accident while working....help needed please x

tia1803

right...i am a care worker and do house calls....last sunday i had to go on foot as the roads were too dangerous and icy...i took a nasty fall when i had left one of the houses...i rang the office and said i was in pain...and told then i was close to one of my calls on my rota and could they possibly cover the 2 others as they were a fair distance and i was in pain with my knee...i was told no!...i struggled in tears to find my next call and on my way up an icy road my hurt knee gave way and i fell again that resulted into both my legs now being damaged..i went to hospital on the monday to be told its not just my muscles which i thought it was but its meniscular,ligament,muscle damage and tears!i left with crutches!i am still off work and am waiting to go for physio...one leg is now ok but damage still on the other...i cant drive or work...is there anything i can do???
i have given a self certificate and a doctors note till the 13th jan as i dont know what the physio will say...can i make some sort of claim for any part of what happened?


thanks in advance

silkyuk9

ok, first of all make sure you document it in accident book, you have done the right thing by going to doctors, i persume you have had an x-ray.

secondly i do not know where you stand as you where not on work property as such or maybe going to someones house is classed as work property.

you need to consult your union thats the right way to go.

Googlewhacker

My first question is similar to above, are you paid for travelling time because from what I can glean most house carers are not paid for time travelling and if this is the case then would you be on work time or would you be he responsibility of the employer?

As above, speak to a lawyer or the union if you are a member

Googlewhacker

how long have you worked there as well? Hopefully over a year because if you are under 51 weeks then making a claim could mean they may dismiss you even if the claim is valid (and you'll have very little employment protection).

tia1803

i started work in may this year... i am not in a union...i was told when i could i was to go to the office and fill out an accident form..i went in 2 days ago as i got a lift and was not asked to do one so i dont know if this is to cover there backs????and we are allowed just 5 minutes travelling time so yes i was in works time...hope this helps

Googlewhacker

i take it they are not paying full sick pay?

dickydonkin

If you were in work time then the employer has a duty of care to ensure your health, safety and welfare. Your organisations health & safety policy should highlight their commitment in this respect to all of their employees.

Part of that policy should relate to risk assess all aspects of your work and procedures should be in place to reduce any forseeable risk and that should include when circumstances require the need to change standard operating procedures - in this case, the inclement weather resulting in having to change the method of getting to peoples homes.

I have to state that the response to your predicament from your employers at the time you were injured was at best lamentable, however, the reality is that you were injured as a result of your work and your employer is potentially liable, however, negligence would need to be proven.

Adjustments must be in place when circumstances change and these ideally should not have placed you at any additional risk and the obvious risk reduction measure would have been to suspend operations, although I appreciate that such a measure may place your patients at risk as well.

I am not familiar your operations, however, the person responsible for the health & safety in your organisation should have had contingency plans for such a situation.

Making staff walk in inclement weather with dangerous conditions underfoot is hardly conducive to ensuring the safety of employees, although the question has to be asked if you expressed your concerns to your employer about the dangerous conditions at the time?

Judging by their response when you were hurt leads me to believe it would not have made any diffference anyway.

As others have wisely suggested, it may be prudent to seek legal advice - especially as you do not know if your injuries are going to be a problem for you carrying out your work in the future.

I would also mention to your employers that they also have a duty to report this incident under RIDDOR regulations if you have lost over three days work because of this injury - and three days includes those that you were not due to work - provided you were deemed unfit for work on those days.

Hope your injury clears up soon.

tia1803

well it happened the sunday..been on crutches since monday..did a self cert for first week and then doctors to cover till next year and also as i have to wait to have physio plus i have been unable to even drive my car since it happened.....they dont seem to be pressing for me to do the accident log though which i dont get.....they knew i was hurt when i first fell and injured one leg but was told to carry on which i did for another 2 hours resulting in the bad knee giving way and resulting in then the second accident and then both legs injured...hope am making sense to you all

dickydonkin

Googlewhacker wrote: »

how long have you worked there as well? Hopefully over a year because if you are under 51 weeks then making a claim could mean they may dismiss you even if the claim is valid (and you'll have very little employment protection).

Sadly very true and many people who have been injured at work who have less than a years service are (understandably) very reluctant to make an issue of it.

Another fact is that many people who start new jobs are the very people who are more at risk of injury as they are in the process of learning the job, operating new equipment and learning unfamiliar processes - that is why induction and training is vital - unfortunately, many employers don't see it that way.

they dont seem to be pressing for me to do the accident log

tia - well you press them and don't forget to ask if this has been reported to the HSE contact centre (within 10 days of the incident) which is a legal requirement. This will require details of how the accident occurred and you will also get a copy of the document (F2508).

I am looking ahead here in case they decide to terminate your employment and at least you will have some evidence to support any future claim for compensation if you decide to take that route. You may not be thinking that way now, however, if the worst happens, I am sure your mind will change.

SarEl

dpassmore wrote: »

Sadly very true and many people who have been injured at work who have less than a years service are (understandably) very reluctant to make an issue of it.

Another fact is that many people who start new jobs are the very people who are more at risk of injury as they are in the process of learning the job, operating new equipment and learning unfamiliar processes - that is why induction and training is vital - unfortunately, many employers don't see it that way.



tia - well you press them and don't forget to ask if this has been reported to the HSE contact centre (within 10 days of the incident) which is a legal requirement. This will require details of how the accident occurred and you will also get a copy of the document (F2508).

I am looking ahead here in case they decide to terminate your employment and at least you will have some evidence to support any future claim for compensation if you decide to take that route. You may not be thinking that way now, however, if the worst happens, I am sure your mind will change.

And I know dpassmore meant to say it, but didn't. Everything in writing please. That is called evidence. A chat is called "deniable".

tia1803

so i must press them??i thought they were avoiding it to cover something maybe?