In this guide, we’ll be discussing when you could be eligible to seek personal injury compensation after you were injured while manual handling, and the claims process involved in doing so. Firstly, we will set out the eligibility criteria for making a personal injury claim. Also, we will look at the steps you could take to support your case, including gathering evidence.
What Is The Manual Handling Claims Process In The UK?
Additionally, we will discuss the duty of care that employers owe to their employees and how a breach of this could occur, leading to an employee sustaining harm when carrying out manual handling activities.
Furthermore, we will discuss what compensation could be owed to you if you make a successful personal injury claim. We will also look at how settlements are calculated.
If you have any further questions in regards to manual handling compensation claims, you can use the following contact details to speak with an advisor. They can determine if you’re eligible to work with a solicitor from our panel on a No Win No Fee basis. To learn more, you can:
- Fill out the ‘contact us’ form on our website
- Call on 0800 408 7825
- Talk with an advisor by using the live support bubble below.
Choose A Section
- When Are You Eligible To Claim For A Manual Handling Injury?
- What Is The Manual Handling Claims Process?
- Evidence You Could Use In Manual Handling At Work Claims
- What Compensation Could You Receive From An Accident At Work Claim?
- Make A No Win No Fee Workplace Accident Claim Using Our Panel Of Solicitors
- Learn More About The Manual Handling Claims Process
When Are You Eligible To Claim For A Manual Handling Injury?
In order to begin a personal injury claim after you were injured when manual handling at work, you need to prove the following:
- Your employer owed a duty of care to you at the location and time of the accident.
- A breach of this duty of care occurred.
- This breach of duty caused you to be injured. This is negligence, for which you could seek personal injury compensation.
An employer’s duty of care is laid out in The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. This legislation outlines how employers need to take reasonable and practicable steps to ensure that the environment, workplace, equipment and facilities are safe and to prevent their employees from becoming harmed at work.
Additionally, employers have more specific responsibilities with regard to manual handling under The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992. It states that they need to avoid the need for manual handling activities to be carried out, where possible. If this cannot be done, they are expected to take steps to reduce the risk of injury that this type of activity could pose. For example, they need to carry out risk assessments and address any risks they become aware of.
A manual handling injury could be caused by an employer failing to uphold their duty of care. For example, they might fail to provide adequate manual handling training to an employee before asking them to move heavy stock around a warehouse. As a result, the employee lifts the items incorrectly and sustains a back injury involving soft tissue damage. In this instance, it may be possible to seek compensation.
You can get in touch with an advisor for more information on the manual handling claims process.
What Is The Manual Handling Claims Process?
You may benefit from working with a personal injury solicitor specialising in manual handling claims to help you through the claims process when seeking compensation for manual handling injuries. They can offer many services such as:
- Helping you to collect evidence
- Providing you with an accurate timescale as to how long your case could take to settle
- Valuing your settlement and ensuring you receive a suitable amount of compensation
- Presenting your case in full
The solicitors from our panel have experience with accident at work claims and could offer similar services to help you. Learn more by calling the number above.
Evidence You Could Use In Manual Handling At Work Claims
if you are injured while manual handling, the claims process can involve gathering evidence to prove negligence. Examples of the steps you could take to collect evidence include:
- Requesting CCTV footage of the accident.
- Getting medical care and asking for copies of the records.
- Taking photographs of your injury and the accident site.
- Taking contact details of potential witnesses. These can be contacted later to provide a statement.
If you’re struggling to gather evidence, a solicitor from our panel can help you. To find out whether you could be eligible to have them represent your case, please get in touch on the number above.
What Compensation Could You Receive From An Accident At Work Claim?
After making a successful claim, your settlement could consist of up to two heads of claim. The first of these that we’ll discuss is general damages which aims to compensate you for the pain and suffering you have experienced due to their injuries. Solicitors can use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them calculate the value of your injuries. This is a publication containing guideline award brackets, some of which we have included in the following table.
It’s important to recognise that these figures cannot be guaranteed. This is due to the fact that all personal injury claims are judged on a case-by-case basis.
| Injury | Severity | Compensation Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Neck Injuries | (b) Moderate (i) | £24,990 to £38,490 |
| Neck Injuries | (b) Moderate (ii) | £13,740 to £24,990 |
| Back Injuries | (b) Moderate (i) | £27,760 to £38,780 |
| Back Injuries | (b) Moderate (ii) | £12,510 to £27,760 |
| Arm Injuries | (a) Severe | £96,160 to £130,930 |
| Arm Injuries | (c) Less Severe | £19,200 to £39,170 |
| Elbow Injuries | (b) Less Severe | £15,650 to £32,010 |
| Wrist Injuries | (c) Less Severe | £12,590 to £24,500 |
| Shoulder Injuries | (b) Serious | £12,770 to £19,200 |
| Shoulder Injuries | (c) Moderate | £7,890 to £12,770 |
Claiming For Special Damages As Part Of Your Work Injury Claim Amount
Special damages are the second head of claim that you could be entitled to receive following a successful claim. This head of claim reimburses you for any financial losses that you have experienced as a result of your injuries. For example, you could claim reimbursement of the following:
- Cost of care
- Loss of earnings
- Medication costs
- Cost of renovations to home
- Travel expenses
You should provide proof of these losses, such as bank statements, invoices, and receipts.
To learn more about the compensation you could receive following a successful claim, get in touch on the number above.
Make A No Win No Fee Workplace Accident Claim Using Our Panel Of Solicitors
Providing that you have a valid claim, you could choose to make a claim with one of the No Win No Fee solicitors from our panel to help you through the manual handling claims process. In doing so, they could offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement.
When making a claim in this way, you won’t be required to pay any upfront or continuous fees for the services provided by your solicitor. Also, in the case that you’re not successful in your claim, you won’t be expected to pay for the work they have completed on your case.
However, in the case that you’re successful in your claim, you’ll have to pay a success fee. This is a legally capped percentage which you’ll discuss with your solicitor before you begin receiving legal representation.
If you’d like to learn more about working with a solicitor on this basis, please get in touch with an advisor. They can assess your eligibility to begin a personal injury claim and if they find your case is valid, they could connect you with a solicitor from our panel. To find out more, you can:
- Fill out the ‘contact us’ form on our website
- Call on 0800 408 7825
- Talk with an advisor by using the live support bubble below.
Learn More About The Manual Handling Claims Process
You can find out more about making an accident at work claim in the following guides:
- I Tripped And Fell In The Workplace, Can I Claim Compensation?
- How To Claim For A Manual Handling Accident In The Workplace
- How Long Do You Have To Claim For An Accident At Work?
Alternatively, you can use the following links that could provide useful information:
- GOV – Statutory Sick Pay (SSP)
- NHS – Sprains And Strains
- Health and Safety Executive – Manual Handling At Work
Thank you for reading this guide on when you could be eligible to seek compensation for injuries sustained when manual handling and the claims process involved in doing so. If you have any other questions, please get in touch using the number above.
Article by OL
Publisher EI