Accident at Work

On a cold January day, a serious workplace accident occurred on a construction site in Staines, a suburban town in Surrey, just on the western edge of London. Among the workers present were Romanian labourers, including the Claimant, who was directly involved in the incident.

Our client, a dairy herdsperson working on a farm, had been provided with onsite accommodation in a poorly maintained and unsafe caravan. The cooking stove was outdated and inadequately serviced, and the gas cylinder, along with the fire, smoke, steam, and gas detectors, were old, incomplete, or entirely non functional.

Commenting on the case, Joanna Mackiewicz said “This is a stunning win for our client, and justification for the stance Levenes took throughout the case in the face of a fierce defence from the Defendant. To have correctly predicted the outcome of the case and then made an offer to settle which matched the assessment of the judge, is particularly satisfying”

The Claimant contacted Levenes Solicitors after his initial solicitors turned down the case on the basis of an alleged letter the Claimant had written to his employer to apologise for the accident and admit fault. After Levenes commenced proceedings, the defendants made an initial offer of £25,875.00 plus £10,000.00 for surgery. A further offer of £97,000 was received and the case was eventually settled for £135,000.00.

Often insurers will suggest that a contractor is self-employed, and no duty is owed to them. On the facts of this case, they were wrong. Secondly, lots of accidents happen in the workplace because corners are cut, unsafe equipment is used or the tools provided are not suitable for the job.

If the claim had not settled, they might well have asked the court to dismiss the client on the basis of dishonesty. We did not consider the client to be dishonest, but it would have been the judge who had to make that decision.

Proceedings were issued as both the Defendants denied responsibility. To aid his recovery our firm funded his treatment. The Defendants initially started with a settlement offer of £50,000.00 which then increased to £100,000.00. We finally agreed on a final settlement of £160,000.00.

The arguments put forward on Gabriel’s behalf were that it was foreseeable that he was at risk of violence because of previous incidents, and he had not had the training that he needed to be able to deal with difficult customers late at night when the premises were about to be closed. After years of fighting, he managed obtain a significant amount in compensation the day before the trial was due to start, so he can continue with his life in his town.

In the negotiations, issues included when, but for the accident, the client might have been able to continue working. He had some degenerative changes in his spine which were not due to the accident. It is very common for people to have these changes without any symptoms and in this case, he had been able to work. We argued that he loved his work and had every reason to work beyond normal retirement. This helped in the negotiations to achieve a reasonable settlement of the claim.