Accidents at work case study
The People
D, who was in his early 30s at the time, was employed as a fitter for a local roofing company. He was working on a house in Woking renewing the fascias and soffits. To do the job he had to use a ladder which for safety reasons he asked his assistant to stand on the lower rungs to “foot” the ladder. His assistant unfortunately failed to do this properly and D fell off the ladder.
The Problem
D badly smashed his knee in the fall and had a prolonged stay in hospital. He had to undergo multiple operations and to make matters worse he suffered from MRSA which caused yet further damage to his knee. The seriousness of his injuries meant that D would never go back to his pre-accident employment so it was clearly going to be a substantial claim. The claim against his employers (who were legally liable for the failure of D’s assistant to follow instructions) was met with a complete denial of any responsibility on their part by their insurers. They claimed that the assistant had never been asked to foot the ladder by D.
The Solution
This became a classic example of one person’s word against the other’s. Following a careful assessment of the case we felt that D’s evidence would be believed. However, because of the obvious risk of taking the case to trial we tried to settle the issue of responsibility by negotiation. The insurance company refused to negotiate and so the case went to trial in the High Court. Having listened to all the evidence and in particular the conflicting accounts of D and his assistant the judge preferred D’s version. He therefore gave judgment for D ordering that the amount of compensation should be decided at a second trial.
The insurers were not at all pleased that they had lost the first round. Negotiations over the level of compensation proved extremely difficult. Eventually the case settled for a substantial six figure sum, but that settlement was only achieved a few weeks before the second trial was due to start. With the backing and support of his lawyers D was able to achieve the justice he deserved in what was throughout a very hard fought case.
Who to contact
Marek Bednarczyk
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