Learn If You Can Claim For Work Height Accidents
Can you claim for work at height accidents? Yes! This guide will show you how.
£70 million in compensation
Learn If You Can Claim For Work Height Accidents
Can you claim for work at height accidents? Yes! This guide will show you how.
Work At Height Accidents - Could I Claim?
Working at a height can be dangerous, and you could suffer significant injuries that can have a huge impact on your life if you were to fall from a height. There are many ways that something can go wrong. Perhaps you were not trained correctly, provided with faulty equipment, or tripped over an obstructed walkway on a raised platform. This guide will answer the question, ‘Can you claim for work at height accidents?’
We will cover some of the common causes of falls from heights at work and the injuries they could lead to. Additionally, we will provide you with an illustrative case study to help you understand how personal injury compensation could be awarded.
We will then examine the time frame within which you must start a claim. Finally, we share how our specialist No Win No Fee solicitors could help you with your accident at work claim.
You can contact one of our advisors for some free advice about your potential claim with no obligation if you:
Call us on 0151 375 9916
Contact us via our website.
Use the live chat function at the bottom of your screen.
Can You Claim For Work At Height Accidents?
Can you claim for work at height accidents? The short answer is yes, you can. However, certain requirements will need to be met.
Firstly, you will need to prove that your employer breached the duty of care they owed you. Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, your employer owes you a duty of care. They should take all reasonably practical steps to ensure you are safe at work.
When specifically working at height The Work at Height Regulations 2005 also apply, and this means your employers should:
Appropriately plan and supervise working at height.
Perform adequate risk assessments.
Give training where necessary.
Make sure surfaces are stable.
Provide sufficient equipment.
To be able to make a personal injury claim following a workplace fall from height accident, you will need to demonstrate:
Your employer owed you a duty of care.
This duty was breached by them, e.g. they failed to give you appropriate training.
Your injuries were caused by this breached duty.
Contact our friendly team of advisors today to discuss your potential accident at work claim today.
Established, Experienced, Dependable, Responsive and Committed
What Are Common Causes Of Falls From Height At Work?
If proper safety measures are not implemented, there are various ways in which you could fall from a height within the workplace. Some examples could include:
Failing to provide appropriate training for you to work at height which causes you to fall.
Providing faulty equipment, such as a defective ladder. While working at height, the ladder breaks, causing you to fall backwards.
Not doing an adequate risk assessment leads to placing a temporary raised platform on uneven ground, which makes it unstable. You fall because of this instability.
Failing to provide a hard hat as a suitable item of personal protective equipment (PPE) on a construction site and someone who is working at a height drops an object on your head.
Common Injuries Caused By Falling From Height
Common injuries caused by falling from height could include:
Head injuries, including brain injuries.
Fractures and broken bones.
Soft tissue injuries.
Lacerations and scarring.
Psychological injuries.
How Often Do Work At Height Accidents Happen?
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are the workplace safety regulators in Great Britain and they keep statistics of accidents that are reported to them.
Based on reports made by employers under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) in 2022/23 there were 5,118 non-fatal injuries suffered by employees across industries that were caused by falls from a height. The same report stated that there were 40 fatal injuries suffered to employees due to falling from a height.
The transportation and storage industries experienced the most non-fatal injuries due to this accident, with 859 reports made in 2022/23.
If you are still wondering, ‘Can you claim for work at height accidents?’, you can contact our advisors today to discuss your particular case.
Working At Height Accident Case Study: £500,000 Compensation Payout
Below, we have set out an illustrative case study to help you gain a clearer idea of when you may have an eligible claim and how compensation is awarded for such cases.
An employee noticed that the platform he stood on was unsteady while working on scaffolding erected by his employer. Before he had a chance to safely get down, the scaffolding collapsed, and he fell, hitting his head on the ground. An HSE investigation found that his employer had not properly secured the scaffolding.
This employee suffered multiple injuries in this accident, including a back injury, broken leg and head injury. Due to these injuries, the employee also needed to take time off work to recover. Additionally, he needed to pay for at-home care and for taxis to essential medical appointments.
The employee decided to seek the help of a solicitor, who helped with gathering evidence to support his case such as statements from fellow colleagues who witnessed the accident and communicating with his employer.
In the end, the employer was deemed to have breached height regulations and was deemed responsible for the employee’s injuries. The solicitor helped the employee with claiming £500,000 in compensation. This settlement covered both his injuries and the financial losses they had caused him to suffer.
To discuss your particular case and see whether you could be eligible to make a personal injury compensation claim, you can contact our advisors.
We pride ourselves
on providing the best service
possible for our clients.
We pride ourselves on providing the best service possible for our clients.
How Much Compensation From A Work At Height Accident?
Another question you may have is, ‘How much compensation can you claim for work at height accidents?’. The amount of compensation you could receive will depend on the unique circumstances of your case.
However, a successful compensation claim will always result in a general damages payout. This is the head of loss that compensated you for your injuries and the suffering they have caused.
