Factory Accident Claims – A Guide to Claiming Compensation

If you work in a factory, you are no doubt aware of the hazards posed by machinery, heavy tools and chemicals. Even though these risks are known, your employer still has a duty to try and protect you from them. If they don’t, and you’re injured as a result, you might be entitled to start a personal injury claim. Therefore, in this guide, we answer some of the most common questions about when factory accident claims are possible and how the claims process works.

If you are thinking of claiming, we can help you get started. If you speak to one of our specialist advisors about your factory accident, they’ll assess your claim for free and provide no-obligation legal advice. Should your claim be valid, one of our accident-at-work solicitors may offer to represent you on a No Win, No Fee basis.

To discuss your options with one of our specialists, you can:

• Call us on 0333 241 2519.
• Use our 24/7 live chat service.

Getting legal advice as soon as possible after an accident in a factory can significantly enhance the chances of receiving compensation for any pain, suffering, and financial losses you’ve experienced because of the accident.

Can I Make a Factory Accident Claim?

Whilst working in a factory, your employer has a duty of care to try and protect your well-being. This duty is established by various pieces of legislation including the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

Some of the steps factory operators might take to uphold their health and safety obligations include:

• Conducting risk assessments regularly to spot any potential dangers.
• Ensuring that any machinery or tools are in a good state of repair and well maintained.
• Training staff on health and safety at work procedures.
• Providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) if required.

You might be entitled to start a factory accident claim if:

• You were legally owed a duty of care by your employer.
• Your employer caused an accident because they were negligent.
• You sustained an injury (or injuries) as a direct result of the accident.
• The accident occurred, or your injury was diagnosed within the last three years.

If you believe your factory claim meets the criteria listed above, you can call our specialist team now to discuss your options for free.

Will I Be Sacked If I Claim Compensation for an Accident in a Factory?

Any negative consequences of making an honest personal injury claim against your employer could lead to separate legal action for unfair or constructive dismissal.

As such, following your claim, you cannot legally be dismissed, demoted, punished, picked on or singled out in any way.

If this is something you’d like to discuss further, please reach out to our team today.

Types of Factory Accidents Caused by Negligence We Can Help With

As shown above, you’ll only be compensated by your employer for any factory injuries if it can be shown that their negligence caused them. Here are a few scenarios of how negligence in a factory could cause an accident that could mean you’re entitled to compensation:

• Whilst using a cutting machine, an employee lost the tips of three of her fingers. The accident occurred because the safety guard had been missing for some time and not replaced.
• Due to a lack of manual handling training, a factory worker suffered a slipped disc in their lower back whilst moving awkward loads across the workplace.
• A worker suffered skin burns after being splashed by hot oil from a piece of factory machinery. The leak had not been spotted because the machine had not been maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s guidelines.
• While the factory floor was being cleaned, warning signs were not used to highlight that it was wet. As a result, a worker suffered a broken elbow and a broken wrist after slipping and falling.

If you’ve suffered any type of factory accident and believe your injuries were caused by your employer’s negligence, please call our team for free advice on your next steps.

What Should I Do After a Factory Accident?

Employees also have a duty of care when it comes to health and safety in a factory. Therefore, if you are involved in a factory-related accident at work, you should:

• Report the factory accident. This will allow the incident to be detailed in the company’s accident book. The report should list the time, date and location of the accident plus details of any injuries you sustained.
• Seek medical treatment. While first aid might be offered in the factory, you should seek treatment at A&E or a minor injuries unit for more serious injuries.
• Comply with any investigations. Some factory accidents will need to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). If they decide to investigate what happened, you should comply fully when requested for information.

It may also be a good idea to write down what happened in case you need to recall events at a later date.

What Evidence Can Be Used for Factory Accident Claims?

When claiming compensation for an accident in a factory, evidence may be needed to prove liability for the accident and the extent of any injuries. This could include:

• Witness statements from anyone else who saw what happened.
• Photographs of the cause of the accident in the factory.
• A copy of the accident report form.
• Medical records from a hospital.
• CCTV footage of the accident happening.

If you’re going to start a factory accident compensation claim, call our team now and they will assess any evidence you have to prove what happened.

What Is The Time Limit for Factory Accident Compensation Claims?

In the UK, a 3-year time limit applies to all personal injury claims. This will start on the date of the factory accident in most cases. However, the time limit will not apply if and while the claimant lacks the mental capacity to take legal action on their own. In this case, someone else could seek compensation for the injured worker at any time as their litigation friend.

