Accidents at Work!

An employer is expected to create a safe environment for work. He is expected to take care of possible sources of injury or other accidents that may occur during the normal course of work. The employer is also expected to tell the employees about the incidental health and safety concerns associated with the work. In spite of the care taken, accidents do happen.

In the untoward incident of certain accidents the employer is expected to report the accident to concerned local authorities. If any person has an accident while carrying out the employer’s work, he may be entitled to statutory or contractual sick pay, incase he needs to stay at home to recover.

The employer is legally obliged to report accidents like:

o Death
o Major injuries ( broken bones)
o Hazardous incidents (gas leakages, collapsing of structure etc)
o Injuries which keep the employees away from work for more than three days.
o Any disease which may be the result of harmful exposure.

Ideally the employer should report such incidents, but it would be beneficial for the affected party to confirm that the report has been made.

If you are a victim of accident at work and feel that the employer is at fault and you have not been adequately compensated for it, you may want to file a case for personal injury compensation claim. You will need to do it within the stipulated period for injury compensation claims. You may be allowed to use the legal consul of your trade union if you are a member.

In case that does not work out you will need to hire a specialized attorney for your claim. There are many attorneys who specialize in personal injury claims, specifically accident at work claims. You will be able to find many such law firms and individual lawyers through their websites online. You may also consult the local legal directory online or offline.

Talk to each of the lawyers and if possible meet them personally. Choose your lawyer after careful consideration. Find someone who is an expert in work accident claims and who you feel comfortable with.

Many of the personal injury lawyers are willing to fight compensation claims for contingency fees. Simply put it means that you need to pay the lawyer his fees only if your claim is successful. In most cases if you win the claim, the third party may be obliged to pay for your legal expenses.

This does not mean that you need not pay anything at all. You will need to take care of court fees and other such sundry expenses many a times there may be hidden expenses with the lawyer too. Make all the inquiries before you decide to file your case in the court.

A compensation claim is meant to compensate for your loss. It is not the means to get some gratis cash. It is meant to put you in a position that you may have been in, if this incident would not have happened. So think judiciously before you decide to take the plunge.

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Accidents at Work!