Bursitis Injury at Work – A Guide to Claiming Compensation

One of the most common work-related Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSIs) is called bursitis. This condition can affect different joints in the body and cause a lot of pain. As employers have a legal duty to protect you from workplace injuries, you could be entitled to claim compensation for work-related bursitis. In this guide about claiming compensation for bursitis injury, we explore when you could be entitled to bursitis compensation and how the process works.

We are here to support you if you have any questions about bursitis compensation claims. As part of our free consultation, we are happy to review your case, advise you on your options and answer any queries on a no-obligation basis. If you appear to have a feasible bursitis compensation claim, we could pass your case on to a solicitor specialising in work injuries. Crucially, they’ll provide a No Win, No Fee service if you agree.

If you’d like a legal advisor to assess your bursitis claim, you can:

• Contact us by calling 0333 241 2519.
• Connect to our live chat service right away.

Please read on for more about how bursitis injury claims work or give us a call if you have any questions.

What is Bursitis?

Many of the joints in your body have small sacs called bursae which are filled with fluid to help reduce friction. This helps to minimise wear and tear on the joints when they are used.

Bursitis is a condition which can result in pain that reduces your ability to use joints if the bursae become inflamed.

What Joints Can Be Affected by a Bursitis Injury?

Bursitis can affect any joint in the body. The most common include the knees, elbows, hips, shoulders and heels.

Without realising it, you may have heard of bursitis by one of its many other names. Bursitis is often referred to as:

• Housemaid’s or Policeman’s knee– this can occur when your job requires a lot of kneeling.
• Tennis elbow – where the tendons in the elbow are inflamed because of overused muscles in the forearm.
• Bricklayer’s shoulder – one of the most common forms of bursitis.

Whatever type of bursitis you’ve been diagnosed with, if your symptoms can be linked to your employment, you might have grounds to claim for any suffering you’ve endured.

What Are the Symptoms of Bursitis?

Here are some of the most common symptoms associated with bursitis:

• Pain in the joint when it is used or moved.
• Swelling around the joint.
• Pain when putting pressure or leaning on the affected joint.
• A reduced range of movement caused by joint pain.

Bursitis can often be treated with painkillers and rest. However, in some cases, steroid injections, antibiotics or fluid removal may be required to ease symptoms.

In rarer cases, surgery may be required to remove fluid from inflamed bursae if the condition keeps reoccurring.

Can I Claim Compensation for Work-Related Bursitis?

You might think that there’s not that much employers can do to prevent bursitis injuries. However, they have a duty of care to implement reasonable and practical steps to protect you’re well-being at work.

Some examples of the steps they could take to reduce the risk of bursitis include:

• Provide you with PPE like gloves, elbow pads or kneeling pads where required.
• Train you on proper technique and posture.
• Consider rotating your role so you’re not using the same joints for prolonged periods.
• Conduct risk assessments regularly or use an occupational health specialist to assess your working conditions.

These measures could help your employer to meet their legal obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. If they fail to uphold their duty of care and you’re diagnosed with bursitis as a result, you could be entitled to claim bursitis compensation.  As such, you may have grounds to sue your employer for bursitis if:

• You can confirm that your employer owed you a duty of care; and
• Their negligence led to adverse working conditions; which
• Resulted in you being diagnosed with bursitis in the last three years.

Want us to check if you can sue your employer for bursitis? If so, please call now for a free assessment of your claim.

What Should I Do If I Develop Bursitis at Work?

If you’re worried that your working conditions could result in your developing bursitis, you shouldn’t keep your concerns to yourself.

Instead, you should:

• Email your employer and tell them what’s worrying you. Explain any early symptoms you’ve experienced and tell them about any changes that you think might help.
• Visit your GP if you’re worried about your health.
• Tell your employer about any recommendations made by your doctor.

These steps could enable your employer to change the way you work or they might instruct an occupational health specialist to review your work conditions. Failure to consider your concerns or make any changes might mean your employer has been negligent which, in turn, might enable you to start a bursitis compensation claim.

What Evidence Can Be Used for Bursitis Compensation Claims?

There is generally a much better chance of receiving compensation for a bursitis injury at work if it can be proved that a) the employer has caused the suffering and b) how the claimant has suffered as a result.

In bursitis compensation claims, any of the following evidence could improve your chances of success:

• Medical records from your GP or a medical specialist to confirm your diagnosis and prognosis.
• Witness statements from colleagues who can attest to your working conditions.
• Photographic evidence of your symptoms including swelling caused by bursitis flare-ups.
• Any correspondence you’ve had with your employer about your working conditions.
• Financial records to help prove any costs that you wish to claim back.
• Statements from family or friends that can help to prove how you’ve been affected by bursitis.

