What are Forklift Injury Claims?
If you have sustained an injury in an accident at work involving a forklift truck, you may be eligible to make forklift injury claims for compensation. Compensation claims for a forklift injury are legal civil actions which can be made when the employer for who you are working has a responsibility for your health and safety and has failed in his or her “duty of care” to prevent a forklift accident from occurring which has resulted in you sustaining an injury.
What is meant by an Employer´s “Duty of Care”?
In order to justifiably claim compensation for an accident with or in a forklift, it has to be proven that your employer was negligent by failing to identify a risk of injury and introduce measures to prevent a forklift accident at work from occurring. When your employer´s negligence in failing to make your work environment safe has resulted in you sustaining an injury, this breach in his or her duty of care makes your employer liable for your injuries and gives you the right to make forklift injury claims for compensation.
However, justifiable forklift injury claims may not always be successful as an employer´s duty of care is not “absolute”. This means that, for example, if a hazard in the path of the forklift had only recently materialised and your employer did not have a reasonable period of time in which to identify the hazard and remove the risk of injury, it may not always be possible to claim compensation for an accident on a forklift. For this reason, it is always in your best interests to discuss your forklift accident, and the injuries you sustained, with a lawyer to establish that you are qualified to make a compensation claim for a forklift injury.
Your Health Comes before a Forklift Injury Compensation Claim
When making a claim for an accident on a forklift, in addition to establishing that your employer was in breach of his or her duty of care, it is also important to prove that your accident resulted in an injury. Consequently it is vital that, after sustaining an injury in an accident on a forklift, you receive professional medical attention as soon as possible. By immediately visiting the nearest hospital, the injuries that you sustained due to your accident on the forklift will be recorded in your medical notes along with any ongoing treatment or long term consequences to your health.
If you waited until you returned home to seek professional medical attention, or relied on first aid administered at work, it could be claimed by your employer that your injuries were not significant enough to warrant hospital attention, or that you contributed to the extent of your forklift injury by delaying a professional examination. If this is the case, you will still be entitled to make forklift injury claims, but how much compensation for an accident on a forklift you receive may be reduced to reflect your own lack of care.
Making Compensation Claims for a Forklift Injury
Once it can be determined that you have suffered an injury in a forklift accident due to an employer´s breach in his or her duty of care, you can make compensation claims for a forklift injury. The procedure for claiming compensation for an accident in a forklift is that your lawyer will write to your employer, advising him or her that you are making a claim for being injured on their premises, and your employer – or more frequently, their public liability insurers – then has 90 days to conduct their own investigation into your forklift accident and advise your lawyer whether they will accept liability for your injuries.
If liability for your forklift injury is accepted by your employer, your lawyer will liaise with their liability insurance company to obtain the maximum possible settlement of compensation for an accident on a forklift Should liability for your injuries be contested, your lawyer will issue court proceedings – an action which often initiates an offer of compensation for an accident on a forklift from the company´s liability insurers, who may be reluctant to take a chance on the outcome of your forklift injury compensation claim and keen to save money on potential court costs.
As offers of settlement for forklift injury claims may be made to you directly by the insurance company, it is advisable to be aware of how much compensation for an accident on a forklift you may be entitled to in order that you do not inadvertently accept an inappropriate offer and are undercompensated. Should you accept an offer of forklift injury compensation which is inadequate for your needs, you cannot go back to the insurance company and ask for more!
How Much Can I Claim for an Injury on a Forklift?
How much compensation for an injury on a forklift you will be entitled to receive will depend on the nature and severity of your injury in relation to your age, sex and general state of health prior to your forklift accident. The way in which the injury from the accident on the forklift affects your quality of life will also be taken into account, and it is advisable that you maintain a diary in order to record the occasions when you are unable to perform day-to-day tasks or participate in leisure and social pursuits as a consequence of your forklift accident.
Any expenses you have incurred for medical treatment can be recovered in a claim for an injury on a forklift, along with any costs for alternative forms of transport if you are unable to drive and any loss of earnings if the injury you sustained in the forklift accident prevents you from working. Consequently, no two forklift injury claims are the same – even when the injuries sustained are identical – and this is a good reason why you should always seek professional legal advice when making forklift injury claims for compensation.
“Contingency Fee” Forklift Injury Claims
Most lawyers will offer a free initial assessment of your forklift accident and injury, and advise you whether you have a claim for an accident on a forklift which is worth your while to pursue. Should you have a forklift injury claim which has a strong probability of success, you will be offered legal representation on a “Contingency Fee” basis.
“Contingency Fee” forklift injury claims enable you to pursue compensation for your injuries without having to worry about lawyer´s fees if your claim for an accident on a forklift is unsuccessful. However, as you may be liable for your employer´s legal fees if your case is lost, lawyers offering “Contingency Fee” forklift injury claims will want to know of any legal fees insurance you may have attached to a household contents or car insurance policy and will recommend that you to take out additional protection if necessary.
Free Legal Advice about Forklift Injury Claims
If you, or somebody close to you, have been injured on a forklift, in an accident for which you were not to blame, you are invited to call our freephone service and discuss the circumstances of your forklift accident directly with an experienced work injury lawyer. Our lawyer will provide you with practical and helpful advice which is relative to your personal situation and answer any questions you may have about claiming compensation for an injury on a forklift.
There is no obligation on you to proceed with a claim for your accident on the forklift once you have spoken with us and all conversations between yourself and our lawyers are completely confidential. We would advise that you speak with us as soon as possible after you have received professional medical attention following your forklift accident to maximise the likelihood of a successful claim for an injury on a forklift.
Additional articles about work injury compensation claims: Work Accidents, Work Personal Injuries.