Personal Injury at Work

How much compensation for a personal injury at work should I be entitled to if I fell down some wet stairs and broke my leg? I have been made an offer by my employer and do not know whether to accept it.

Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor

Editor in Chief

Eoin P. Campbell

Question:

How much compensation for a personal injury at work should I be entitled to if I fell down some wet stairs and broke my leg? I have been made an offer by my employer and do not know whether to accept it.

Answer:

How much compensation for a personal injury at work you may be entitled to is calculated on more than just the physical injury you sustained. Although some people may rely on the Book of Quantum or previous personal injury at work settlements to provide a guide to how much compensation for a broken leg you should receive, factors such as your age, sex and general state of health prior to your accident should also be considered.

Quite possibly your employer is trying to be helpful by offering a settlement in lieu of a personal injury at work claim however, if the compensation offered to you by your employer runs out before any rehabilitation treatment you are undergoing finishes or before you start earning an income again, you may not be able to go back to him or her and ask for more. Therefore, it is always in your best interests to have a claim for personal injury at work compensation assessed by an experienced solicitor.

In addition to the considerations mentioned above, the solicitor will take into account your “loss of amenity”. The term “loss of amenity” relates to your lack of ability to perform day-to-day tasks while recovering from a broken leg and the deterioration in your quality of life due to not being able to participate in leisure and social pursuits. Considering the length of time you may be incapacitated by your broken leg, your loss of amenity may make a considerable contribution to how much compensation for a personal injury at work you may be entitled to receive.

Other elements of a personal injury at work claim that a solicitor would take into account are any quantifiable emotional trauma you experienced due to your injury – for example, if you develop a fear of heights because of your fall or develop anxiety or depression due to being immobile throughout your recovery. Added to this, your solicitor would include any financial costs you have incurred because of your personal injury at work. This would include any loss of overtime or pension contributions along with the cost of using public transport because you are unable to drive.

As you can see, there are many factors which contribute to how much compensation for a personal injury at work you might be entitled to claim. No two claims for personal injury at work compensation are the same – even when the injuries sustained are identical and it is in your best interests to discuss the circumstances of your injury, and the impact it has made to your personal life, with a solicitor at the earliest possible opportunity to ascertain whether the offer made to you by your employer accurately reflects your entitlement to compensation for a personal injury at work.