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Building Sites - Personal Injury Compensation Claims with clickandclaim's Personal Injury Solicitors
Accidents incurred whilst working on a building site are common cases of compensation claims.
Building or construction sites can be very dangerous places with all sorts of hazards such as falling from ladders/scaffold, falling material, injury from use of power tools, falling into open trenches etc.
In 2005/2006 Health and Safety Executive statistics for all types of workers show:-
Ill Health
Injuries
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212 workers were killed at work, a rate of 0.7 per 100 000 workers.
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146,076 other injuries to employees were reported under RIDDOR, a rate of 562.4 per 100,000 employees.
- 328,000 reportable injuries occurred, according to the Labour Force Survey, a rate of 1,200 per 100,000 workers (2004/05).
Working days lost
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30 million days were lost overall (1.3 days per worker), 24 million due to work-related ill health and 6 million due to workplace injury.
A large percentage of the above accidents/injuries were suffered on a building/construction site.
The Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 apply to employers and their workers on construction sites. The regulations include requirements to:
- Provide safe places of work
- Prevent falls and falling objects
- Provide stable structures
- Make excavations as safe as possible
- Provide adequate lighting
- Provide safe traffic routes
- Take steps to avoid risks of drowning
- Ensure demolition/dismantling and the use of explosives is carried out safely
Other regulations apply to work on building sites such as the Manual Handling
Operations Regulations 1992 which, in simple terms, limits the weight and size of things lifted or carried manually. The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 apply to work equipment used on a building site and their aim is to ensure that employers provide suitable and safe work equipment and training in the use of such equipment. The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 cover the assessment, maintenance and provision of suitable personal protective equipment (e.g. gloves, goggles, overalls, footwear etc), the provision of information, instruction, and training in the use of such equipment.
If an employer does not comply with the requirements of any of the regulations and, as a consequence, an employee sustains injury then that employee would have a valid claim for compensation against his/her employer. If an accident at work occurred which did not involve the above mentioned regulations (e.g. one employee inadvertently drives a forklift truck over another employees foot) then the injured employee would also have a valid claim for compensation. In reality, such a claim would be dealt with by the employer’s insurance company. Compensation claims for accidents at work would include compensation for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity (known as General Damages) as well as other specific items of expense or loss (known as Special Damages) such as lost earnings whilst off work injured, cost of medication/prescriptions, travel expenses, the cost or value of care and assistance provided by others whilst incapacitated etc.
It is recognised that accidents at work will continue to happen despite all the relevant health and safety legislation and the duties imposed upon employers. That is why provision for compensation is made. Most employers are required by law to have insurance to cover their employees’ accidents at work (the Employer’s Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969). If you have had an accident at work and suffered injury then you should make a claim for compensation, it is your legal right to do so.
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