£45,000 Compensation For An Injury Sustained At Work

£45,000 COMPENSATION FOR AN INJURY SUSTAINED AT WORK

SLIP AND FALL CASE STUDY

Our client fractured her wrist and arm after she slipped on a footpath outside of her work while putting a bin bag in the bins. She contacted us about making an accident at work claim, and our legal team worked hard to secure her more than £45,000 in compensation.

*Name of claimant has been changed for safeguarding reasons.

WHAT HAPPENED

In January 2019, Susan was disposing of a bin bag outside her work.  The pathway she had to use was covered in ice, and had not been gritted. On her way back into the building, she slipped and fell, landing heavily on her left wrist.

As a result of her accident, Susan was taken to A&E by her husband where doctors were able to carry out x-rays that showed she had a Colle’s fracture to her left wrist and arm.

Her arm was set in plaster and after 4 weeks she was x-rayed again.  This time the Doctors advised her that to straighten the wrist she would need an operation under general anaesthetic, but this would not help with the pain.

Due to her age and concerns about being under a general anaesthetic, Susan decided not to have the operation, so she was discharged and had 3 physio sessions through the NHS.

Unfortunately she was unable to return to work, as she continued to suffer pain and discomfort using her wrist.

HOW WE HELPED

Susan contacted us to find out if  she could make a claim for compensation. We knew the correct questions to ask her to identify if we had enough information to act against her employer.

Susan’s first language isn’t English but our first response team are multi-lingual and fully trained in taking detailed instructions, so they were able to take on the case and reassure Susan that we would be able to help.

Marie Neilson from our specialist legal team dealt with her case:

“It can be very difficult to bring a claim against an employer, and I was able to reassure Mrs Wagrowski that her employer is legally obliged to have insurance for workplace injuries. It is also against the law for the employer to dismiss an employee or treat them differently for making a claim. The client felt reassured and hoped that her decision could improve the health and safety at work and stop this happening to someone else”.

We used our skill and experience to value the claim and gave detailed advice to our client. We were able to put forward a strong offer and able to settle the claim without going to court.

Our client was able to retire early. In addition to compensation for her injuries, she received compensation for special damages.

Breakdown of General Damages: Pain, suffering, and loss of amenity (£21,000).

Breakdown of Special Damages: Travel expenses; Prescriptions; Carer; Treatment Costs; Loss of Wages; and Future Loss of Earnings (£24,000).

WHO WAS AT FAULT

We were able to advise Susan that her employers were under a duty to keep her safe at work, which included making sure that ice was cleared from all pathways of the premises to avoid the risk of slipping, tripping, and falling.

It was important to make sure that the letter of claim, which is used to start the process, clearly describes the circumstances of the accident and the legal reasons why the employer was responsible. In this case, we used our expertise in English Law to list the Government Statutes Rules and Regulations, which the employer had breached and used them as evidence that the employer was negligent.

INJURIES 

As a result of the accident, our client suffered bruising, swelling, and a Colle’s fracture to her left wrist and arm.

SETTLEMENT 

The claim was brought against the Ministry of Defence. In March 2021, the ministry of defence admitted liability, as a result of our intervention, we recovered £45,000 in compensation on Susan’s behalf.

In addition to claiming for her injuries (£21,000), the settlement monies awarded compensated for our client’s loss of earnings (£13,000) as well the future earnings associated with retirement (£11,000).

As liability was admitted, we moved on to doing all we could to help Susan. We always listen to our clients and in this case the main concerns were as follows:

• To achieve the compensation she was entitled to, without going to court.
• To receive the wages she would have earned to the date of her retirement.
• To avoid an operation, which had been recommended by her treating doctors.

We made sure that our client was fully compensated without the need to undergo this operation. To obtain compensation for her injuries, it was necessary to instruct a medical expert and we identified an expert orthopaedic surgeon. We used our experience to put specific questions to the expert, in particular, whether our client would be able to return to work.

HOW CAN OPTIMAL SOLICITORS HELP?

If you, like our client, have experienced an accident at work, then you might be entitled to claim compensation.

At Optimal Solicitors, our knowledgeable and expert solicitors are experienced in handling claims relating to accidents in the workplace, public places, and personal injury.

To learn more and to discuss your potential claim in confidence, contact our team on 0161 250 7771. Alternatively, fill out our online contact form to arrange an initial consultation with a member of our expert team.