When this head of your claim is being calculated, any medical evidence you have provided, as well as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), could be referred to. Within the JCG are guideline compensation amounts for various physical and mental injuries.
Below is a table containing some of the compensation guidelines listed within the JCG. Please only use it as a guide, and note that the top entry does not come from the JCG.
Compensation Table
| Injury | Severity | Compensation Guideline | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries And Additional Special Damages | Very Severe | Up to £1,000,000+ | A settlement that accounts for numerous significant injuries. Includes significant loss of earnings and other special damages. |
| Brain Damage | Very Severe (a) | £344,150 to £493,00 | Little if any meaningful response to their environment, little or no language function and need for full time care. |
| Leg | Severe (b)(ii) Very Serious | £66,920 to £109,290 | Permanent problems with mobility, extensive treatment and deformity. |
| Foot | Severe (d) | £51,220 to £85,460 | Both feet or heels are fractured substantially restricting mobility. |
| Ankle | Very Severe (a) | £61,090 to £85,070 | Transmalleolar fracture of the ankle with extensive damage to soft tissues. |
| Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder | Moderately Severe (b) | £28,250 to £73,050 | Effects cause significant disability for the foreseeable future. |
| Pelvis and Hip | Moderate (b)(i) | £32,450 to £47,810 | Significant injury to the pelvis or hips but risk of future disability is low. May include hip replacement. |
| Back | Moderate (b)(ii) | £15,260 to £33,880 | Disturbance of ligaments and muscles, accelerating a pre-existing back condition by 5 years or more. |
| Arm | Simple (d) | £8,060 to £23,430 | Simple fracture of the forearm. |
| Elbow | Moderate or minor (c)(iii) | Up to £15,370 | Includes simple fractures and lacerations. Recovery after 3 years with nuisance symptoms or requiring surgery. |
In addition to receiving compensation for your injury, compensation could also be awarded for any financial losses caused by your accident and injuries. This could include:
Lost earnings.
Care costs.
Medical expenses.
Home adaptation costs.
The cost of a wheelchair or other equipment.
You will have to provide evidence in support of these losses, such as receipts, invoices or wage slips.
To learn more about claiming compensation for your injuries and related financial losses, you can contact our advisors.
How Long Do You Have To Make A Fall From Height Claim?
There is a time limit to bringing an accident at work claim forward. The Limitation Act 1980 states that you generally have 3 years from the date of your accident to start your personal injury claim.
There are exceptions, however. These are:
The time limit is paused for those under the age of 18. From their 18th birthday, they will have 3 years to begin the claims process.
The time limit is paused for those not possessing the mental capacity to manage their own claim. If the person regains mental capacity, then the 3 year time limit will begin from the date they recover capacity.
A litigation friend could claim compensation on the claimant’s behalf while the time limit is paused.
To learn whether you have enough time to begin your claim or to ask questions such as, ‘Can you claim for work at height accidents on behalf of someone else?’, you can contact a member of our team.
Can You Claim For Work At Height Accidents On A No Win No Fee Basis?
Although it is not a requirement, working with an experienced accident at work solicitor for your claim can come with many benefits. For example, a solicitor could help you with:
Submitting your claim within the time limit.
Obtaining evidence to support your claim, such as medical records and CCTV footage.
Communicating with your employer (the defendant).
Negotiating a compensation settlement on your behalf that covers both general and special damages.
Our experienced personal injury solicitors work on a No Win No Fee basis, and if your case is accepted, you could be offered a Conditional Fee Agreement. This has many benefits:
Not having to pay upfront for the work done by your solicitor.
Not having to pay for ongoing work.
Nothing to pay for their services if the claim is unsuccessful.
A success fee will be due to your solicitor if the claim is successful. This is a percentage of your compensation but has a legally imposed maximum.
Contact Us
If you would like to work with one of our solicitors for your accident at work claim, you can contact us by:
Calling us on 0151 375 9916
Filling in an online form on our website.
Using the live chat function at the bottom of your screen.
Learn More About Accident At Work Claims
Learn more about how to claim for different workplace accidents with our helpful guides:
Guidance on how to claim after a fall at work.
Learn when you could claim following a factory accident where you suffered injuries as an employee.
Advice on claiming compensation for apallet truck accident at work.
External resources:
Guidance from the HSE on what steps should be taken when working from a height.
Learn when are you entitled to claim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from Gov.UK.
Consider the NHS’s guide on what to do if someone needs first aid.
Hopefully, we have answered the question, ‘Can you claim for work at height accidents?’. If you have ay further questions, you can contact our advisors today.
Our Latest Customer Reviews
AS SEEN ON
Contact Us
Our helpline is open 24 hours a day, 7 days per week.
All calls are free and there’s no pressure whatsoever to proceed with a compensation claim.
If you write to us, we aim to respond within an hour or two, and no more than a few hours.
