Do you know that a lot of employees get injured in their work yet they do not file a claim? It is usually simply because they don’t realise that that’s just what they should do, if it was down to the pure negligence of somebody else.
The Measure of Irresponsibility
Granted, any employee should know that a job has a certain level of risk. Even if you work in a workstation and are almost a hundred percent sedentary, you can still develop Carpal-Tunnel syndrome, which can be so severe it gets in the way of how you work and do things. Of course, the risks are even higher when you are asked to operate machinery or equipment such as forklifts or have to report to other work sites, which means you have to travel.
That is why companies are obliged by the government to be covered by insurance in case of employee accidents. They are also constantly checked for their compliance to outlined safety and health standards.
But there are also times when the company is simply lacking attention with regards to its duties to safeguard your and other workers protection. For example, a machine should have been replaced a couple of months ago, and yet they did not take any action. As a consequence, you got injured by the faulty equipment.
As the employee filing for claim, it is your job to prove that your employer has been negligent to exercise due care for its employees. That is quite hard to some. Thus, we always recommend that you work with a solicitor who has vast experience in work accident claims.
Setting Aside the Worries
Some employees do not want to demand compensation from their companies for a number of reasons. One, they do not want to lose their jobs. Know that no employer is allowed to terminate, remove, or even harass any employee who simply wants to exercise his or her right. However, there are those people who decide to leave their place and line of work during and after a claim so they can start anew and that is well within their rights.
Second, they do not want trouble or bad press for the company. Employees should not be needlessly worried about draining the coffers of the business since the compensation, if you win, shall be obtained from the insurance, not from the personal accounts of the employers, and again if your claim is sound then this compensation is exactly what you’ll be entitled to. If they do not have insurance, then your employer becomes doubly liable for not following the law. Also, if the company ceases to exist by time you file a claim, you can still go after the insurance company. Your solicitor can help you identify who the insurer is.
How Soon Can You File?
As soon as you suffer a serious injury while at work, you can start processing a claim. This way, it can be evaluated and heard faster. However, the law states that you have at most 3 years to do so from the time the accident happened or the period you realise the health consequence was due to the workplace injury or accident. A good example is when persons have developed lung cancer because of asbestos. The effects of asbestos can take years before the symptoms show, so these may be better explained as special circumstances.
