Welcome to our guide on how to make a fall at work claim. Slips and trips are the most common type of workplace accident. According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), slips and trips are responsible for over a third of all reported non-fatal workplace injuries. But, when the correct safety measures are in place, they can be preventable.
If you’ve had a fall and injured yourself at work due to your employer being negligent, you could be entitled to claim compensation today.
Key Takeaways
- Your employer owes you a duty of care to ensure your workplace safety.
- Accident at work compensation can be awarded for how you’ve been physically and psychologically affected, as well as for any financial losses you have incurred, as a result of your workplace injury.
- Generally, you have 3 years from the date of the accident to begin a fall at work claim.
- Our panel of solicitors could help you claim on a No Win No Fee basis.
Our panel of solicitors have years of experience and expertise in securing compensation for clients who have suffered a workplace injury. We could support you today and guide you through the claims process each step of the way.
Chat to our team for free at any time about your potential work compensation claim. Our services are open 24/7:
- Call 0800 408 7825
- Use our online ‘Contact Us’ page.
- Send a message in our live on-screen chat box.
Jump To A Section
- What Is A Fall At Work Claim?
- Can I Claim If I Fall At Work?
- Examples Of Falling Accidents At Work
- I Had A Slip, Trip Or Fall At Work, What Should I Do?
- How Much Slip At Work Compensation Could I Get?
- How Long After My Slip, Trip Or Fall Can I Start My Claim?
- Can I Still Make A Fall At Work Claim If I’m Under 18?
- Can My Employer Fire Me For Making A Slip At Work Claim?
- How To Find The Right Solicitors To Help Me With My Claim
- More Information
What Is A Fall At Work Claim?
A fall at work claim is when someone seeks financial compensation for employer negligence after being injured in a slip, trip and fall accident at work. Employer negligence is when you suffer an injury as a direct result of your employer breaching their duty of care.
Can I Claim If I Fall At Work?
All employers owe a duty of care to all of their employees while they’re at work. To adhere to their duty of care, employers are legally required to take certain steps that are reasonably expected of them in order to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of their employees. This duty of care is protected by the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
As such, you could begin a work compensation claim if you fit the following eligibility criteria:
- An employer owed you a duty of care.
- This duty of care was breached because reasonably expected steps weren’t taken to ensure your workplace safety.
- As a direct result of this breach, you fell and suffered an injury.
Our panel of solicitors can confirm whether you’re eligible to make a fall at work claim. If you believe you fit the above criteria, please contact us for advice on what to do next.
Statistics For Slips, Trips And Falls At Work
As we have already mentioned, based on the HSE’s annual statistics, slip, trip and fall accidents made up over a third (31%) of all reported non-fatal workplace injuries in 2023/24 across all industry sectors.
Slips, trips, and falls also made up:
- 25% of all workplace injuries requiring over 7 days of absence from work.
- 46% of all specified workplace injuries (a predefined list of injuries).
- 1% of workplace fatalities (when combined with injuries from handling, lifting, or carrying) in 2019/20 – 2023/24.
As you can see, injuries from slips, trips and falls at work are unfortunately common. If you’ve been injured from a fall at work, you can have a chat with us at any time about your incident.
Examples Of Falling Accidents At Work
You may be wondering how exactly an employer could breach their duty of care and cause an employee to suffer an injury.
Below, we have provided examples of the types of incidents that could lead to an eligible fall at work claim.
Slipping On A Wet Floor
- There was a spillage in your workplace that your employer knew about, but they didn’t display any wet floor signs.
- Your employer didn’t provide you with any anti-slip footwear, or other appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), in a job where there’s a risk of slipping (such as in the catering industry).
- Your employer didn’t grit the paths in the workplace’s carpark when there were icy conditions.
Tripping Over At Work
- There are trailing cables in the office, and your employer didn’t use any cable management solutions to secure the loose wires or keep them clear from walkways.
- There is poor lighting near the staircases and in the stairwells but your employer hadn’t fixed the poor lighting in a timely manner.
- The walkways in your workplace are cluttered with boxes because your employer has not provided any adequate storage solutions to keep these objects off the floor.
Falling From A Height
When you’re working from a height, your employer must also abide by the Working From Height Regulations 2005 in order to fulfil their duty of care.
- While working on scaffolding, your employer doesn’t provide you with a harness.
- When working at a height, your employer has not put out any safety railings on the edge of the platform you’re working on.
