Aibu to sue over slip at work?

[RunningOnCoffee6385]

I had a slip last year at work and fractured my wrist as the floor was not gritted. I'm all healed mild ache and pain here and there but I'm all good.

Some of my colleagues have mentioned/suggested I should put in a claim as if it was a customer that had the accident they would sue so it shouldn't be any different for me.

It affected my life (single parent, very active all these were difficult and affected during healing process) however I did get 6 wks off work and I'm also terrified of being targeted by management if I claim. I work for a very large organisation if that makes a difference.

Aibu to put in a claim given I already had 6 wks off?

Did you have any financial loss as a result of your injury?

I think you’d also need to get legal advice on if your employer had a duty to grit the ground or not.

I assume you were on full pay during your 6 weeks off?

Yes why not? It could be life changing. Other posters are going to tell you you are being greedy etc but frankly others would do to without a moments hesitation so go for it.

Where did you slip that wasn't gritted? Was it somewhere they were responsible for and what would be the basis upon which you were suing? Presumably you were on full pay for the six weeks and there's no lasting damage etc?

You can try but will need to prove ..
The area should be gritted but wasn't, if not why not
There were no warning signs, lighting
They were negligent
You sought medical attention
You suffered financial loss
You took all reasonable precautions
They followed policies, paperwork, reporting, improved
The slip/fall was unavoidable

Do they have a legal responsibility to grit? I didn’t think that was a thing.

What were you wearing on your feet, were
you being suitably cautious?

Life changing? Few grand at most.

The ground should be gritted. I was wearing full ppe including safety boots company issued and full uniform. No financial loss. I'm quite new to the company (8 months) so as mentioned in my post ot was mentioned/suggested to me I hadn't considered it prior.

What are you hoping to get out of it?

Presumably some compensation?

Realistically how much did you suffer financially? Were you paid in full during your 6 weeks when healing? Is your employer generally good to work for overall?

You say the floor (do you mean path) should have been gritted. Are you sure it was your employers responsibility to do this and were there any reasonable circumstances where this might not have been possible?

Ultimately it's your decision but bear in mind the stress of making a claim and how that might be perceived if the company is generally very good and has been supportive of you might look.

I think a lot of people think it's easy to sue and comes with no repercussions so I'd not take what colleagues say when they won't deal with any ramifications with a pinch of salt.

Also bear in mind that no win, no fee offers will only take your case if they think they will win and if they do will take a huge chunk of any payout (can be 50%) so again consider what that's worth as part of a bigger picture.

I think it depends on a few things. Where did you fall?

I slipped at a train station on the platform near the edge and landed on my wrist. I'm a cleaner.

Speak to a solicitor. Any if the “ have you been injured in an accident that wasn’t your fault” firms will advise you. If you’ve not got a legitimate case they won’t take you on.

Do you have confirmation from the company they should have gritted and failed to do so?

The people suggesting you sue don't sound like they really know what they're talking about to be honest. A customer might have sued under the same circumstances but they would probably only be doing so because they'd suffered a financial loss which you admit you haven't.

If you didn’t suffer any financial loss what would you be suing for?

Won’t be any good for your working relationship either.

Its shit but I think you need to move on, accidents happen.

I don’t think expecting there to be no ice on a train platform when it’s icy is realistic. With the best will in the world you can’t stop it all.

You could claim, and they could fire you. A PI claim isn’t a relevant statutory right in itself, so until you have been there for over two years and have full employment protection, I wouldn’t rock the boat.

You can still claim when you have 2 years service though, unless limitation periods have changed in the loooong time it’s been since I worked in PI!

What 'ground'? Your op said floor

A customer might have sued under the same circumstances but they would probably only be doing so because they'd suffered a financial loss which you admit you haven't.

Furthermore, a customer doesn't take the same risk when suing your employer, OP, as their job isn't on the line so there is no downside for them.

Given that you've only worked there 8 months and assuming you're fully healed, I wouldn't personally sue as the potential financial reward is small compared to the risk to your relationship with your employers.

If it were a more serious/long-lasting injury (and with a potentially larger settlement), the balance of risk vs reward might be tipped in the other direction, but for this set of facts, it doesn't seem worth it.

And 'gritted' with what?

Isn't traditional salt grit corrosive to certain materials?

Seeking compensation can be more stressed than it’s worth. Think very carefully if you want to go ahead. In your circumstances I would not. I would shrug my shoulders and accept that accidents happen and be grateful it was not worse.

Hmmm it's my understanding that if they grit then they are admitting there is a hazard and then if someone slips then they can sue on the basis they haven't adequately dealt with the risk

Versus not gritting and then people should take care of themselves

Where there's a blame there's a claim!

You need to confirm it should be gritted and that they failed in their safety. When grounds are icy I don't think any amount of grit would prevent a slip, grit moves, the water ices over, there are gaps. They will probably have cctv which they will look at. Did you report it to the doctor, first aider, health & safety rep at the time.

Honestly you were paid for your sick weeks . You could claim money for the stress' but it won't be very much for a broken wrist even if you win.realistically it will be very difficult to stay in your current place of employment so I'd factor that in to your decision.