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An injured worker sitting on the ground after a workplace accident.

Advice On What To Do After A Workplace Injury

If you have been injured in an accident at work, you may be looking for help and information on what to do after a workplace injury.

This blog post examines the various steps and actions you should take following a workplace accident. This includes potential steps you could take to help support you if you decide to pursue a personal injury claim. Additionally, we look at what defines employer negligence and who might have a legitimate claim for workplace injury due to a breach of health and safety legislation.

Furthermore, if you decide to pursue an accident at work claim, we look at how one of the No Win No Fee solicitors from our panel could help you. Simply connect with our advisory team on the following contact details to ask any questions you may have about the claims process:

An injured worker sitting on the ground after a workplace accident.

What To Do After A Workplace Injury

If you have been injured at work, you may be looking for information on what to do after a workplace injury. There a various steps that you can take after an accident at work, some of which we will examine below.

Additionally, some of the following steps could help support you in the future if you decide to pursue a personal injury claim. However, in order to have a valid case, you must ensure negligence occurred. This is when:

  1. You were owed a duty of care by your employer.
  2. They breached this duty, e.g. they provided you with no manual handling training.
  3. This caused you to suffer an injury, e.g. you suffered a back injury when trying to carry a load.

Your employer owes you a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA). It requires them to take reasonable and practicable steps to help prevent you from coming to harm while performing your work duties.

Following a workplace accident, some of the steps you could take include the following:

Make Sure You Get Medical Treatment

Obviously, it is essential to receive medical treatment after a workplace accident, however minor or severe your injuries may be. Depending on the type and severity of your injury, you may attend Accident & Emergency (A&E) or book an appointment with your GP. Additionally, depending on the severity of the injuries, it may be necessary for a colleague or passerby to call for an ambulance.

After this initial treatment, you could request a copy of your medical records. Your records should state the type of injury you suffered, what treatment you required and any on-going treatments you may need. These records could then be used as evidence to strengthen your potential workplace accident claim.

A person tripping over a loose wire at work.

Report Your Workplace Injury To Your Manager

Any workplace injury should be reported to your manager as soon as possible, ensuring that you adhere to the organisation’s accident reporting procedures.

Any injury you suffered at work should be reported to your manager, regardless of how it occurred and whether anyone was liable. Additionally, your employer is legally obligated to report certain workplace accidents and injuries to the Health and Safety Executive (this is Britain’s regulatory body for workplace health and safety).

If you are unable to report the injury yourself at the time, a colleague could do this for you.

Ensure Your Accident Is Recorded In The Company Accident Book

Reporting an injury at work is very important. It is a legal requirement for workplaces of more than 10 employees to keep a company accident book on the premises at all times. This book should be used to record the time, date and nature of any accidents, along with the name(s) of the employees affected. It can also include details about what course of action was needed after the accident, for example, whether the employee needed to be taken to hospital.

Certain qualifying injuries also need to be reported by employers to the Health and Safety Executive (this is Britain’s regulatory body for workplace health and safety) under The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR). This ranges from multiple fractures at work to fatal accidents in the workplace.

You could request a copy of your accident report. This could then be used as evidence in your claim and provide crucial details on how and when the accident took place. Also, even if you didn’t report the accident, you could still make a personal injury claim, provided your case meets the eligibility requirements.

Take Photos and Video Evidence

If you are in a condition to do so, it’s useful to take photos and video footage of your injuries and the hazards that created them. For example, this could include a trailing lead or cable wire on the workfloor that you tripped over. You could also ask a colleague to take the pictures on your behalf if you are unable to.

In addition to this, most workplaces have CCTV footage in key areas. You are entitled to request copies of CCTV footage that includes you. Therefore it can be useful to request this from your employer. You could submit this footage as evidence of how your accident occurred and who was responsible.

