What are the most common accidents at work, and what steps can you take after a workplace injury? An injury in the workplace can leave you with a lot of questions and uncertainty, but we are here to help.
In this guide, we’ll explore the topic of workplace injuries and aim to help you understand the personal injury claims process after an accident at work more clearly. We break down statistics to analyse the most common workplace injuries and their causes.
Following this, we’ll talk about the steps you can take after suffering a work-related injury, and talk a little more about the workplace accident claims process. Finally, we’ll discuss the benefits of working with a No Win No Fee personal injury solicitor if you choose to make a claim.
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As you read the sections below, please note you can call our dedicated advisors at any point with questions or concerns about the claims process. They can also offer a free assessment of your claim, and could potentially get you in touch with a solicitor from our panel.
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- Calling 0330 043 2925 to chat with an advisor.
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Choose A SectionÂ
- What Are The Most Common Accidents At Work?
- What Should I Do If I’ve Suffered A Workplace Injury?
- Can I Make A No Win No Fee Workplace Injury Claim?
- More Resources About Claiming For Workplace Accidents
What Are The Most Common Accidents At Work?
In this guide, we’ll be using statistics published by the Health and Safey Executive (HSE). The HSE are Britain’s workplace health and safety watchdog, and each year, they publish statistics gathered from reports made under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR)Â and self-reports from the Labour Force Survey.
In this guide, we’ll focus on nonfatal injuries, though they also publish information on fatal injuries and more serious incidents that happen within the working environment.
With this in mind, let’s talk about some of the most common workplace injuries and take a look at how they can occur.
Slips, Trips Or Falls
According to non fatal injury these statistics, during the period 2022/23 there were 19,202 non-fatal reported injuries to employees involving trIps, slips and falls on the same level. These are the most common kinds of accidents at work, making up 32% of all reported injuries.
Slips, trips, and falls can be caused by:
- Unmarked and uncleaned spillages or wet floors
- Broken carpet tiles
- Clutter and debris in walkways
Manual Handling
During the same period, a total of 10,230 employees reported injury while lifting, carrying or handling materials as part of their job. This makes manual handling injuries the second most common reported accident at work.
Employers must comply with certain standards of safety for staff who manually handle materials as detailed in the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992. This involves regularly risk-assessing appropriate weight limits for each individual worker, as well as providing manual handling training.
Struck By A Moving Object
In 2022/23, a total of 6,428 employees reported injuries caused after being struck by moving, flying or falling objects.
Another crucial obligation that must be met to comply fully with the employer’s duty of care is the provision of essential personal protective equipment (PPE). This includes hard hats on construction sites, for example, which offer some protection against falling materials.
Falls From A Height
A total of 5,118 employees were injured by a fall at work from a height during 2022/23. There can be numerous reasons why employer negligence might prompt an accident like this, such as:
- Failure to provide proper PPE, like a harness or hardhat
- Asking employees to work on unstable or unsafe surfaces, such as a roof that cannot support their weight
- Allowing employees to work on unsafe scaffolding
Acts of Violence
According to the HSE, a total of 5,065 employees reported an injury caused by an act of violence. In some cases, employers have no control over these kinds of injuries.
However, steps can still be taken to make employees safer, such as ensuring more than one member of staff is on duty at night or providing adequately secure work environments.
The employer’s duty of care is outlined in the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HASAWA). We invite you to get in touch for further information. Your injury may not have been included in the sections above but you may still be able to claim, so call to learn more.
What Should I Do If I’ve Suffered A Workplace Injury?
Now that we’ve answered the question “What are the most common injuries at work?” you might be wondering what steps to take next. Generally, following a workplace injury, you can:
- Seek medical attention before anything else
- Alert your employer to the accident and injury and ensure it is recorded in the workplace accident book that all workplaces of more than 10 employees are obliged by law to keep
- Take photos of your visible injuries
- Obtain any workplace CCTV footage that captured the accident
- Collect witness contact details so that a professional can take their statements at a later date
- Request copies of medical evidence that details your injuries and the treatments you need
There may be other forms of evidence that you feel you have. Get in touch with our dedicated team and they can evaluate this evidence with you.
If your claim is eligible and you would like to connect with expert legal representation, they can help arrange this. Alternatively, if you’re not sure whether you’d like to make a claim yet, they are happy to simply answer any questions you have about the personal injury claims process.
Can I Make A No Win No Fee Workplace Injury Claim?
Assembling evidence is just one way that a skilled personal injury solicitor from our panel could help you. If eligible, they can handle all aspects of your case under a version of the No Win No Fee contract. In addition to collecting proof, they can negotiate the best settlement for you and ensure your claim is submitted within the correct time limit.
The solicitors on our panel often work under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), under which there are:
- No initial solicitors fees to pay
- No fees for services performed as the claim moves forward
- No fees to pay for your solicitor’s services if the claim fails
- Only a small success fee deducted from your compensation if the claim succeeds
Why not speak to our team to see if your claim qualifies for expert legal help from our panel? There’s no obligation, and an advisor can give you free information on your options. Find out more by:
- Calling 0330 043 2925
- Using our live chat feature at the bottom of this screen.
- Or when you contact us through our website.
More Resources About Claiming For Workplace Accidents
We hope this guide has helped you understand what are the most common accidents at work more clearly. These other resources offer more:
- Read information about a claim for an accident at work you didn’t report at the time.
- Also, details on your rights in the UK after an accident at work.
- In addition to this, read about claims for injury based on a failure to do a risk assessment by your employer.
External Information:
- Get help for your symptoms from the NHS.
- Advice on preventing slips and trips at work from HSE.
- Lastly, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) gives general guidance on avoiding accidents in daily life.
Thanks for reading our guide on, ‘What are the most common accidents at work?’
