If you were injured while working on a roof, you might be wondering if you can claim compensation for employer negligence. In this guide, we’ll explore when you could make a personal injury claim following an accident at work.
When making any kind of compensation claim, it is vital that you have evidence that supports your case; for this reason, we look at the types of proof you could obtain to prove not only the injuries you suffered but also your employer’s liability. It may not always be clear what circumstances make a worker eligible to make an accident at work claim, so we’ll also discuss how you could sustain an injury while working on a rooftop caused by your employer being negligent.
Falling from a height can cause serious injuries, and you might want to know how much compensation you could receive for them. We’ll discuss how compensation is calculated in personal injury claims and what a work injury claim payout could consist of.
Contact Our Team
Finally, our guide will cover how an accident at work solicitor from our panel could help you on a No Win No Fee basis. Read on to learn more about how to claim compensation, or get in touch with our team today to get started by contacting us online.
Browse Our Guide
- Can I Claim If I’ve Been Injured While Working On A Roof?
- How To Prove A Claim If Injured While Working On A Roof
- How Could You Be Injured While Working On A Roof?
- How Much Compensation Could I Receive In A Roof Accident Claim?
- Make A Roofer Injury Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis
- Read More About Fall Accident Claims
Can I Claim If I’ve Been Injured While Working On A Roof?
All jobs and occupations carry some form of risk; however, working at a height can be particularly dangerous due to the risk of severe injury if an accident were to occur. If you have been injured in a roof accident at work, you may be curious to know if you could make a personal injury claim. Not all injuries suffered while working will mean that employees can go on to claim accident at work compensation. Firstly, your case must meet specific criteria.
When you are working, your employer owes you a duty of care. This means that they are responsible for your health and safety, as outlined in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA). This legislation states that your employer must take all reasonably practicable steps to keep you safe while carrying out your duties.
To be eligible to make a personal injury claim against your employer after being injured while working on a roof, your case must satisfy these criteria:
- At the time of the roof accident, your employer owed you a duty of care,
- They failed to adhere to health and safety laws such as The Work At Height Regulations 2005.
- This led to a roof accident in which you were injured.
To find out if you could be eligible for injury at work compensation, please connect with an advisor using the contact information above.
Is There A Time Limit When Claiming For An Accident At Work?
Generally, the personal injury claims time limit is three years from the date of your accident. This means that you need to start your claim within three years, but doesn’t mean that your claim has to end before then. The time limit is set out by the Limitation Act 1980, which also outlines the exceptions to the rule.
For example, if you were injured while below the age of eighteen, the time limit doesn’t start until you come of age. Before then, a litigation friend can claim on your behalf. If no claim is made, you will have three years from your eighteenth birthday to start proceedings.
How To Prove A Claim If Injured While Working On A Roof
You need evidence to make a personal injury claim. This is because the responsibility to prove that negligence occurred falls on you.
For example, evidence you could collect to support your claim can include:
- Photographs of your injuries
- Witness contact details to allow their statements to be taken later
- Medical records that shows the severity of your injuries
- CCTV footage of the accident
If you work with a solicitor on your claim, they can offer more insight and help collecting evidence in personal injury claims. Contact our team today to learn more.
How Could You Be Injured While Working On A Roof?
It may be difficult to know when you can claim after being injured in the workplace. It is not always clear if the accident occurred because an employer was negligent. For this reason we have compiled together accident at work scenarios that could be caused by an employer acting in a negligent manner.
Some examples of how negligence could occur while working on a rooftop include:
- Lack of training: An employee was not provided with the adequate training needed to work at a height, such as not being aware of weather conditions that could make such work dangerous. As a result, the employee used a ladder in extremely windy conditions, which caused the ladder to fall, leading to the employee suffering a brain injury.
- Inadequate PPE: Your employer is responsible for providing adequate personal protective equipment PPE, such as a harness if it is needed to carry out work safely. If such equipment is not provided, then should an accident occur, an employee could suffer severe injuries. For example, an employee is instructed to replace roof tiles; however, the employer fails to provide them with a safety harness. The employee slips and falls from the roof suffering serious head injuries and back injuries caused by falling from a height.
