I Was Injured At Work, Who Pays My Medical Bills?
If you were injured or made ill at work because of an accident that was caused by a breach in the duty of care owed to you by your employer, you may be able to claim compensation. All employers have a duty of care towards their employees, meaning that they are legally obliged to provide them with a safe and hygienic environment in which to work. Should an employee be harmed because of a failure on the part of their employer to uphold their duties, the employer could be held liable for any injuries or illness caused. As well as paying the injured person for their pain, suffering and loss of amenity inflicted by the injuries, the employer will also have to cover any medical expenses or other expenses relating to the person’s injuries.
Injured at work
If you have been injured at work because of an accident that was not your fault, you may have several financial concerns. Questions such as “I was injured at work, who pays my medical bills?”, “do I get paid if I get injured at work?” and “I had an accident at work, what are my rights?”. Many people worry that they won’t get paid if they have to take time off to recover from their injuries or illness, or that their employer may dismiss them from their job if they lodged a workplace accident claim.
We are Legal Expert, a well respected personal injury solicitors firm that specialises in winning accident at work compensation claims for our clients. In this guide, we will also explain what your rights are if you are injured at work, what to do after an accident at work and advise you on how to claim for work injury expenses. If you have been injured or made ill because of an accident at work, call Legal Expert today on 0800 073 8804 or use our online claims form to contact us. One of our friendly and well-informed advisors will be happy to speak to you about your ordeal and if we can see that you are owed compensation, an excellent personal injury solicitor will start working on your claim right away.
Select A Section
- A Guide To Claiming Medical Costs After A Workplace Injury
- What Is A Workplace Injury?
- What Are Work Injury Medical Expenses?
- Who Pays You Medical And Care Costs?
- Medical Expenses You Could Claim Compensation For
- Additional Types Of Damages You Could Claim
- Work Accident Injury Compensation Calculator
- Eligibility To Claim Medical Expenses
- No Win, No Fee Claims For Medical Expenses After An Accident At Work
- Why Claim Compensation With Legal Expert
- Talk To Us And Start A Claim
- Work Injury Claimant Resources
A Guide To Claiming Medical Costs After A Workplace Injury
Despite legislation to protect employees, such as The Occupiers Act 1957 and The Health And Safety at Work etc. Act of 1974, accidents in the workplace still happen. Some of these accidents may be random and unfortunate occurrences, whilst other accidents could have been avoided if the employer had better managed the premises. If you have been injured at work because of an accident that was caused by a breach in the duty of care owed to you by your employer, or a third party, you could be entitled to make a personal injury claim for compensation.
When people are injured at work, they are often concerned with how their injuries may affect their current terms of employment and future career prospects. In this guide, we will explain how you can claim expenses for any medical bills from your employer if you are injured at work, and answer questions you may have, such as “do I get paid if I get injured at work, in the UK?” We will also advise you on how the accident at work claims process works and we have included a personal injury claims calculator to help you estimate how much accident at work compensation you could be entitled to.
Remember, if you have been injured, or made ill at work because of negligence on the part of your employer, you could be entitled to claim compensation to cover your medical bills, any loss of income you have experienced and other expenses you may have relating to your accident. In addition, you can claim compensation for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity that your injuries or illness has caused you. Trust Legal Expert’s team of excellent personal injury lawyers to handle your claim. Our solicitors have three decades of experience handling claims and will always fight to win you the maximum amount of compensation possible.
What Is A Workplace Injury?
An accident at work can lead to an employee suffering an injury or illness. Although some accidents are avoidable, some could be caused by employers failing to uphold their duties of care. Accidents can happen if a workplace ignores a health and safety hazard, for example, a loose floorboard in an office space which the management is aware of and does not repair. As a result, an employee could trip and suffer an injury as a result.
Other accidents in the workplace can happen because an employee has a risky job and the employer does not take proper precautions to protect them. For example, if an employee works with corrosive chemicals, the employer is responsible for providing them with personal protective equipment (PPE) such as goggles and gloves. If the employer fails to do so, the employee could suffer an injury. These are just two examples of many different types of accidents at work that can take place.
Some more examples of how employees can be injured at work include:
- Slip, trip and fall accidents caused by hazardous flooring, or spillages on the floor.
- Burns in catering kitchens.
- Burns or irritation caused by hazardous substances.
- Manual handling accidents leading to musculoskeletal injuries.
- Shelving and racking accidents.
- Industrial deafness from being exposed to excessively loud noise at work.
- Warehouse accidents involving forklift trucks or items falling off shelves.
- Assaults at work, which could have been stopped had there been better safeguarding or security measures in place.
If you were injured at work or made ill at work because of an accident that was not your fault, you could be able to claim compensation. As well as claiming for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity inflicted by the injury, you can also claim compensation to cover your medical bills and any other expenses you may have as a result of your workplace accident. To claim compensation, call Legal Expert today. If you have the right to make a workplace accident claim, we will provide you with an excellent personal injury solicitor to handle your case.