YELLOW WET FLOOR HEALTH AND SAFETY HAZARD SIGN NEAR FLIGHT OF STAIRS

Write A Diary of Your Symptoms

Whatever the exact nature of your injury, you may suffer a variety of physical and psychological symptoms. Some of these may present immediately, and some may be experienced later on.

With this in mind, it’s important to make a detailed note of symptoms both straight away and in the coming weeks or months.

For example, something heavy dropping on your foot at work can fracture a toe and create immediate pain and swelling. As time progresses, you may experience difficulty walking due to the fracture not healing properly, as well as depression due to being unable to work.

This symptoms diary could then be used to support your accident at work claim for how the injury has impacted your daily life.

Record Any Financial Losses You’ve Suffered

Any injuries you’ve suffered in the workplace may also impact your finances. For example, if you needed to take time off work due to suffering an arm injury, this could cause you to experience a loss of earnings.

Additionally, you may have had to pay for private medical treatments, travel to essential appointments and care at home.

You should keep a record of all of these financial losses and costs with documentation such as wage slips, invoices, receipts and bank statements. Without these records, you might not be able to claim any of these financial losses back as part of your compensation settlement.

For more information on what to do after a workplace injury or to check whether you may have a valid personal injury claim, you can contact our advisors.

A No Win No Fee solicitor shaking hands with their client after taking on their accident at work claim.

Can I Make A No Win No Fee Accident At Work Claim?

You could launch a compensation claim with the help of one of the solicitors on our panel, provided you have an eligible case.

The solicitors on our panel have lots of experience dealing with various workplace accident claims. They could provide you with further guidance on what to do after a workplace injury. Additionally, they could help you with calculating the compensation owed to you and gathering evidence to support your case.

Furthermore, our panel of solicitors can support their client’s claim under a specific version of a No Win No Fee contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under terms such as these, there are no initial fees needed to hire the solicitor, or any payments for their services as the case progresses. If the claim fails, no fees are required for completed solicitor’s services at all.

If a personal injury claim is successful, you will be awarded compensation. A limited percentage amount is deducted from this compensation as a success fee. This is subjected to a legal cap, ensuring the majority of the compensation stays with you.

To see whether you could work with a solicitor on our panel, or for further guidance on what to do after a workplace injury, you can contact our advisors:

More Resources About Claiming For Workplace Accidents

In addition to this guide on what to do after a workplace injury, these other resources might help:

External help:

We appreciate your interest in this blog post about what to do after a workplace injury. Connect with the team for any more assistance.

Someone filling out an accident report.

How To Write An Accident Report At Work As An Employer

As an employer, you might be looking for information on how to write an accident report at work if one of your employees has suffered an injury. Reporting an injury at work is sometimes a legal requirement. Within this guide, we explain what types of accidents at work need to have an incident report made and how to write an effective incident report.

Following this, we look at the time frame in which incident reports need to be made for workplace accidents. We also discuss whether you could amend an accident report after submitting it.

Additionally, as part of our services, if you have been injured as an employee due to a lack of workplace safety regulations being implemented, we could help you with making a workplace injury claim. Contact our advisory team to learn more about the services we offer:

Someone filling out an accident report.

What Types Of Accidents At Work Need To Be Reported?

Certain types of workplace accidents need to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR). The HSE is Britain’s workplace health and safety regulator. Not every accident requires a report, but if the accident is work-related and results in a reportable injury, one should be made.

Regulation 4 of RIDDOR lists ‘specified injuries’ that must be reported. These include:

  • Amputations of the finger, thumb, hand, arm, toe, foot or leg.
  • Fractures (except to fingers, thumbs and toes).
  • Any injury to the eyes that is likely to result in sight reduction or blindness.
  • Serious burns including scalds that cover more than 10% of the skin surface and cause significant eye damage, respiratory harm or impact the vital organs.
  • A crush injury to the head or torso that results in a head injury, brain damage or chest and abdomen/organ damage.
  • Any loss of consciousness from a head injury or asphyxiation.
  • Any type of scalping that requires hospital treatment.
  • Other injuries caused by working in an enclosed space that lead to a hypothermia or heat-induced illness sufficient to require hospital admission or resuscitation.

