This guide will explore top tips on how to claim for a slip and trip at work. You may be eligible for compensation if you can prove your injuries were caused by your employer breaching their duty of care. This guide will look at the duty of care your employer owes you in more detail.
This guide will share some examples of slip and trip accidents and what can cause them.
Additionally, we will discuss the evidence needed to make a personal injury claim and other steps you could take.
Lastly, we’ll examine how our panel of personal injury solicitors could represent your claim under a No Win No Fee arrangement.
If you have recently suffered a slip, trip or fall in the workplace, contact our advisors for free legal advice. To get in touch, you can:
- Call us via the number at the top of this page.
- Use our online contact form.
- Interact with an advisor via our live chat pop-up below.
Slips and trips at work claims guide
What Is A Slip And Trip At Work?
Slips and trips at work may involve an employee tripping, slipping or falling over a hazard in the workplace.
An accident of this nature can happen for various reasons. However, in order to make a claim, you must be able to prove that your employer acted negligently. This involves them breaching the duty of care they owed you.
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA) states that employers must do all they reasonably can to prevent workplace accidents and keep their employees safe. If your employer doesn’t uphold their duty of care as outlined in the HASAWA, it could lead to an accident in which you sustain harm.
If you have tripped and fell at work, call our team to find out whether you’re eligible to claim.
Figures For Slips And Trips At Work
Employers are expected to report certain work-related injuries to the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR.) These reports are then compiled by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to provide statistics on workplace accidents.
According to these statistics, the majority of non-fatal work injuries were caused by slips, trips and falls on the same level.
Calculating Compensation For Slips And Trips
General and special damages can often make up workplace accident settlements. General damages seek to compensate for the physical and mental suffering you experienced due to your injury as well as the impact on your quality of life.
Solicitors often use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to value general damages, as they outline compensation brackets for various injuries. Below we have included some examples of compensation figures based on the latest edition of the JCG, published in April 2022.
The following figures should only be used as a guideline. The compensation you receive will depend on the specific factors to your case.
| Injury | Notes | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Pelvis Injury | Severe (a) (i) - Extensive pelvis fracture causing several issues. | £78, 400 - £130,930 |
| Pelvis Injury | Lesser (c) (i) - Cases include a significant injury that results in little or no residual disability. | £3,950 - £12,590 |
| Back Injury | Severe (a) (iii) - Cases in this bracket include disc lesions, disc fractures and soft tissue injuries. | £38,780 - £69,730 |
| Back Injury | Minor (i) - Cases covered in this bracket include where injuries have fully recovered within 5 years. | £7,890 - £12,510 |
| Leg Injury | (b) Severe Leg Injuries: Serious (iii) - This bracket includes serious compound or comminuted fractures. | £39,200 - £54,830 |
| Wrist Injury | Less Severe (c) - Permanent disability such as ongoing pain and stiffness. | £12,590 to £24,500 |
| Shoulder Injury | Serious (b) - A dislocated shoulder, causing pain in the neck and shoulder. There will also be lower brachial plexus damage. | £12,770 - £19,200 |
| Shoulder Injury | Moderate (c) - The person will suffer from the limitation of movement in the shoulder and discomfort due to frozen shoulder. | £7,890 - £12,770 |
| Neck Injury | Moderate (b) (iii) - The injury could lead to the acceleration or exacerbation of pre-existing conditions, and soft tissue injuries that take a longer time to heal. | £7,890 - £13,740 |
| Neck Injury | Minor (c) (i) - A full recovery will have taken place within a couple of years. | £4,350 - £7,890 |
Special damages can also be awarded in certain circumstances. Special damages consider any financial losses you suffered because of your injury. For example, you may have had to pay for a private carer due to severe injuries. You could claim back the care costs under special damages.
You should keep all evidence of these expenses as proof of the financial damage you have suffered because of your injury.
To find out more about the compensation you could expect to receive for slips and trips at work, speak with one of our advisors today.
Reasons For Slips And Trips At Work
Slips and trips at work could happen for a variety of reasons. Below are some examples of how this type of accident could happen:
- The storage room at your supermarket job has a leak. Your employer knows of this leak but has done nothing to fix it. This results in you slipping on the puddle formed by the leak and injuring your back.
- Your employer has not ensured that the work floor at your factory job is clear of hazards and clutter. You trip on some discarded packaging and injure your leg.
- Your employer has not carried out a risk assessment on the workplace equipment. As a result, an employee fell from a height leading to them sustaining a fatal injury.
Remember, in order to make a successful claim for a slip and trip, you must first prove that your employer breached their duty of care to you. Additionally, you must also prove that because of this, you suffered an injury at work.
Call us now for more information about whether you’re eligible to make a claim.
What Evidence Could Support A Slip And Trip Claim?
If you have suffered an injury due to slips and trips at work, you must prove that your employer breached their duty of care to you to claim compensation.
There are certain steps you can take to prove this. For example:
- Get medical attention – For example, you could make an appointment with your GP or visit A&E. Be sure to keep a copy of your medical records as they can be used as evidence to show the diagnosis and treatment you received.
- Collect evidence – CCTV footage, witness contact details and any photographs of the accident are all examples of evidence you can gather.
- Fill in the accident report book – Businesses with more than 10 employees must have one of these on-site. It can provide beneficial information such as the accident’s date, cause, and result.
- Get legal advice – If you are looking to make a claim for a slip and trip, our advisors could provide free legal advice. They can help let you know whether you are eligible for compensation. They could also connect you with a solicitor from our panel to represent your case.
We have provided further information on the services our panel of solicitors offer in the section below.
What Do No Win No Fee Solicitors Do?
Our panel of solicitors offer a type of No Win No Fee arrangement called a Conditional Fee Agreement. You may opt for this type of arrangement when pursuing a personal injury claim as it’s a way of funding legal representation.
The terms of this agreement include:
- There is no requirement to pay your solicitor upfront when they start work on your claim.
- There are no fees to pay as the claim progresses.
- If your case doesn’t succeed, you aren’t expected to pay for your solicitor’s services.
- If your case is successful, you will pay a small success fee from your compensation. This fee is subject to a legal cap though.
Speak with our team for more information on whether a solicitor from our panel could help you make a claim for slips and trips at work on this basis.
Discuss Slips And Trips At Work
Contact our advisors for free legal advice on making a personal injury claim. They can any questions you may have on claims for slips and trips at work. Our team is here to help you with any queries you may have 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
To get in touch, you can:
- Call us via the number at the top of this page.
- Use our online contact form.
- Interact with an advisor via our live chat pop-up below.
Further Information About Slip And Trip At Work Claims
Below are some additional resources that could help.
- NHS: First Aid
- HSE: Employer Responsibilities
- GOV: Statutory Sick Pay
We hope our guide on slip and trip accidents at work has helped. If you have any additional questions, please get in touch using the number above.
Writer Megan Rogers
Published Meg Martin
