injuries after defective ladders caused them to fall at work. One was awarded £500,000, while the other received £700,000. A worker who suffered blindness after a chemical spill at work received £600,000, with our assistance.

Finally, accidents which cause injuries that require extensive treatment, continuous care, and the loss of ability to work or care for themselves can be multi-million-pound claims.

While you may think, if an accident is fatal, the compensation will amount to even more than the very serious of injury claims but unfortunately, under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, there is a cap of £15,120 on bereavement damages. We have acted for families of workers who have sadly died in accidents at work and know that no amount of money can make up for their terrible loss.

What’s important to remember is that there are many factors to consider when a claim is valued, from the injury itself and the level of culpability of the employer to the impact the injuries have had on the person’s life; for example, the impact on their ability to work or to look after themselves.

For that reason, it’s difficult to put an exact figure on a claim until we have investigated and reviewed to case. In some cases, this will mean instructing medical experts (sometimes several different ones) to create reports which offer their medical opinions on the extent of the injuries, whether that’s physical or psychological, in order to put a value on the claim.

If you’ve suffered injuries in an accident at work, caused by the negligence of someone else, in the first instance you should seek medical assistance to ensure your injuries are treated and that there is a record of them. We would then always advise you seek legal advice from a personal injury specialist at the earliest opportunity. Our personal injury experts at Farleys are here to advise and support you through your claim. For a free, no obligation assessment of your case, please call 0845 287 0939 or contact us by email.