By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 11th July 2024. If you have been injured in an accident at work due to a crane failure, you may be eligible to make a personal injury claim. However, you will need to prove that your injuries were directly caused by your employer breaching their duty of care.
Your employer owes a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Per this duty, they must take reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety while you are working. If they breach this duty and you suffer an injury as a result, you might be eligible for compensation.
In this guide, we take a look at examples of accidents that could occur because your employer failed to adhere to their duty of care. We will also look at what injuries you could suffer in a workplace accident, as well as provide examples of evidence you could submit to support your case. Furthermore, we will discuss some of the benefits of making a claim with a solicitor on a No Win No Fee basis.
If you have any questions about personal injury claims made for crane accidents or would like free advice for your potential claim, please get in touch with an advisor. Our team of advisors are available on the following details:
- Call 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online for a call back.
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Select a section:
- How Much Can I Claim For A Crane Accident?
- What Is A Crane Accident?
- What To Do If You’ve Been Involved In A Crane Accident
- Evidence For Crane Accident Claims
- No Win No Fee Solicitors For Crance Accident Claims
- Helpful Links
How Much Can I Claim For A Crane Accident?
If your crane accident claim is successful, your compensation total could potentially depend on two different heads of claim.
General damages, the first head of claim, will definitely be awarded if your crane accident claim is successful. This offers compensation for the psychiatric and physical effects you are suffering with due to your crane accident. Such factors of these effects will be considered:
- Loss of amenity.
- How long-lasting your symptoms are.
- How severe your pain is.
You may be invited to have an independent assessment during the claims process to help with the calculation of your general damages. The medical reports following this can be referred to along with the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG).
The JCG is a publication containing different guideline compensation bracket figures for all sorts of psychiatric and physical injuries.
Compensation Table
In the table below, you can find different injuries from the JCG which could be suffered following a crane accident. We have also taken each injury’s guideline compensation figures from the JCG (only the first figure is not from the JCG) so you can see what could potentially be awarded as crane accident compensation.
It is vital to remember, though, that these figures in the table are not guaranteed as your claim will be unique.
| Injury | Severity of injury | Guideline compensation bracket figures |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious injuries with financial losses | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Brain damage | Very severe (a) | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Moderately severe (b) | £267,340 to £344,150 | |
| Moderate (c) (iii) | £52,550 to £110,720 | |
| Amputation of arms | Loss of both arms (a) | £293,850 to £366,100 |
| Loss of one arm (b) (i) | No less than £167,380 | |
| Loss of one arm (b) (iii) | £117,360 to £133,810 | |
| Leg | Amputations (a) (i) | £293,850 to £344,150 |
| Amputations (a) (iv) | £119,570 to £162,290 |
Special Damages For Crane Accidents
Special damages, the second head of claim, only might be awarded if your crane accident claim is successful. This offers compensation for the finances you have lost due to your crane accident. Such financial losses may be:
- Loss of earnings if you need time before you return to work to recover.
- Professional and domestic care costs for your injuries.
- Travel expenses to medical appointments.
In order to claim special damages, you will also need to provide evidence of your losses. A good way to do this is to present documents such as payslips or proof of payment such as a receipt.
Contact us today to find out whether you can be connected with a crane accident lawyer and claim compensation.
What Is A Crane Accident?
A crane accident is an accident either caused by a crane, or involving a crane. It is heavy machinery, and if it is in use in your place of work your employer has a responsibility to ensure safety measures are in place to prevent you or your colleagues suffering an injury in a crane accident.
Your employer, for example, could be liable for an injury caused by:
- An unsafe crane: If your employer provides machinery to use, or allows machinery to be used in your place of work, it is their responsibility to ensure that it is in safe working order by carrying out regular risk assessments. If they don’t and you experience harm as a result, your employer could be held liable for an injury caused by a malfunctioning crane.