What Are Work Injury Medical Expenses?
If you were injured at work, you may be wondering who pays for your medical bills? Your employer, or in some cases the third party who is responsible for your injuries, will be responsible for paying your accident at work expenses, and this may include any medical expenses too.
As we’ll see below, if an individual makes a successful personal injury claim, their compensation package may consist of two heads of claim: general damages and special damages.
The primary part of the compensation package is general damages. General damages compensate the injured person for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity that they have experienced as a result of their injuries.
Special damages are designed to reimburse the injured person for any expenses or losses they have incurred as a result of their injuries and pays for any future expenses that they might have. This will include reimbursement for any medical bills for treatment the person has had and payment for medical bills for treatments the person may need in the future. It’s important to note that medical bills will generally only be recoverable if the treatment was not available for free via the NHS.
Who Pays You Medical And Care Costs?
If you have been injured or made ill because of an accident at work, you could claim compensation for your injuries. As we have said, your compensation package will include the costs of any medical bill you have as a result of treatment or aftercare treatment for your injuries.
Does your company pay directly for your accident at work compensation? No. The business or organisation’s employers’ liability insurance will pay your compensation payout, including medical bills. All businesses and employers are legally required to have employers’ liability insurance in place for the very reason of protecting themselves and their employees financially in the event of an accident. Whether you are employed as a full-time worker, part-time worker, temporary worker or contractor, you have the right to make a personal injury claim for an accident at work.
Medical Expenses You Could Claim Compensation For
What medical bills could be covered by an accident at work compensation claim? Work injury medical expenses can include the cost of medication, doctor’s appointments, operations, physiotherapy, dentistry, cosmetic treatments and any other type of medical treatment the injured person may require. As well as covering medical expenses to treat the injured person, special damages can pay for counselling if the person had a very traumatic experience and was left psychologically damaged.
Special damages will also cover other expenses the person may have. For example, if they experienced a life-changing injury such as brain damage or the loss of a limb, the expenses could cover the cost of any rehabilitation, or any home or vehicle adaptations that may be required, such as installing wheelchair ramps.
It’s also possible to claim for loss of income, which includes any salary payments or in-work benefits that you may have missed. In extreme cases when the person is no longer able to do their job, for example, if their hands have been damaged, they can claim the cost of retraining for a new career.
Additional Types Of Damages You Could Claim
Of course, in addition to the compensation that you may claim to cover medical treatment, care expenses and associated costs, there are other forms of special damages which you could claim for.
For example, as already highlighted, the question of “I was injured at work, do I get paid” can be on the minds of many people. Whilst you may be eligible to claim statutory sick pay, this may not fully cover your day-to-day expenses. If you have had an accident at work because of the actions of your employer or another employee, you should not be left out of pocket if unable to work for a period of time. Your personal injury lawyer could also help you to recover lost income and wages as part of your wider claim.
Additionally, you may also have had to ask another person (such as a spouse or other family member) to take time off work to provide you with any necessary care at home. In these cases, you may be able to recover their lost income as well, in addition to claiming an hourly rate for the time they have invested.
Other forms of compensation which you could be able to claim if injured at work may include the costs of travelling to and from medical appointments, the loss of enjoyment if unable to travel on a holiday already booked or if you are not able to participate in the likes of sports.
When you contact a personal injury lawyer from our team they will ask you questions to start to build a picture of what exactly you could claim for in an accident at work claim.
Work Accident Injury Compensation Calculator
Above, we mentioned a head of claim known as general damages. In this section, we’ll consider potential general damages payouts.
Below, you’ll find a personal injury claims calculator. This calculator includes a variety of injuries and severities with information on the injury and how much people may be able to claim in compensation for them. The figures have been taken from the Judicial College Guidelines, a legal publication used by solicitors and the courts to value claims.
The potential awards detailed below are just estimates. If you’d like a valuation more precise to your unique circumstances, please contact us on the number at the top of this page.
| Injury and category | Notes on this injury | Potential compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Wrist injury | An uncomplicated Colles’ fracture | In the region of £6,970 |
| Wrist injury | Less severe injuries where these still result in some permanent disability as, for example, a degree of persisting pain and stiffness. | £11,820 to £22,990 |
| Neck injury | Minor – full recovery within 3 months | Up to £2,300 |
| Neck injury | Moderate – Many frequently encountered injuries to the back such as disturbance of ligaments and muscles giving rise to backache, soft tissue injuries resulting in a prolonged acceleration and/or exacerbation of a pre-existing back condition | £11,730 to £26,050 |
| Back injury | Minor – Where a full recovery or a recovery to nuisance level takes place without surgery within about two to five years. | £7,410 to £11,730 |
| Back injury | Moderate – The bracket contains a wide variety of injuries. Examples are a case of a compression/crush fracture of the lumbar vertebrae where there is a substantial risk of osteoarthritis and constant pain and discomfort | £26,050 to £36,390 |
| Leg injury | Less serious – Simple Fractures to Tibia or Fibula or Soft Tissue Injuries | Up to £11,110 |
| Knee injury | Moderate – Less serious and involving shorter periods of acceleration, and also lacerations, twisting, or bruising injuries. | Up to £12,900 |
Eligibility To Claim Medical Expenses
If you have been injured at work there are three main criteria which help us to see if you are eligible to claim compensation.
