How to Claim Compensation for Machinery Injury in Factory
This article explains some of the reasons why you might – or might not – be eligible for compensation for machinery injury in factory and the procedures you should follow after sustaining such an injury in an accident at work to support a factory machinery injury claim for compensation.
A brief explanation of how to claim for factory machine injury is also included; however, as no two claims for injuries from factory machinery are ever exactly the same, it is always in your best interests to discuss the specific circumstances of your work injury with a solicitor at the earliest practical opportunity.
Your first priority should always be your health and, if you have not already done so, you should seek professional medical treatment for the injury you sustained from the machine. No amount of factory machine accident compensation will ever make up for a long term health issue which could have been avoided by timely medical attention and, to support your claim for being injured by factory machine, you will need a doctor to complete the Injuries Board Medical Assessment Form B.
The Duty of Care of Employers
In order to qualify to claim compensation for machinery injury in factory, you must have sustained an injury from factory machinery which could have been prevented had your employer – or other person with responsibility for your health and safety – fulfilled his or her duty of care to provide you with a safe environment in which to work.
An employer´s “duty of care” covers all his or her responsibilities to prevent all types of injury wherever possible, and would include performing risk assessments to identify foreseeable hazards, providing training and supervision, and supplying personal protective equipment where necessary to eliminate the risk of an employee sustaining an injury from machinery in a factory.
Should an employer fail in their duty of care to eliminate the risk of an injury, and you subsequently suffer an injury from a machine as a result, you should be entitled to make a factory machinery injury claim for compensation. Please bear in mind, however, that an employer´s duty of care is not “absolute” and, if you are injured in an accident at work which could not have been foreseen, claims for injuries from factory machinery are unlikely to be successful.
How Your Employment Status May Affect a Claim for Factory Machine Injury
It is not often that your employment status will affect your entitlement to claim for factory machine injury, but there may be occasions when agency workers, employees on short-term contracts or self-employed workers may have to make a claim for being injured by factory machine against somebody other than their direct employer – for example the owner of the premises on which the injury was sustained.
Possibly of more concern if you have been injured in an accident involving machinery at work is the fact that you do not want to fall out with your employer but, because of financial necessity, you need to make a claim for being injured by factory machine against their employer´s liability insurance policy. Most employers will be genuinely remorseful that you have sustained an injury at work due to their negligence and will admit their liability; but there are some circumstances in which an employer will want to protect their insurance policy excess and dispute your factory machine accident compensation claim.
Procedures for Claiming Factory Machine Accident Compensation
The most frequently used procedure for claiming factory machine accident compensation is to submit an application for assessment to the Injuries Board. Your application can be completed on a paper form or online, but must be submitted with a medical practitioner´s report detailing your injury from factory machinery. Receipts for any expenses you have incurred which are directly attributable to the accident in the factory should also be attached to your application.
The purpose of the Injuries Board is only to assess how much compensation for machinery injury in factory you are entitled to, and not establish liability for your injury. Therefore, the Injuries Board will write to your employer asking for consent to proceed with an assessment of your factory machinery injury claim for compensation, and only continue once that consent has been received – effectively when your employer has admitted his or her liability for the injury you suffered at work.
Thereafter you may have to undergo an independent medical examination to ascertain the severity of your injury and the Injuries Board will then send you and your employer a “Notice of Assessment” which – if both you and your employer agree to – is followed by an “Order to Pay” factory machine accident compensation. If either your employer denies his consent for the Injuries Board to assess your claim for being injured by factory machine, or neither party agrees on how much compensation for machinery injury in factory you are entitled to, the Injuries Board will issue you with an authorisation to pursue your claim for factory machine injury through the courts.
Contributory Negligence
One reason why consent to assess your claim for factory machine injury may be withheld from the Injuries Board is if you are deemed to have been partly responsible for the cause of the accident which resulted in your injury or the extent of your injury. The Injuries Board will only assess claims for injuries from factory machinery in which total liability is admitted and, if it transpires that you have contributed to your injury, the Injuries Board will have no option but to issue you with an authorisation to pursue your factory machinery injury claim for compensation in court.
Court action may be a last resort when making a claim for being injured by factory machine, as it may also be possible to negotiate a settlement with your employer´s liability insurers where you accept a percentage responsibility for your factory machinery injury and that percentage is then deducted from how much compensation for machinery injury in factory your claim is settled for. Negotiating the value of factory machine accident compensation directly with an insurance company is not recommended without professional legal representation.
One element of contributory negligence which is sometimes overlooked is if you contributed to the extent of your factory machine injury by failing to seek immediate l medical attention from a medical practitioner. Some people who have been injured at work foolishly attempt to work through the pain – exacerbating your injury and jeopardising their entitlement to compensation for machinery injury in factory. If this has happened to you, you should speak with a solicitor about whether you still have a claim for factory machine injury which is worth your while to pursue.
How the Statute of Limitations affects a Factory Machinery Injury Claim for Compensation
The Courts and Civil Liability Act 2004 set a limitation period of two years for making claims for injuries from factory machinery from the “Date of Knowledge” on which the injury is diagnosed. There are very few scenarios in which a plaintiff would be unaware that they have suffered an injury from a factory machine in a work accident and therefore the two year limitation period for making a factory machinery injury claim for compensation would usually start on the day of your accident.
Two years may seem ample time in which to submit a claim for factory machine injury to the Injuries Board for assessment but, if liability for your injury is denied, or you are waiting for the results of an HSA investigation to confirm your employer´s liability in a claim for being injured by factory machine, the time can slip quickly by.
If the full extent of you’re the injury you sustained from the factory machinery is not known, or due to complications it is taking a long time to recover from your workplace accident and impossible to calculate how much factory machine accident compensation you are entitled to, it is possible to “stop the clock” on your claim for compensation for machinery injury in factory. You will need the agreement of your employer´s insurance company to do this – assuming your employer has admitted liability for your factory machine injury – and this is something which is once again best done with the assistance of a personal injury solicitor.
You Need The Advice of a Solicitor
You do not need a solicitor in order to make claims for injuries from factory machinery, but it is often in your best interests to do so. In addition to acting as a go-between between yourself and your employer, and dealing with any complications that arise while making a claim for factory machine injury, a solicitor has the experience to ensure you receive your full entitlement to factory machine accident compensation – whether your claim for being injured by factory machine is resolved via the Injuries Board, by negotiation with your employer´s insurers or through court action.
Most solicitors will offer a free assessment of your factory machinery injury claim for compensation if you have sustained a an injury in a workplace accident for which you were not entirely responsible for, and provide you with answers to any questions you may have as regards your eligibility to claim compensation for machinery injury in factory. As it is often in your best interest to have evidence collected in support of your claim for factory machine injury while it is still fresh, it is recommended that you speak with a solicitor about the circumstances of your injury from factory machine without delay.