To sue my current employer?

[AchyBreakyArm]

Regular, name changed, naice ham, but woo etc. A few weeks ago I tripped over a wire that shouldn't have been there in the office I work in, which is local government. I've worked there for nearly ten years and a number of people have had near misses with exactly the same thing. Unfortunately for me I broke my arm. Had an op a few days later to insert a plate which will be there for life. Obviously life is very difficult, having a 4 year old, also my house is upside down due to works. The cast is off now and I'm in a splint for at least another month. I've gone back to work and I was fully paid whilst off. There have been a few expenses, hospital travel, waterproof cover for cast etc. Not loads of money but I can do without it at any time, especially near Christmas. Anyway...... It never occurred to me until lots of colleagues and friends and then my Union advised me to go for compensation. Obviously the employer was at fault, the wire shouldn't have been there and there have been many (unreported) near misses. There was no warning signage up or similar.

Financially I'm not massively out of pocket, only for the sundries listed. It's making my life very difficult and putting massive pressure on my already overworked DP because there's a lot I can't do.

I'm slightly concerned that I'm going to mega piss my employer off. There's quite a lot of dispute between the workforce and management at the moment due to various reasons which will likely out me if I go into them, and it's the sort of job that I will be in until I retire/get sacked/die blahblahblah. I know in theory they can't discriminate against me but they might.

I have solicitors services free with Union, all I need to do is pick up the phone.

What would you do? Have you done this?

I've worked there for nearly ten years and a number of people have had near misses with exactly the same thing.

If you knew this, why didn't you take it on board and be more careful?

Aren't there injury in service amount specified in pulic sector roles anymore?

If you didn't report a known hazard surely you are partly responsible? h &S is the responsibility of everyone.

As you work in local government all you have to do is speak to your union. They will arrange for you to speak to the union solicitor, they will assess your potential claim and advise you. Your employers carry insurance to cover negligence so there is no need for you to worry.

Definitely speak to your union. I would think it possible that you would be compensated (not an expert though).

A very similar thing happened to a guy I worked with. He already used two crutches every day due to a congenital spinal disability. After he tripped over the printer wire, he had to use a wheelchair permanently. I don't know all the details but he told me he eventually got a very large sum of money (this was a local government agency too). It took a long time to sort though.

I hope you recover well and that it doesn't make Christmas too difficult for you!

Get a cleaner in, pay for home delivered shopping, do what you can to make life easier. I think I would make a claim given the seriousness of your injury although I disapprove of claims for trivial injuries.

I would put in a claim, but I would suggest (based on no experience at all) that you need to distance from yourself from any personal involvement.

That probably sounds a bit weird... what I mean is, think of it as process and procedure. YOU are not suing YOUR employer. H&S procedure defines X should happen if Y happens. As with car accidents, the insurers should sort this out between themselves. A process failed. Someone was hurt. The company has a duty of care and is liable.

Have u taken photos of the wire?

'suing' sounds a bit dramatic. You're just requesting that you be reimbursed for expenses, which I think is pretty reasonable.

I broke my arm in a car accident which resulted in a plate being inserted from the elbow towards the wrist (was about half the length). Three years later and the plate had moved significantly enough to cause severe pain in my arm which also affected the grip in my hand. I ended up having further surgery (after 6 months of excruciating pain) to remove the plate. A few weeks recovery after the surgery and my arm was absolutely fine and has caused me no issues since (5 years). I also knew a guy who had a metal plate in his ankle for 30 years without any issues before it started causing him significant pain.

Basically - there is a chance that the plate could cause further 'suffering' and inconvenience in your life - if you have a reasonable case for suing then I would pursue it.

I think my colleague sued our employer after an accident as advised by the union but after they took all the sick pay she had received ( above statutory) she wasn't left with much and it was very stressful

Chocolate why did they take her sick pay. I have never heard of that situation.

In certain contracts there is a clause that gives your employer the right to claim for your earnings, paid during any absence caused by an injury sustained in an accident, if someone is liable.

In chocolate's colleague's case, she may have assumed the money awarded to her re earnings formed part of her claim, when it was her employer who had the right to that money, not her. The DWP claim back benefits paid to someone injured in an accident too.

The thing is that sue ing councils just add costs to everyone's council tax. I struggle when people know there was a hazard but no one thought to complain, report or tape it down ?!?!

As an ex LG employee - speak to your union, then decide. You'd certainly be well within your rights as this was a known hazard and shouldn't have been left. I'm against legal action for the sake of it, but it seems that there was negligence here and it has had an impact on your life.

Do it. They'll probably end up settling the matter with you before it needs to go to court.

Yes definitely, it's a lengthy process but worth it in many ways.

So, you knew the wire was there and that people had tripped over it and you did nothing? Sounds like a case of diminished responsibility. Why are you not responsible for making sure that your work place is safe? Why is it someone else's responsibility? It is endless cases like this that cause the world of Health and Safety to be crazy !

Did a report go into the Accident Book?
Has the wire been moved now?

Mam I agree. I am not sure if the employer can be deemed negligent if a whole department merrily tripped over it, didn't report it and didn't do anything about it themselves??? Every individual employee is responsible for H&S. It is exactly this that fuels the claim culture and solicitors that act like vultures. I am all for compensation where there is negligence but I am assuming there are intelligent people here that could not be bothered raising the issue yet are perfectly capable of it ?

Speak to the Union solicitors snd see what they say. If it was just a broken seem, I'd say leave it, but a plate in it for life is more significant surely. It's not something that heals and goes away and it's like it never happened then.

Definitely take it further. The compensation will be worth it and it will be minimal hassle. They will pass to their insurers and it seems like a simple case. You will not need to sue them. Insurers will recommend settlement. Do not agree settlement until you know properly what your recovery is like and have full proper medical reports.

bog standard fracture with few complications you are probably looking at £3k minimum. More complications and possible future problems will raise this significantly (although hopefully you will make a good recovery)

I had an accident at work (also local authority) and Unison (my union) dealt with it all for me. Your union subs cover the costs of solicitors etc (they can claim these back from your household insurance if it includes legal coverage - but this isn't vital).
All I had to do was sign letters sent to me and attend one appointment with a doctor appointed by the union. Nothing was ever mentioned to me by my place of work - HR dealt with it all, and the union interviewed the people who had seen my accident happen and collected their statements.
I was paid a reasonable sum of compensation - the solicitors advised me on the sum that they thought was fair - and on my return to work, I was treated very well.
Approach your union - you don't have to do anything that you don't want to, and their solicitors will advise you.

Just catching up with your responses.

The wire is not a permanent fixture, it appears randomly and its not there a lot more often than it is. So rarely that no one is "used" to it as such.

Your accident and all the unreported near misses is evidence of a poor company attitude towards h&s - sometimes it takes someone to sue for them to buck their ideas up.
So what I f you don't sue & it gets ignored (btw, was it reported to HSE as a RIDDOR occurrence? They need to do that by law) then what will happen to the next poor soul who trips down wet stairs or something else goes horribly wrong??