- Firstly, we need to be able to show that your responsible party owed you a duty of care. All employers owe their employees a duty of care, so if the accident occurred in the workplace, this will be straightforward to prove.
- Secondly, we must show that the accident occurred as a result of a breach in the duty of care owed by your employer.
- Thirdly, it must be shown that as a result of your employer’s breach, you suffered an injury.
We would recommend that you follow any accident at work procedures which are in place at your workplace. This should include informing your line manager (and any other relevant members of staff) of your accident and ensuring that it is correctly recorded in the accident book.
To find out what to do after an accident at work, please speak to our team of solicitors and lawyers today.
No Win, No Fee Claims For Medical Expenses After An Accident At Work
No Win, No Fee agreements are a type of contract or funding agreement made between a person and their solicitor or lawyer. Under this type of agreement if you are making a claim for compensation you will not need to make any payments to the solicitor at the start of the claims process, nor pay any fees during the life of the case either. And if the claim does not succeed, you will not have to pay any of the fees your solicitor has incurred in pursuing your case.
If your case is successful, your solicitor may seek a small contribution toward their costs. This contribution is known as a success fee and is used to help cover their costs. Success fees are legally capped and the amount in which you would pay will be set out in the No Win, No Fee agreement. This means that you will only have to pay the solicitor once you have been awarded this money. The solicitor’s fee may be deducted from the settlement before it is paid to you or after, depending on your agreement.
Why Claim Compensation With Legal Expert
We think that there are many great reasons why people should choose to claim compensation with Legal Expert. Just some of these reasons include:
- The option to make a No Win, No Fee claim with a specialist solicitor with years of experience helping people to make similar claims.
- A promise that your solicitor will strive to recover as much compensation for you as possible.
- Throughout our claim, your solicitor will keep you fully updated of the progress made and will guide you through the complexities of the process in an understandable way.
- A comprehensive medical exam close to your local area which helps to establish how you have been harmed by your accident.
To find out more about how Legal Expert could be right for you, please contact us today.
Talk To Us And Start A Claim
If you have been injured and work and want to find out if you could be owed compensation, get in contact with the team at Legal Expert.
Our advisors will be able to look at your case and let you know if you do indeed have a claim. If you choose to go ahead we can provide you with all the support you need.
Contact us today by calling on 0800 073 8804.
Work Injury Claimant Resources
The guides and resources below include additional information which may be helpful if you have been injured in a workplace accident. We have included some of our other accident claims guides as well as information from trusted third-party resources.
Below, you can find a list of guides which may tell you more about accident at work claims:
- Discover more answers to your queries on our accident at work FAQs page
- Can I claim compensation if I’ve left the company?
- Can you lose your job if you claim against your employer?
- Injured due to tiredness or fatigue – can I claim?
- I hurt myself at work, can I make a claim?
- What to do if you cut off your finger at work
- I suffered a burn injury at work, how much could I claim in compensation?
- How to claim compensation for industrial dermatitis
- I was injured at work – what are my rights?
- Is my employer liable for an accident at work?
- What should I do if I hurt myself at work?
- Can I make a claim if injured in my probation period?
- Who pays damages in an accident at work claim?
- I slipped on water at work, can I make a claim?
- Does my employer pay my medical bills if I’m injured at work?
- Can you still claim compensation f you didn’t take time off work?
- Do you have to be an employee to make a workplace injury claim?
- I am a new employee, can I make a claim?
- How do you prove an accident at work claim?
- Do you need to be an employee to make a workplace accident claim?
- What happens if you do not report an injury or accident?
- Can I make a claim if I’m an agency worker?
- I was dismissed after an accident at work, what should I do?
- If I was partly at fault for an accident can I still make a claim?
- I am self-employed and had an accident at work, can I make a claim?
- I had an accident at work due to no safety boots – can I make a claim?
- Can an apprentice make an accident at work claim?
- I suffered a head injury due to no helmet – can I make a claim?
- Can I claim if injured because of no safety goggles?
- What is the time limit for an accident at work claim?
- What are my employers’ responsibilities after an accident at work?
- Will suing my employer create problems?
- How to make a claim for inadequate tools and equipment
- What is the maximum weight I can lift at work?
- I had an accident at work, what are my rights?
- Who has the overall responsibility for recording injuries at work?
- How long after an injury at work can I make a claim?
- I fell down the stair at work, can I make a claim?
- Learn more about accident at work claims here
- Defective And Broken Machinery Injury Claims
- Unloading Injury Claims Guide
Written by Chelache
Edited by Billing
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