Trigger Finger Compensation

I have been told that it can take over a year to receive trigger finger compensation. Is this correct? Is there any way that I can get compensation paid quicker than this?

Eoin P. Campbell, LL.B., Solicitor

Editor in Chief

Eoin P. Campbell

You have been advised correctly, as it can take over a year from the date of the application to the Injuries Board for an assessment of your trigger finger compensation claim to be completed and a cheque sent to you by your employer’s insurance company. Claiming compensation can be a long winded process, however this does not necessarily mean you will have to wait a year to receive compensation.

To make a trigger finger claim you must fill out a claim form and make an application to the Injuries Board for an assessment. The Injuries Board will then write to your employer to advise that a claim for trigger finger is being made against his employee liability insurance policy. Your employer will alert his insurance company and has 90 days in which to respond and agree to an Injuries Board assessment or to reject it.

If consent to continue with the Injuries Board assessment is granted, it can take up to 9 months before this is completed. Both you and your employer will then be notified of the amount of trigger finger compensation which the Injuries Board assessors have calculated, and your employer’s insurance company will then have 21 days to respond to this assessment. It can either accept the compensation amount or reject it. If it is accepted, the Injuries Board will issue an order to pay and the insurance company will then make the payment.

If your employer or his insurance company refuses to consent to an Injuries Board assessment or rejects how much trigger finger compensation its assessors have calculated, the Injuries Board will grant you permission to take the case to the Irish courts to resolve your claim. This can result in your claim for compensation for trigger finger taking much longer to be resolved. Approximately one third of claims for personal injury compensation are dealt with by the courts and a third result in the Injuries Board assessment being paid. However a third of claims are resolved directly with the insurance company of the respondent, which may result in your compensation being awarded more quickly.

In order to maximise the probability of a quick resolution to your claim for compensation for trigger finger you should speak with a personal injury solicitor about your case as soon as possible. An experienced personal injury solicitor may be able to negotiate a settlement with an insurance company quickly. As soon as a claim is submitted to the Injuries Board a solicitor can contact the insurance company to start negotiations. If liability is accepted and an Injuries Board assessment is authorised, your solicitor can also apply for interim payments of compensation to be made to cover expenses until the case is successfully resolved.

However, it is vital that the claims process is started as soon as possible, so you should not delay seeking legal advice about making a claim for trigger finger.