You should aim to start the factory accident compensation claims process as soon as you can to avoid your claim becoming statute-barred.

What Compensation Can I Claim for a Factory Accident?

If you are awarded compensation for a factory accident, it will usually be formed of two types of compensation:

• General damages is the head of loss that covers any pain, suffering or loss of amenity.
• Special damages is the head that relates to costs, losses or expenses.

Your medical records will generally be used to prove how serious your injuries are and you may be asked to attend an independent medical assessment. Subsequently, your solicitor could reference the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to calculate the general damages part of the claim.

The special damages that could form part of a factory accident compensation payout include:

• Medical costs i.e. for treatment or physiotherapy.
• Lost income (covering both current and future losses).
• Care costs.
• Travel expenses.
• The cost of making changes to your home to help you cope with more serious or long-term injuries.

We are happy to discuss this further as part of our free initial consultation so please feel free to get in touch today.

Can I Claim Compensation for Psychological Suffering?

If proven by medical diagnosis, you could receive compensation for any psychological harm following a factory-related accident at work.

For example, traumatic accidents can lead to flashbacks, PTSD and sleep disorders. Additionally, the thought of not being able to work or socialise because of your injuries can be distressing or cause depression. As such, these types of suffering could be factored in to your factory accident compensation settlement.

Can I Claim Compensation for Injuries Caused by Factory Equipment?

Part of your employer’s duty of care requires them to provide equipment that is well-maintained, working properly and fit for purpose. As such, you could begin a factory accident claim if you were injured by faulty or damaged factory equipment.

For example, you could claim after losing sight in one eye after being hit by a foreign body that flew from a lathe because its safety guard had been removed. Similarly, you could claim for injuries caused by a conveyor belt that failed to stop when the emergency button was pressed due to a lack of proper maintenance.

Please let us know how you were injured in a factory and we’ll assess your chances of being compensated for free.

Will I Need a Solicitor for a Factory Accident Compensation Claim?

Legally, you can start a personal injury claim following a factory accident without using a solicitor. While that is true, having specialist legal representation can allow the claim to flow more smoothly and could improve your chances of receiving a fair settlement.

For example, if you work with one of our factory accident solicitors, their services could include:

• Securing the evidence needed to substantiate your claim.
• Handling all communication with your employer and their insurance provider.
• Making sure your claim is filed properly and on time.
• Dealing with all negotiations on your behalf. This includes trying to secure the right level of compensation rather than taking the first payout offered.
• Keeping you up to date with how your claim is progressing.

What’s more, our solicitors offer a No Win, No Fee service. This means they work under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) rather than asking you to pay for their work upfront. If the claim fails, you don’t pay for your solicitor’s work. However, if you’re compensated, you’ll have a success fee deducted from your payout. Legally, this is capped when using a CFA to make sure you keep hold of the bulk of your compensation.

To see if you could make a No Win, No Fee factory compensation claim, please call today.

How Long Do Factory Accident Claims Take to Process?

Several important factors play a part in how long industrial accident claims take in general. They include:

• Liability i.e. does your employer accept that they caused your accident in a factory?
• The extent of your injuries i.e. have you recovered already or will more time be needed to understand your prognosis?
• Settlement amounts – do both parties agree on how much compensation should be awarded?

In straightforward cases where everything is agreed upon quickly, factory accident claims can be settled in around 6 to 9 months. However, more complex cases can sometimes take more than a year. Where that’s the case, interim payments could be secured to help you cover any immediate costs (i.e. lack of income because you’re injured). Please note, though, that this can only happen if your employer has accepted liability for the accident.

Will My Claim Go to Court?

In our experience, both parties in accident-at-work claims generally try to avoid court hearings because they add a lot of time and costs to the process. However, if the case cannot be settled, it may need to be heard in court. If that happens, liability for the factory accident and any compensation payout that’s needed will be decided by the court.

Importantly, if a factory injury claim is lost in court, you might be told to pay your employer’s legal fees. However, your solicitor is likely to insist on taking out After The Event (ATE) insurance before agreeing to work with you to cover any such orders.

Contacting Us About a Factory Accident Claim

If you’ve decided that you would like to claim compensation following a factory accident, please get in touch with us today.

You can do so by:

• Calling free on 0333 241 2519 and speaking with an advisor.
• Connecting to our live chat service.

We’ll provide no-obligation legal advice in a completely free initial consultation to discuss your options. If your claim appears to be feasible, we could connect you with one of our solicitors who’ll work on a No Win, No Fee basis if your factory accident claim is taken on.