If you’ve collected evidence to support a bursitis claim, why not contact us now and ask for a legal advisor to assess it for you for free?

How Long Do I Have to Claim Bursitis Compensation?

Normally, personal injury claims in the UK have a 3-year time limit starting from the date of the accident which resulted in an injury.

However, bursitis is usually a condition that builds up over time rather than following a single incident. Therefore, the Limitation Act 1980 will still impose a 3-year time limit on your claim but it it probably won’t not begin until your date of knowledge. In most cases, this will be the date bursitis was diagnosed by a doctor.

If you’ve been diagnosed with work-related bursitis in the past 3 years and would like to claim compensation, why not speak to a legal advisor now to see whether we can help?

How Much Compensation for Work-Related Bursitis?

Compensation levels for successful bursitis injury claims vary. Generally, the largest factor that affects any payout received is the amount of pain and suffering already endured and any that will continue in the future.

Therefore, to ensure as much as possible that you receive the correct level of damages, your work injury solicitor will gather medical records and may arrange for independent medical reports to be written.

It is likely that your solicitor will compare your symptoms and injuries with those listed in the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document lists guideline settlement brackets for many physical and psychological injuries and diseases.

Any compensation awarded could also cover any costs or expenses linked to your bursitis. For instance, if a claim is successful, it could cover:

• Loss of earnings and future losses if your ability to work is impacted by your bursitis diagnosis.
• The cost of care and support at home.
• Physiotherapy and other medical expenses.
• Travel expenses.
• The cost of modifying your home to help you cope with an ongoing disability.

If you claim compensation for bursitis with one of our solicitors, they’ll ensure the full extent of your suffering is accounted for before filing your claim. This is so they can try and secure the maximum level of compensation on your behalf.

Can I Claim Bursitis Compensation if I’m Not a Full-Time Employee?

In terms of workplace health and safety, all types of employees can expect the same level of care from their employer. Therefore, our solicitors could help you to claim compensation for bursitis whether you’re a full-time worker, part-time, zero-hours staff, an agency worker or a subcontractor.

Remember, bursitis claims against an employer are only possible when it can be proven that the diagnosis can be linked to the employer’s negligence. If you’d like us to check if you have the grounds to make a claim, please contact a legal advisor now.

Do You Need a Work Injury Solicitor for Bursitis Claims?

Employees may find it a challenge to prove any type of personal injury claim against their employer. For that reason, many people decide to take on legal representation from a solicitor with experience in work injury claims.

If your bursitis claim is accepted by one of our solicitors, they’ll manage your claim from beginning to end. This means you should find the process much easier and you won’t need to discuss the case with your employer or their insurers.

What’s more, our solicitors offer a No Win, No Fee service for all bursitis injury claims that they take on. This means you won’t need to pay for your solicitor’s work in advance after you’ve signed a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

The CFA covers the cost of your solicitor’s work if the case is lost so you don’t need to pay for it yourself. If the claim is successful, you will have a success fee deducted from your settlement.

The success fee percentage is legally capped at 25 per cent of any settlement because of the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013. As such, if you make a No Win, No Fee bursitis injury at work claim, you can be sure you’ll retain the majority of any compensation payout awarded.

How Long Busitis Injury Claim Take?

If you’ve had to deal with bursitis for a matter of months and your symptoms have completely healed, it’s quite possible to receive compensation in around 4 to 5 months. This would, of course, rely on your employer quickly accepting that they caused your suffering.

Where you’re dealing with chronic bursitis, the claims process can take longer. For instance, it could take a year or more for medical professionals to decide whether there’s any treatment that could cure your symptoms or whether you’ll continue to be in pain for the rest of your life.

While these types of delays might seem annoying, they may be necessary to help ensure that you are paid the correct level of compensation if your claim is won.

Contacting Us About a Bursitis Compensation Claim

Are you suffering as a result of work-related bursitis? Do you feel you should be compensated by your employer? If so, you can contact us now to discuss your options by:

• Calling 0333 241 2519.
• Connecting to our live chat system.

When you get in touch, your bursitis injury at work claim will be assessed for free. You don’t have to proceed with legal action afterwards but if you do want to start a bursitis compensation claim, one of our workplace injury solicitors could agree to represent you on a No Win, No Fee basis.