- Lack of risk assessments: Risk assessments should be carried out when work needs to be completed at a height. A risk assessment is needed to highlight any hazardous work or risks of injury; failure to do so could result in employees being at risk of unforeseen dangers. For example, an employer fails to risk assess a roof before instructing their employees to carry out a full replacement. One employee walks to the centre of the roof, thinking it is safe. The roof caves in, and the employee falls through three floors.
These are just a few ways that you could be injured while working on a roof due to your employer’s negligence. To learn more about making an accident at work claim, contact our team of advisors today.
How Much Compensation Could I Receive In A Roof Accident Claim?
If you make a successful claim for being injured while working on a roof, you could get up to two heads of compensation. The first head is called general damages, and it covers the physical pain and mental suffering caused by your injuries and how they will affect you in the future.
Those who calculate compensation under this heading might get help from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) and a report made by an independent medical expert after you have attended a medical examination as part of the claiming process. The JCG provides guideline compensation amounts for different injuries and illnesses, some examples of which you can see below.
In this table, it’s important to note that the amounts are only guideline figures. Likewise, the first figure presented has not been taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Compensation Bracket | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious injuries plus special damages | Up to 1,000,000+ | Multiple serious injuries plus financial losses such as travel costs, lost earnings, and prescription fees. |
| Very severe brain damage (a) | £282,010 to £403,990 | There is little to no response to the surrounding environment and the claimant requires full time professional care. |
| Moderately severe brain damage (b) | £219,070 to £282,010 | A very serious disability resulting in physical or cognitive effects and a need for constant professional care. |
| Chest injuries (a) | £100,670 to £150,110 | The most severe injuries including removal of one lung and serious damage to the heart. |
| Severe neck injuries (a) (i) | In the region of £148,330 | Incomplete paraplegia or permanent spastic quadriparesis. |
| Severe neck injuries (a) (ii) | £65,740 to £130,930 | Serious damage and fractures to discs in the cervical spine that result in considerably severe disabilities. |
| Severe back injuries (a) (i) | £91,090 to £160,980 | Severe injuries fall under this bracket, including damage to the nerve roots and spinal cord. |
| Severe back injuries (a) (ii) | £74,160 to £88,430 | Injuries that have special features taking them out of any lower bracket, such as loss of sensation due to nerve root damage. |
| Severe arm injuries (a) | £96,160 to £130,930 | Extremely serious injuries that fall just short of amputation but leave the claimant little better off than if it had been lost. |
| Severe leg injuries (b)(i) | £96,250 to £135,920 | The most severe leg injuries short of amputation, such as severe degloving. |
Special Damages In Roof Injury Claims
The second head of compensation that you could receive is called special damages. This head compensates you for the financial losses that you experienced as a result of your injuries.
For example, under this heading, you could potentially claim back the cost of:
- Lost earnings after taking time off work
- Help with cooking, cleaning, or other housework
- Childcare
- Travel
- Prescriptions
- Home adjustments or mobility aids
It’s also important to note that you’ll need evidence to back up these losses, so it can be helpful to keep things like invoices and bank statements related to the expenses.
To get more information on compensation for an accident at work, get in touch with our team. Or, keep reading to find out how a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel could help you.
Make A Roofer Injury Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis
If you were injured while working on a roof, you might be able to make a claim with one of the solicitors from our panel. Our panel offer their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
When you work with a solicitor under this kind of arrangement, you aren’t required to pay them an upfront fee for their services. If your claim does not succeed, then you won’t be expected to pay a fee for their work throughout the case.
In the event of a successful claim, your No Win No Fee solicitor will take a success fee. This fee is deducted immediately from your compensation as a minor percentage. The percentage that they take is agreed upon beforehand, and comes with a legal cap.
To find out if you could be eligible to work with a solicitor from our panel, get in touch today. One of the advisors can offer a free evaluation of your claim, during which they can answer any questions you might have and can tell you whether or not you have a valid case. If you do, they may then connect you with a solicitor from our panel.
To get started, get in touch with our team today by contacting us online.
Read More About Fall Accident Claims bb
For more helpful information on claiming for accidents in the workplace:
- Read our guide to accident at work statistics.
- If you were struck by a moving object at work, read our guide to find out if you could claim
- Find out if you could claim for a burn injury at work and learn more about the claims process.
Here are some external links that you might also find useful:
- Learn how to manage risk in the workplace with the Health and Safety Executive HSE.
- Find out when to call 999 from the NHS.
- Get help with requesting CCTV footage from the Government.