- An unsafe task: An employer asking you to perform an unsafe task can be considered negligence. If for example, you are assigned to lift a weight that the crane in use cannot handle, your employer can be liable for any injuries caused in an accident with a toppling crane.
- Untrained colleagues: Any activity that could cause harm to an employee or their colleagues, should first come with instruction and training, or checks to make sure that the person performing the task is suitably qualified. An untrained employee being allowed to operate a crane without a license, can be grounds for a claim if they were to injure a person.
Your employer’s duty of care means they have a responsibility to ensure they do not put you in harm’s way by taking reasonable steps to reduce or remove any risks posed by hazards in the workplace. Our advisors can give you more information about workplace safety laws in the UK and crane accidents. Please reach out, if you suffered a workplace injury caused by a crane accident.
What To Do If You’ve Been Involved In A Crane Accident
Knowing what to do if you have been involved in a crane accident isn’t always obvious, and you might find different people offering different advice, which can get confusing. These are the most important actions you should take.
- Immediately report the injury to your line manager or foreman.
- Ensure that you receive immediate treatment for your injury. If it is minor, then your local first aid worker could assess the injury and apply first aid.
- If it is major and you require emergency treatment by paramedics, make sure that somebody informs your family or friends about your injury.
- Always get your injury checked over by your A&E department or by your GP. If you visit the A&E first, also get it checked over by your local GP as A&E departments won’t necessarily keep detailed medical notes on your injury.
- As soon as possible complete a full accident report at your workplace.
- Keep detailed notes on exactly how the accident happened and the names and addresses of any witnesses.
- Check if you are entitled to compensation by contacting an expert crane accidents compensation solicitor.
If you’d like to know more about the crane accident claims process, then get in touch with our team at the number to the top and bottom of this article for more information.
Evidence For Crane Accident Claims
Crane accident claims require evidence which confirm the injuries you’re claiming for and how they were caused by another party breaching the duty of care they owed you.
Examples of evidence that could support a claim for injuries caused by a crane accident include:
- Medical records that show what injuries you’ve received treatment for following a crane failure.
- Contact details of any witnesses who can provide a statement regarding the accident that hurt you.
- Photographs of the accident scene and of any visible injuries you have.
- Any available video footage showing the accident, such as CCTV footage.
- If the accident involving a crane happened at work, then a copy of the report from the work accident book could also serve as evidence.
Contact our advisors for free today if you have any questions about gathering evidence for a crane accident claim.
No Win No Fee Solicitors For Crane Accident Claims
If you are eligible to make a crane accident compensation claim, you may wish to do so with the support of a solicitor. If so, one of our personal injury solicitors could work on your case. Generally, they provide their services under the terms of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
When your solicitor works on a No Win No Fee basis, they generally won’t ask for any upfront or ongoing payments to cover their services. They also won’t ask you to pay for their work on your case if you’re not awarded compensation following an unsuccessful claim.
However, if your claim has a successful outcome, your solicitor will subtract a success fee from your compensation. The amount that can be taken as this fee is limited by the law.
Get in touch with an advisor from our team to discuss crane accidents. An advisor can check your eligibility to claim and if it seems like you have a valid case, you could be connected with one of our solicitors.
To speak with an advisor:
- Fill out our ‘claim online’ form and an advisor will get back to you.
- Connect via our live webchat.
- Call 0800 073 8804
Helpful Links
How Much Compensation for An Accident at Work Claim? – this provides a detailed guide on the amount of compensation you might be entitled to for any specified work-related injury.
Concussion injury claims – This guide will help you with making a claim following concussion.
Defective work equipment claims – have you been injured because of defective work equipment? If so, this guide may be of use to you.
How Much Can I Claim For An Accident Caused By Dangerous Machinery At Work? – Read this to learn more about claiming if you’ve been injured by dangerous machinery.
Thank you for reading our guide on crane accident claims. To learn more about making claims for crane lifting accidents, contact our team for free legal advice at a time that works for you.