- Your employer didn’t conduct any risk assessments and instructed you to work on a fragile roof.
Slips, Trips Or Falls Caused By Faulty Equipment
- Your employer knowingly provided you with a ladder that was defective to work from a height.
- A piece of poorly maintained machinery in the workplace malfunctions as you’re using it, and the sudden movement causes you to fall.
- Due to the lack of regular maintenance checks, your employer fails to notice that a handrail on the stairs is broken, which can cause you to fall if the handrail you’re holding on to becomes loose.
Employer negligence can potentially happen in many different ways. So, you shouldn’t worry if the circumstances of your incident aren’t the same as any of the above examples. We always recommend you discuss your incident with our team to confirm whether you have an eligible fall at work claim.
I Had A Slip, Trip Or Fall At Work, What Should I Do?
If you haven’t already done so, the first thing you should do after being injured from a slip, trip or fall is to seek medical attention. Only after this should you go about starting a fall at work claim.
While you’re under no obligation to work with a solicitor on your work compensation claim, having one will definitely make the claims process easier. Our panel of solicitors offer many services to help you, such as collecting evidence for you, so that you can solely focus on recovering from your injuries with no hassle.
Collecting evidence is a huge part of the fall at work claims process. This is because it must be proven that employer negligence occurred.
The best types of evidence to have include:
- CCTV footage of the accident.
- Photographs of what caused the accident (for example, trailing cables).
- A copy of the reported incident in your workplace’s accident at work book.
- Photographs of your injuries.
- A copy of your medical records.
- Copies of any scan images of your injuries.
- If any fellow employees witnessed the accident, get their contact details so that they can provide a witness statement at a later date.
- A personal diary where you’ve recorded your symptoms and what treatment you’re receiving.
To find out whether a solicitor from our panel can help you collect evidence and claim compensation, please get in touch with us.
How Much Slip At Work Compensation Could I Get?
If you have a successful fall at work claim, the value of your compensation may be dependent on two heads of claim – general and special damages.
Compensation awarded under general damages covers the way your workplace injuries have physically and psychologically affected you.
When general damages are evaluated, some factors that need to be looked at include:
- Loss of amenity.
- How severe your pain is.
- How long the recovery takes.
Compensation awarded under special damages covers the way your workplace injuries have financially affected you.
Some accident-related expenses you may have incurred from your fall at work include:
- Loss of earnings if you’re unable to work while you recover.
- Mobility aid costs.
- Domestic care costs.
After being in an accident that wasn’t your fault, the last thing you want to worry about is losing money. Special damages ensures that your financial position is as it should be.
However, you must provide financial evidence, such as receipts, bank statements, payslips, and invoices, in order to receive special damages.
How Is Compensation Calculated?
Those valuing your general damages can use independent medical assessment reports and the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them. In the JCG, there are different guideline compensation values for different injury types.
In the table below, we have taken some injuries and compensation values from the JCG. These injuries are just some examples of what could be suffered following a slip, trip or fall at work (such as broken bones).
Please remember though that the JCG should only be referred to as guidance, since every personal injury claim is unique. The top value in this table is also not from the JCG.
| Injury type | Severity | Guideline compensation values |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious workplace injuries with related expenses | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Paralysis | Tetraplegia (a) | £396,140 to £493,000 |
| Paraplegia (b) | £267,340 to £346,890 | |
| Back | Severe (a)(i) | £111,150 to £196,450 |
| Moderate (b)(i) | £33,880 to £47,320 | |
| Neck | Severe (a)(i) | In the region of £181,020 |
| Severe (a)(ii) | £80,240 to £159,770 | |
| Moderate (b)(i) | £30,500 to £46,970 | |
| Pelvis and hips | Severe (a)(i) | £95,680 to £159,770 |
| Moderate (b)(i) | £32,450 to £47.810 | |
| Lesser injuries (c)(i) | £4,820 to £15,370 | |
| Leg | Severe (b)(ii) very serious | £66,920 to £109,290 |
| Severe (b)(iv) moderate | £33,880 to £47,840 | |
| Ankle | Very severe (a) | £61,090 to £85,070 |
| Moderate (c) | £16,770 to £32,450 | |
| Modest (d) | Up to £16,770 | |
| Arm | Permanent and substantial disablement (b) | £47,810 to £73,050 |
| Less severe (c) | £23,430 to £47,810 | |
| Simple forearm fracture (d) | £8,060 to £23,430 |
For a more specific valuation on how much compensation you could potentially be entitled to for your workplace injuries, please have a chat with us today.