A construction worker lying on the ground with a ladder on top of them.

How To Write An Accident Report At Work

RIDDOR requires ‘responsible persons’ only to submit reports. This includes employers, the self-employed and those in charge of the work premises. As a responsible person, you are under a legal obligation to make the notification and have a lawful basis to process the personal data of the injured person. The report should record:

  • The name of the employee.
  • The date of the accident and injury.
  • The name of the company.
  • The name of the person making the report.
  • How the incident occurred.
  • What steps were taken, such as the employee being taken to the hospital for medical treatment.

The responsible person should complete the report online using the link on the RIDDOR website. You can also download a copy on the incident report for your own records. A record should also be made in the workplace accident book if one is on-site.

How Long Do You Have To Report An Accident At Work?

The incident reporting needs to take place within 15 days of the accident where a worker has been unable to do their normal work duties or has been away from work for 7 consecutive days due to the injuries sustained. These consecutive days also include ones where the worker would not have usually have been expected to work.

In cases where a worker has been able to attend work or perform their usual work duties for more than 3 consecutive days, a report only needs to be made in the workplace accident book.

Someone lying at the bottom of the stairs after falling.

Can You Amend The Accident Report After Submitting It?

In addition to learning how to write an accident report at work, you may want to know how you can amend one. An amendment may need to be made to the accident report after it has been made, for example, if an injury subsequently results in a fatality. To inform RIDDOR of developments like this, you can call the Incident Contact Centre (ICC) to amend the details through a duplicate report. Keep the original report on hand before making the call. Alternatively, you can submit a duplicate report online.

For other changes to a report that involves a fatal or major injury only, you can call the ICC on the same number. A duplicate report doesn’t need to be submitted, but additional information will be required from the original notification. The information needed for this is:

  • The original notifier’s name.
  • The reference number for the incident.
  • Name of the injured person.
  • The date of the incident.

Importantly, you will not receive a notification of these changes but a note will be affixed to the record on the RIDDOR database. Alternatively, you are free to submit a duplicate form online and retain a copy for your records. All original information must be included in the re-submission alongside the changes and the original reference number.

If an accident occurs in the workplace because you as an employer failed to implement the necessary safety measures and breached your duty of care, an employee has the right to make a personal injury claim for any injuries that have suffered.

If you have been injured as an employee, we could help you making a claim. Contact us today to discuss the contributing factors to your case by:

Someone asking a solicitor 'How to write an accident report at work?'.

More Resources About Workplace Accidents

In addition to this guide about how to write an accident report at work, you might find these other resources from our website useful:

Some external resources to help:

  • More details on when to report to RIDDOR.
  • Guidance on expenses and benefits after paying an employee compensation for injuries at work from Gov.UK.
  • Learn when to administer first aid and call for further medical assistance if an employee is injured at work from the NHS.

Thank you for reading our guide on how to write an accident report at work.

Two managers assess a hardhat and gloves to prevent occupational injuries

Learn About The Most Common Accidents At Work

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.

Contact Us

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.

Find out more right now by:

  • Calling 0330 043 2925 to chat with an advisor.
  • Using our live chat feature at the bottom of this screen.
  • Or when you contact us through our website.

Two managers assess a hardhat and gloves to prevent occupational injuries

Choose A Section 

  1. What Are The Most Common Accidents At Work?
  2. What Should I Do If I’ve Suffered A Workplace Injury?
  3. Can I Make A No Win No Fee Workplace Injury Claim?
  4. 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) 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.

A yellow wet floor sign used to prevent injuries on slippery surfaces

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.

Scaffolding on a construction site causing health and safety risks

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.

A workplace injury solicitor shakes hand with a client

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:

External Information:

Thanks for reading our guide on, ‘What are the most common accidents at work?’