After contracting an allergy to latex while at work, a trainee nurse was threatened with disciplinary action for using latex free gloves.  However, she subsequently made a successful claim for personal injury compensation and is to receive a payment for this work related medical condition.

The nurse, who worked at the Scarborough General Hospital, developed the latex allergy from routinely wearing gloves as part of her job.  Latex free gloves were not made available to her and the only type of gloves available to the staff on the wards was latex based.

She was told that if she was found using latex free gloves without prior permission from the Occupational Health department and her ward sister, this would be a punishable offence and she could face disciplinary action.

COMMENT:-

Employers must take the health and safety of their employees very seriously.  If not and an employee develops an industrial disease or suffers an accident at work, then the employer could be liable to pay accident compensation to that employee.

In this type of situation, where gloves are worn frequently during the working day, the dangers of developing a latex allergy are well known.  The solution was simple and all the employer had to do to avoid liability for the claim was to provide suitable work equipment, ie latex free gloves.

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have suffered any form of accident at work or have contracted an industrial disease or illness, contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.

A woman who was exposed to asbestos when she worked in a factory as a teenager has been awarded substantial compensation when she made a personal injury claim.

It was not until 2006 that the woman (now aged 65) was diagnosed with mesothelioma, which disease is caused by exposure to asbestos dust.  Tragically, once a diagnosis is made sufferers of this condition often have only a few months to live.

The exposure to asbestos happened while she was working as a clerk for a clothing company.  Asbestos was used in the factory in steam pipes, and also in protective pads that were used to press the garments.  She was only 16 years old at the time and remembers that asbestos would fall from the ceiling, which she then had to sweep up.  As a result she was covered with asbestos dust and this penetrated to her lungs, causing the fatal disease.

COMMENT:-

This situation is by no means unique.  There is a steady increase in the number of asbestosis type disease claims, where sufferers are diagnosed 40 years or more after they were initially exposed. 

Once the diagnosis is confirmed, it is essential to take legal advice quickly so investigations can be made into the sufferers’ working history to establish where they came into contact with asbestos, which could then lead to successful claims for injury compensation being made against former employers, on behalf of not only the sufferer but their family as well.

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have suffered any form of accident at work or have contracted an industrial disease or illness, contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.

A recent Court decision has found in favour of a passenger who was injured when trying to get on a bus.

The passenger fell from the Arriva owned bus after the driver had closed the doors on him and driven away, and as a result he sustained a severe head injury.  The Court has declared that he is entitled to personal injury compensation.

The passenger was boarding the bus when nearby traffic lights changed to green and the bus driver closed the doors around him and set off.  The bus travelled about 25 yards before the passenger lost his balance and fell into the road.

The evidence before the Court showed that the driver had opened the doors to admit the passenger and had then closed them upon him while he was still on the entry platform.

The decision reached was that bus company Arriva’s driver was negligent in his actions.  He knew the passenger was between the doors when he closed them, but he still moved off and started to accelerate.  His actions endangered the passenger and caused the road accident.

COMMENT:-

In considering the circumstances of the accident the Court paid particular attention to Rule 33 of the Drivers’ Rule Book.  This states that drivers should be “vigilant at bus stops and authorised stopping places to ensure that passengers board and alight safely” and also that “in no circumstances should a bus with passenger doors be moved into service with any door open”.

However, despite the passenger’s success in this case, they must also ensure that their actions are sensible, for example by not trying to get on or off a bus when it is moving, for otherwise they may find that any claims for injury compensation are defeated (either partially or entirely) as a result of their own negligence.

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have been involved in any type of road accident and have suffered injury, contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.

A review commissioned by the Government could spell the end for GP sick notes. National Director for Health and Work, Dame Carol Black, has advised that the current system of sick notes should be replaced by a “fit for work service” so that GPs do not have to give out multiple paper sick notes.

Her report stated that “GPs sign sick notes because they feel they have no alternative available.”

The scheme would not just apply to absence from work following an accident, for example the time taken to recover from a work accident or a road accident, but also absence due to everyday illnesses and diseases.

The recommendations have been welcomed by Dr Hamish Meldrum, Chairman of the British Medical Association, who said:

“The BMA has long called for the sick note system to be reviewed.  GPs are often placed in a difficult position when issuing sick notes to patients in the early stages of their illness and it is not always possible for them to confirm whether a patient is well enough to do their job.”

COMMENT:-

The suggestion is that GPs would produce a note for employers indicating what type of tasks an employee could undertake while recovering from an injury or illness.  The aim being to get people back to work and limit claims for State benefits.  Employers may well find the proposed new scheme difficult to implement and many fear that they will face a greater number of claims for personal injury compensation made by employees who suffer an accident at work while tackling a job they are not really fit enough to cope with.

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have suffered any form of accident at work or industrial disease and have had to take time off to recover, contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.

Holiday makers staying at a hotel in Torremolinos, Spain have again fallen prey to a major outbreak of illness, only weeks after hundreds of former guests succeeded in their claims for personal injury compensation, resulting in a total payout of around £2.5 million. 

Reports of the latest outbreak saw guests staying at the hotel during January and February 2008 suffering with illness, including gastric complaints, severe diarrhoea and vomiting.

Allegations have been made of poor hygiene conditions at the hotel, including reports that undercooked food was left out for long periods of time.  Holiday makers also indicated that the floor of the restaurant was dirty.   

This particular hotel has an unhappy history with more than 1,000 holiday makers contracting illness during their time there between 2000 and 2002.  Since then there have been further reports of illness and poor hygiene conditions, but the recent allegations are a particular cause for concern.

In situations such as this, where ill health can be directly related to the standards of cleanliness in the hotel, the level of compensation awarded will depend on the severity of the illness suffered.

COMMENT:-

Holiday makers who suffer an illness or accident in foreign hotels where the holiday has been booked through an English tour operator may be able to make claims for personal injury compensation if it can be shown that the hotel was at fault.  In this situation, the injury compensation claim can usually be made against the tour operator, thereby removing the complication of making claims under a foreign legal system.

PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM SOLICITORS:-

If you have suffered any form of illness or accident while on holiday, contact personal injury specialists Hinchliffes Solicitors for immediate legal advice, to find out if you are entitled to make claims for injury compensation.

Call now on 0800 138 1348 to speak direct to a personal injury lawyer or go to our Start Your Claim Now page to submit details of your personal injury claim online.