Interim Payments
Interim payments are payments taken out of the compensation that are paid to you before the claim has been settled. They’re in place to help those who need financial assistance regarding their injuries straight away.
To be able to receive interim payments, these certain criteria just need to be met:
- The defendant has admitted liability, or they will likely be found liable if the claim goes to court.
- There’s a good reason for requesting them (for example, there’s urgent medical expenses that need to be paid).
- A reasonable amount for the interim payment has been requested (a value that is less than what the total compensation will be).
If, once we’ve contacted them, your employer admits liability, then we can work straight away to try and secure interim payments for you to relieve any immediate costs you may have.
How Long After My Slip, Trip Or Fall Can I Start My Claim?
As per the Limitation Act 1980, starting from the date of your accident, you generally have 3 years to begin a fall at work claim.
However, if the claimant does not have full mental capacity (for example, if they have suffered brain damage from falling from a height), then this time limit is put on hold.
While the time limit is put on hold, a litigation friend can step in and make a claim for the claimant. Family members and friends of the claimant can become a litigation friend.
However, they only have until the time limit recommences to do this. The time limit recommences once the claimant regains full mental capacity, starting from the date of recovery.
Can I Still Make A Fall At Work Claim If I’m Under 18?
Similarly to those who don’t have full mental capacity, the compensation claims time limit is also put on hold for those under the age of 18.
Again, a litigation friend can step in until the time limit recommences.
The time limit, in this case, recommences when the claimant turns 18, starting from their 18th birthday.
If you want to learn more about making a fall at work claim on behalf of someone else as a litigation friend, please speak to us today about this.
Can My Employer Fire Me For Making A Slip At Work Claim?
You may be hesitant to make a fall at work claim against your employer in fear of being sacked or how else they’ll respond. But, you have no reason to be.
Your employee rights are protected by the Employment Rights Act 1996. This means that you legally cannot be fired for pursuing a compensation claim against your employer if you have suffered negligence and are entitled to compensation. It can be considered unfair dismissal if your employer does take action against you for simply making a claim after your workplace accident.
How To Find The Right Solicitors To Help Me With My Claim
When finding the right solicitors to help you with your fall at work claim, you must consider how reputable and experienced they are. You must also consider whether you’d like to work with your solicitor on a No Win No Fee basis, or whether you’re happy to be charged for their services throughout the claims process.
Our panel of specialist No Win No Fee solicitors at Public Interest Lawyers have decades worth of experience in winning countless accident at work claims for their clients. They strive to help their clients as much as possible by offering the following services and more:
- Collecting evidence (as previously touched upon).
- Sending communications to your employer and/or their insurer on your behalf.
- Making sure the decided compensation is a fair and accurate sum.
- Keeping you regularly updated throughout the entire process.
- Explaining to you any legal terms you may be unaware of.
- Sorting out your further legal representation if the claim gets taken to court.
What’s more, the specific type of No Win No Fee arrangement our panel of solicitors offer is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
You could benefit from a CFA by not having to pay for your solicitor’s services:
- Before the claim has begun.
- Throughout the claims process.
- If the claim isn’t successful.
If the claim is successful, your solicitor instead will just keep a slight percentage of your compensation. This percentage is capped by the law and is called the success fee.
Contact Our Panel
If you like the sound of making a fall at work claim in this way, please contact us today to see whether you can connect with one of the solicitors from our panel:
- Call 0800 408 7825
- Use our online ‘Contact Us’ page.
- Send a message in our live on-screen chat box.
More Information
For some more of our accident at work claims guides, please see here:
- Learn how to make an accident at work claim if you’re zero-hour contract staff.
- Learn how to make an accident at work claim if your accident was due to a change in duties.
- Look at this case study example of when an employee won accident at work compensation for a fractured collarbone.
Additionally, please see here for some pages that might be useful to you:
- HSE – read their advice in response to the question “I’ve had a slip or trip accident at work, what happens now?”.
- Gov.UK – find out how to claim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) for missing work due to your injuries.
- NHS – information on how to manage fractures and soft-tissue injuries.
Thank you for taking the time to read our guide on making a slip, trip and fall at work claim. If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to contact us today.
