Injuries at work and how you should protect your legal rights

by claims for you

During every year in the UK, thousands of workers injurer them selves while at work and it is very important that all injured parties take steps to protect themselves in case a accident compensation claim needs to be made. The Health and Safety Commission released figures showing that in 2004/05, there were around 151,000 non fatal injuries in the UK work place. But the amount of people who actual take legal action against there employers is far less as they are scared or simply do not want to. It is thought that around 2 in every 5 injured people will actually make a claim. In this article we will look at some key points on injuries that happen in the work place.

How can employers help to reduce accidents in their workplace? Well it is expected that all employers should take reasonable care by maintaining health and safety measures that are there by law. This will include assessing any potential risks and helping to reduce them if possible even if it means making employees aware of the risks. Some risks will have more practical ways of helping or solving them, hopefully also eliminating some completely. As well as risk assessment for equipment and the building, Employers should make sure that fellow employees are competent so that human error being a risk factor should be reduced as much as possible. If a work mate causes injury through negligence, ignorance or malice then the employer may be held responsible.

Employers Liability Insurance A lot of people don't like to make a claim against an employer as they feel they are being disloyal or will ruin them financially, well not many people know is that all employers should have liability insurance that will cover the costs for them if any accident takes place. This protects both the employee and employer, but will land the employer in serious trouble if they do not have any liability insurance. Each claim will actually be dealt with by the insurance company and not the employer themselves. The only input they will give is to give details about the accident in question.

What should an employer do if an accident occurs at work? No matter how severe that accident is, every company should have an accident book that you can log the accident in. This is the employees responsibility and all details such as circumstance, date, people involved should be recorded for every incident.

What should the employee do if they suffer an accident at work? Sufferers of accidents tend to be in shock when they first happen, this is normal and you should keep calm. There are some simple steps to take when you are involved in a work related accident. People can often overlook thins that happen at the time and will be later harder to prove if you make a claim.

1. Report the accident as soon as it happens and add an entry to the accident book
2. Make sure any accident reports are correct before you sign anything
3. Take details of any witnesses who can help back up your claim.
4. Go and see your doctor to establish any injury and so there will be a medical record of what you have sustained.
5. Contact a legal firm to enquire about accident compensation

About the Author
This article was written on behalf of Claims for you who offer accident claim advice that will help you make an accident compensation claim against your employer in case of a work based accident.