Farm and agricultural work can be extremely hazardous. According to information from Britain’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the regulator for safety at work, almost one person dies a week working in these industries. If you or a loved one have been injured whilst working on a farm you could be owed compensation. In this guide we look at everything you need to know about farm accident claims and at how to claim compensation.
Key Takeaways In Farm Accident Claims
- You could claim compensation if you or a loved one were injured in a farm accident.
- How much you could claim depends on what farm injuries you suffered and how severe they were, in addition to any out-of-pocket expenses.
- Any claim must be made within the applicable time limit.
- You could claim for different types of farm accidents.
- One of our No Win No Fee solicitors could help you claim farm accident compensation.
Learn more about how we could help you. Please get in touch by:
- Calling 0800 073 8804.
- Clicking to start a claim online.
- Using the live chat below.
Browse Our Guide
- I Was Injured While Working On A Farm, Can I Make A Claim?
- What If I Was Injured As A Visitor?
- The Most Common Injuries Suffered By Farm Workers
- Are There Time Limits For Making Farm Injury Claims?
- What Kinds Of Farm Accidents Could I Claim For?
- How Much Compensation Could I Get?
- No Win No Fee Farm Accident Claims
- Learn More
I Was Injured While Working On A Farm, Can I Make A Claim?
Farmers and farm workers are owed a duty of care by their employers. If you were injured whilst working on a farm because your employer failed to protect you, they may be liable for your injuries. Employers have a duty of care to ensure your safety, no matter whether directly employed, self-employed, a temporary worker or employed on a zero hours contract.
Employers duty of care is set out in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. To comply with this duty, they should follow guidance set by the HSE for the agriculture industry. In addition, employers should comply with the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).
Farm workers could be injured because of inadequate training at work, dangerous machinery or through a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE).
To claim for a agricultural accident you must show that:
- You were owed a duty of care as a farm worker.
- Your employer was in breach of this duty.
- You suffered farm injuries as a result of this.
In addition any claim must be brought within the applicable time limit. In most instances, accident at work claims must be brought within three years. We shall discuss this further later in the guide. Get in touch to find out how our team could assist with farm accident claims.
What If I Was Injured As A Visitor?
Today many farms offer spaces where people can visit. This may be tours to see a working farm, a farm shop or even as a space for a family day out. Whilst you are visiting a farm you are owed a duty of care by the occupier of the farm.
The party in control of a public space such as this is called an occupier. They have a duty of care to take reasonable steps to ensure your safety whilst on a farm as a visitor. This duty of care is detailed in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 (OLA).
For instance, you may have tripped over a broken fence and twisted your ankle or been caught by broken machinery and suffered a severe laceration.
In order to claim as a visitor, you must meet the following criteria.
- That you were owed a duty of care as a visitor to the farm.
- That the occupier of the farm breached this duty.
- You sustained an injury because of the breach.
Again, you must bring your claim within the applicable time limit.
What Kinds Of Injuries Could I Suffer As A Visitor?
Visitors to a farm could sustain different types of injuries such as:
- Broken or fractured bones.
- Lacerations.
- Soft tissue injuries, such as ligament or tendon damage.
- Burn injuries.
- Chemical injuries, such as chemical burns.
Visitors could also suffer serious injuries, such as:
- Head injuries.
- Back, neck and other spinal injuries.
- Paralysis and other injuries.
To learn more about public liability claims, please contact our team.
The Most Common Injuries Suffered By Farm Workers
Common injuries sustained by those working on a farm may include:
- Animal bites and kicks caused by farm animals.
- Crush injuries, such as those caused by broken machinery.
- Illnesses and zoonotic illnesses contracted from farm animals.
- Muscle strains, sprains or similar injuries.
- Serious injuries caused by vehicles rolling over you or colliding with you.
- Lacerations and cuts.
- Broken or fractured bones.
- Serious injuries to the neck, back or spine.
Can I Claim If I Was Attacked By A Farm Animal?
Farm workers who have been attacked or otherwise injured by a farm animal could be eligible to claim compensation.
The owner of a farm animal (the farmer) may be liable for attacks if they have failed to take reasonable steps to prevent it from occurring. They may be found to have failed to take steps such as properly securing the animal or not warning either workers or visitors of any potential risks.
The same eligibility criteria as set out for both accidents at work or in a public place apply to claims for accidents involving farm animals.
It should however be noted that there may be inherent danger in working with farm animals, such as livestock. If the farm did take reasonable precautions to prevent your accident, such as providing training, protective equipment and taking other steps, you may not be able to make a claim.
Our team could provide you with further information on making agricultural accident claims.
Are There Time Limits For Making Farm Injury Claims?
As discussed when looking at the criteria which make you eligible to claim compensation, any claim must be brought within the relevant time limit. For personal injury claims you generally have three years in which to launch a claim. This period begins on the date of the accident and it is set out in the Limitation Act 1980.
