How to Claim Compensation for Needle Stick Injury in Factory
This article explains some of the reasons why you may – or may not – qualify for compensation for needle stick injury in factory and the procedures you should follow after sustaining such an injury in an accident at work to support a work injured by needle claim for compensation.
A brief explanation of how to claim for injury from needle stick in factory is also included; however, as no two claims for needle stick accidents in factories are identical, it is always in your best interests to discuss the specific circumstances of your work injury with a solicitor at the earliest practical opportunity.
Your first priority should always be your health and, if you have not already done so, you should seek professional medical treatment for the injuries you sustained in the workplace accident. No amount of needle stick accident compensation will ever make up for a long term health issue which could have been avoided by immediate medical attention and, to support your claim from being injured by needle stick in factory, you will need a doctor to complete the Injuries Board Medical Assessment Form B.
Claims for Needle Stick Accidents in Factories and the Duty of Care of Employers
In order to be eligible to claim compensation for needle stick injury in factory, you must have sustained an injury from a needle which could have been prevented had your employer – or other person with responsibility for your health and safety – fulfilled his or her duty of care to provide you with a safe environment in which to work.
An employer´s “duty of care” covers all his or her responsibilities to prevent all types of injuries wherever possible, and would include performing risk assessments to identify foreseeable hazards, providing training and monitoring, and supplying personal protective equipment where necessary to eliminate the risk of an employee being injured by a needle in a factory.
Should an employer fail in their duty of care to eliminate the risk of an injury, and you subsequently suffer a needle stick injury as a result, you should be entitled to make a work injured by needle claim for compensation. It should be noted, however, that an employer´s duty of care is not “absolute” and, if you are hurt in a workplace accident at work which could not have been foreseen, claims for needle stick accidents in factories are unlikely to be successful.
How Your Employment Status May Affect a Claim for Injury
It is not often that your employment status will affect your entitlement to claim for injury from needle stick in factory, but there may be situations when agency workers, employees on short-term contracts or self-employed workers may have to make a claim from being injured by needle stick in factory against somebody other than their direct employer – for example the owner of the premises on which the needle injury was sustained.
Possibly of more concern if you have been injured in any type of accident at work is the fact that you do not want to fall out with your employer but, because of financial necessity, you need to make a claim from being injured by needle stick in factory against their employer´s liability insurance policy. Most employers will be genuinely sorry that you have suffered a needle stick injury at work due to their negligence and will admit their liability; but there are some circumstances in which an employer will want to protect their insurance policy excess and dispute your needle stick accident compensation claim.
Reporting Needle Stick Factory Accidents
It is important that your factory needle stick accident is recorded in your employer´s “Accident Report Book”. Although a copy of this report is not sent to the Injuries Board when applying for an assessment of compensation for needle stick injury in factory, reporting such an accident may initiate a Health and Safety Authority (HSA) investigation which could establish your employer´s liability in your claim from being injured by needle stick in factory.
If liability can be determined before making claims for needle stick accidents in factories, it should speed up the Injuries Board process or may enable a solicitor acting on your behalf to negotiate a settlement of needle stick accident compensation without the need for witness statements or photographic evidence of your employer´s negligence.
If your injury is so severe that you are unable to report your needle stick factory accident – or your employer fails to allow access to the Accident Report Book – you should speak with a solicitor. Accident in the workplace can be reported online at the HSA web site, but you will need an approval code to use the service and it may be a lot simpler for a solicitor to generate a report on your behalf and then use it in support of a work injured by needle claim for compensation.
How Much is a Claim from Being Injured by Needle Stick in Factory Worth?
The amount of compensation for needle stick injury in factory you will be entitled to receive will depend on the location, nature and severity of your injury in relation to your age, sex and general state of health prior to the accident in which your injury from a needle was sustained. Financial values for a range of injuries can be found in the Book of Quantum, but these values only account for the physical pain and suffering you experience at the time of your needle stick injury and not for the “inconvenience of incapacity” that might result from this type of accident in a factory.
Claims for needle stick accidents in factories should include compensation for the impact that your injury has on your incapacity to participate in leisure pursuits or enjoy in an active social life and your ability to perform everyday domestic tasks. There is very little opportunity to account for this “loss of amenity” when making a claim from being injured by needle stick in factory through the Injuries Board process, and this is a further reason why you should speak with a personal injury claims solicitor with experience of making a claim for injury from needle stick in factory – to ensure you receive your full entitlement to needle stick accident compensation.
The amounts you are claiming for expenses, lost income and any other costs you have incurred due to your needle injury are then added to the compensation values above to finalise how much your work injured by needle claim for compensation is worth. You may also be reimbursed for any legal costs you have incurred in pursuit of your claim from being injured by needle stick in factory, fares paid to use alternative forms of transport if you are unable to drive and future medical costs if, for example, physiotherapy is required in order that you make a full recovery from the injury you sustained.
How Time Limis Affects a Work Injury Claim
The Courts and Civil Liability Act 2004 set a limitation period of two years for making claims for needle stick accidents in factories from the “Date of Knowledge” on which the affliction is diagnosed. There are very few occasions in which a plaintiff would be unaware that they have been affected by an accident at work involving a needle and therefore the two year limitation period for making a work injured by needle claim for compensation would usually start on the day of your accident.
Two years may seem ample time in which to submit a claim for injury from needle stick in factory to the Injuries Board for assessment but, if liability for your needle injury is denied, or you are waiting for the results of an HSA investigation to confirm your employer´s liability in a claim from being injured by needle stick in factory, the time can slip quickly by.
If the full extent of your needle stick-related injury is not known, or due to complications it is taking a protracted period of time to recover from your work accident and impossible to calculate how much needle stick accident compensation you are entitled to, it is possible to “stop the clock” on your claim for compensation for needle stick injury in factory. You will need the agreement of your employer´s insurance company to do this – assuming your employer has admitted liability for your needle stick injury – and this is something which is once again best done with the assistance of a personal injury solicitor.
Always Check Your Legal Rights With a Solicitor
Despite the fact that you do not need a solicitor in order to make claims for needle stick accidents in factories, it is often in your best interests to do so. In addition to acting as a go-between between yourself and your employer, and dealing with any complications that arise while making a claim for injury from needle stick in factory, a solicitor has the experience to ensure you receive your full entitlement to needle stick accident compensation – whether your claim from being injured by needle stick in factory is resolved via the Injuries Board, by negotiation with your employer´s insurers or through court action.
Most solicitors will offer a free evaluation of your work injured by needle claim for compensation if you have suffered an injury in work accident for which you were not entirely responsible for, and provide you with answers to any questions you may have in regard to your entitlement to claim compensation for needle stick injury in factory. As it is often in your best interest to have evidence gathered to add weight to your claim for injury from needle stick in factory while it is still fresh, it is recommended that you speak with a solicitor about the circumstances of your injury from needle in a work accident without delay.