Background
Whilst working at a warehouse in Crewe, Cheshire our client Pavel was tasked by his employer to clean part of the conveyor line. The mechanism under the conveyor was not safely enclosed and no adequate safety procedure was in place for its cleaning.
In the course of acting on instructions to perform this task, Pavel’s right-hand index finger was traumatically severed by the machine mechanism.
He was immediately taken to the hospital, but the finger could not be re-attached to his hand. Pavel was off work on sick leave for many weeks, receiving only Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) which at the time was around £80 per week. As a result of his accident at work, not only did Pavel lose thousands of pounds in income, but he was also left with a disability through his loss of a finger.
His employers blamed Pavel for the accident and conducted an internal investigation and brought disciplinary actions against him. Consequentially, he was given a final written warning on the grounds of him putting himself in danger in the workplace.
Initially, Pavel contacted Stonehewer Moss for advice on his employment rights having felt unfairly treated, before pursuing an accident at work personal injury claim through us.
Solution
We were able to advise Pavel that it was his employers who were at fault for his accident at work. His employers had breached the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and therefore, Pavel was within his rights to make a personal injury claim for compensation.
Initially, Pavel was reluctant to take action against his employers despite feeling poorly treated. We were able to reassure him on the grounds that his employers had a legal obligation to have insurance in place to cover them for such claims and therefore it was likely that the insurers would settle the claim out of court.
Settlement
The employer’s insurers admitted liability to pay compensation within 3 months of us making the claim. We obtained for Pavel a report from a specialist hand surgeon and a report from a company that supply and fit prosthetics. After negotiation, we were able to recover £32,000 for Pavel in compensation without having to go to court.
Client
Pavel was very satisfied with the outcome. Not only had he been able to recover his earnings and compensation he had established that the accident was not his own fault but that of his employers.
The name of the client and some of the circumstances have been changed in order to protect the identity of the parties involved.
