Archive for the 'Work equipment' Category

Published in Truckstop News February 2011.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider “WHEN A SLIP OR TRIP AT WORK CAN LEAD TO A SUCCESSFUL COMPENSATION CLAIM”  

“If you have been injured in a Slip, Trip or Fall Accident within the last 3 years that was not your fault, you may be entitled to claim Personal Injury Compensation.”  How often have you come across this statement in the press or in adverts on the TV or radio?  In reality claims following this type of accident are often difficult to succeed with, particularly when the party at fault is a local council or highway authority.  However, if the injured person was at work when the accident occurred and the party at fault is either their employer or a business related to their job, then the potential for success is greatly enhanced by virtue of Health and Safety legislation.  These provide employees with significantly more protection than ordinary members of the public.

So long as the accident happened during the course of your work and was caused by the negligence of someone related to your job, it is always worth taking advice from a personal injury specialist on the merits of your potential claim.  It does not really matter where you were when you fell, for example while in a warehouse, an office, a car park, when on the back of a trailer or standing on a ladder or platform, but what caused you to fall is an important factor.

Published in Truckstop News January 2011.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider more “READERS’ SUCCESSFUL ACCIDENT CLAIMS”, on this occasion dealing with falling objects.  

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at more situations experienced by readers of Truckstop News that resulted in an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are actual clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News – and readers may recognise some of the names referred to.

In this article I highlight 2 accidents where my clients were injured by a falling object, over which they had very little control.  As with previous articles, the common trend remains the effect on each individual’s life, and although using the process of law to make personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation.  As previously indicated, the basic aim of an accident claim is to try and return the injured party to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.

A Lincolnshire global frozen vegetable merchant has recently received a £10,000 Court fine after an employee had his finger amputated following an accident at work.

The employee was attempting to make straight some boxes on an automatic palletising device at the Pinguin Food plant in Boston, Lincolnshire.  The mechanism he was working with had a Perspex guard but this allowed the employee access to the guarded enclosure while the machine was running.  In fact, when the accident occurred the employee was standing behind the guard but was still able to get his fingers caught between a pallet and the conveying platform.

The employee lost his middle finger from the tip to the first knuckle and was away from work for six months.

Published in Truckstop News October 2010.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider “WHY DEFECTIVE WORK EQUIPMENT ACCIDENT CLAIMS ARE USUALLY SUCCESSFUL”

THE GENERAL LAW

The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) came into force on 5 December 1998, and both employers and employees should ensure they are fully aware of the duties and responsibilities imposed on them.

The Regulations aim to prevent risks to workers’ health and safety that might arise from equipment they come into contact with during the course of their work.  The requirements imposed on employers include ensuring that such equipment is safe for the use intended; that regular maintenance and repairs are undertaken to keep it in a safe working condition; that it is only used by people who have received adequate information, instruction and training; and that there are suitable safety measures such as markings, warnings or protective guards, and if appropriate the provision of special clothing.

Car component manufacturer Dura Automotive Body and Glass Systems UK has been fined £30,000 following a prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive as a result of a mechanised robot striking worker Michael Brewer.  Mr Brewer suffered personal injury to his voice box and near paralysis along the side of his body.

The cause of this work accident was that it had become common practice during maintenance work to watch the operating sequence of the robotised machine from inside the guarded area rather than from outside it.  The risk assessment by the company had failed to consider the risks to the safety of workers posed by the industrial robot operating within the guarded area.

Published in Truckstop News August 2010.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider more “READERS’ SUCCESSFUL ACCIDENT AT WORK CLAIMS”

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at 2 defective work equipment situations experienced by readers of Truckstop News that ultimately lead to an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in this series of articles are clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News – and some of the names referred to may be familiar to you.

Published in Truckstop News July 2010.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider “THE IMPORTANCE OF STRONG MEDICAL EVIDENCE IN SUCCESSFUL PERSONAL INJURY CLAIMS”

What is the role of medical evidence in personal injury claims and why is it so important?  To make a successful claim for personal injury compensation, you need to prove three things.  Firstly, that someone else had a legal responsibility for your safety and welfare; secondly that they failed in their responsibilities towards you; and finally that you suffered an injury as a direct result.  No matter how serious your injuries are, you will only be able to recover accident compensation if the first and second criteria are satisfied.

In the personal injury compensation case of Tomasz Krysztof Kmiecic v Nadia France Isaacs decided on 12th March 2010 a householder was found not liable under statutory regulations or in negligence when a casual worker fell and sustained injury at her property.

The claimant claimed damages for personal injury after falling from a ladder while trying to repair a leaky garage roof at the defendant’s home.  The defendant prohibited the claimant from gaining access to the roof by the window in her son’s bedroom as she did not want him to walk through the house on the white carpets.  Subsequently it was decided he should use a step ladder that was in the garage, but it was too short and whilst climbing the ladder, it slipped and the claimant fell sustaining injury.

In May 2009 in the in the work related personal injury case of Smith v. Northamptonshire County Council, the House of Lords decided that an access ramp which was outside a disabled wheelchair users home did not amount to “work equipment” within the meaning of the Provision and Use of Equipment Regulations 1998.

Mrs Jean Smith was working for the Council as a driver and carer. On 1 December 2004 she visited the home of wheelchair bound Mrs Gina Cotter in order to take her to a day centre.  It was necessary for Mrs Smith to take Mrs Cotter from the property down a wooden ramp situated outside the patio doors.  When doing this the edge of the ramp gave way causing her to stumble and suffer personal injury.  The Council denied liability.

Published in Truckstop News June 2010.

In this month’s issue Steven Hinchliffe of the specialist Personal Injury Compensation firm Hinchliffes Solicitors will consider more “READERS’ SUCCESSFUL TRIPPING ACCIDENT CLAIMS“

Continuing his review of successfully completed accident injury claims, Steven Hinchliffe looks at more situations experienced by readers of Truckstop News that resulted in an award of personal injury compensation.

All of the accident victims mentioned in these articles are actual clients of my firm, Hinchliffes Solicitors.  They have kindly given their permission for the disclosure of their details, and in particular of their real life experiences of incidents resulting in personal injury claims, and the steps taken to make a successful accident compensation claim.  All of these clients contacted my firm after seeing our details in Truckstop News – and readers may recognise some of the names referred to.

In this article I highlight 2 cases where drivers were injured because of dangerous premises.  As with previous articles, the common trend remains the effect on each individual’s life.  Both men had similar accidents, but sustained quite different degrees of injury and financial loss.  Although using the process of law to make personal injury claims as a means of redress cannot truly compensate for the trauma and inconvenience suffered, it can assist in requiring the guilty party to provide medical treatment and rehabilitation, in addition to financial relief by way of awards of compensation.  As previously indicated, the basic aim of an accident claim is to try and return the injured party to the position that he or she would otherwise have been in had the accident not happened.