Whilst claims must generally be launched in this three year time limit, there are circumstances in which a claim could be brought outside of it. For instance, where a child was injured whilst visiting a farm. The child would be unable to launch a claim on their own behalf. Therefore, either a suitable adult may make a claim for them as a litigation friend, or once they are eighteen, the 3 year limit would be applied.
Where the person can not claim due to lack of mental capacity, such as following a head injury, they would also require a litigation friend to act on their behalf. In these circumstances, the litigation friend could act on behalf of the claimant at any time. If the person does regain their own mental capacity they would subsequently have three years in which to claim.
Our team could provide further information on the time limit for an accident at work claim.
What Kinds Of Farm Accidents Could I Claim For?
Agriculture and farming are hazardous industries. Farm workers may use or work with various dangerous vehicles, machinery and chemicals. Further potential hazards include working with livestock, at heights and outdoors. The work may be physically demanding as well. All of these factors could contribute to people suffering a variety of different types of farm accidents.
Potential kinds of farm accidents you could be injured in and for which you could claim compensation may include:
- Vehicle accidents, such as being struck by a moving vehicle.
- Contact with defective machinery, such as with farm equipment accidents.
- Being struck by falling objects, such as a bale falling from a height onto someone.
- Falls from a height, such as inside a barn or falling through a roof.
- Slips, trips and falls on the same level.
- Livestock accidents and injuries caused by other animals.
- Drowning or asphyxiation.
- Being trapped by something collapsing or overturning, such as a temporary structure collapsing.
- Electrical injuries, such as contact with overhead power lines.
These have been identified in the earlier HSE resource, linked above. Whether injured in one of these, or other types of accident you could make a farm accident compensation claim if someone else was at fault.
How Much Compensation Could I Get?
Successful farm accident claims may be awarded compensation covering two types of loss. These types of loss are called general damages and special damages. General damages compensate you for any physical or emotional pain and suffering caused by your injuries.
Those calculating the value of injuries may refer to your medical records showing how you were harmed. They may also consult figures from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This is a document which contains guideline award brackets for different types of injury.
Barring the first entry, amounts in this table have been taken from the JCG. They are intended only as a guide. Every claim is unique and is based on the individual circumstances of that person’s case.
| Injury | Severity | Guideline Damages |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious forms of injuries. | Severe or serious | Up to £1,000,000+ taking account of special damages. |
| Brain injury | Very Severe | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Foot injury | Very severe - A | £102,470 to £133,810 |
| Severe leg injury | Very serious - B - ii | £66,920 to £109,290 |
| Back injury | Severe - A - ii | £90,510 to £107,910 |
| Hand injuries | Serious damage to both hands - B | £68,070 to £103,200 |
| Wrist injury | Complete loss of wrist function - A | £58,110 to £73,050 |
| Neck injury | Severe - A - iii | £55,500 to £68,330 |
| Ankle Injuries | Severe - B | £38,210 to £61,090 |
| Shoulder injury | Severe - A | £23,430 to £58,610 |
Am I Eligible For Special Damages?
Special damages are designed to compensate you for financial losses. These may include (but are not limited to):
- Bills for medical treatment or medication.
- Domestic care, such as support with everyday tasks.
- Lost earnings and income.
- Travel expenses.
To be compensated for these, or any other types of financial loss, you must provide evidence of the loss. Evidence may include copies of payslips, tickets for travelling to a medical appointment or invoices for medical treatment.
Our team could assess your case and help to determine what out of pocket expenses you may claim. Talk to our team about farm accident claims and how compensation may be awarded.
No Win No Fee Farm Accident Claims
One of the biggest advantages to claiming with one of our personal injury solicitors is being able to do so on a No Win No Fee basis. This may be done by using a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
Under a CFA, you could expect that you would:
- Pay no solicitors fees in advance.
- Pay no solicitors fees during your claim.
- Have nothing to pay for the solicitors work if not awarded compensation.
- Pay a success fee on completion of a claim if awarded damages.
This fee is deducted by the solicitor from your compensation. It is charged as a legally restricted percentage.
By working with a No Win No Fee solicitor you could benefit from legal advice and help on your claim without the financial worry.
You may find out more about farm accident claims by getting in contact with our expert team.
- Call now on 0800 073 8804.
- Clicking to claim online.
- Chatting to us below.
Learn More
Here you can learn more about related accident and injury claims.
- In our tractor accident claims guide we look more at how to claim compensation.
- In this guide you can learn more about how long compensation takes to come through.
- Read more about your rights if injured at work in our resource.
Further resources.
- Find rules for farmers and land managers in this government guide.
- Read more about lacerations and incised wounds in this NHS guide.
- Learn more about livestock handling in this HSE resource.
Thank you for reading our guide on farm accident claims. If you want to find out more about making a claim, please contact our team.
