A serious injury at work can change your life in an instant. You may be dealing with pain, hospital appointments, time away from work, lost earnings and uncertainty about whether you’ll be able to return to work. In the most serious cases, a workplace injury can lead to long-term disability, or a need for ongoing treatment, which can bring major changes to your day-to-day life.

If your injury happened because your employer failed to keep you safe, you may be able to claim compensation. This is designed to cover the financial losses caused by the accident, including long-term care and rehabilitation needs .

The legal options available to you will depend on how the accident occurred, the injuries sustained and whether your employer’s negligence caused or contributed to what happened. Here, the accident at work solicitors at Switalskis explain what counts as a serious injury at work, when you may be able to make a personal injury claim, what evidence you should aim to gather and what you can expect from the serious injury claims process.

What counts as a serious injury at work?

There is no strict legal definition of a serious injury. In general, claims are treated as serious where the injury has a significant, long-term or life-changing effect, particularly in complex or high-value claims 

This can include injuries involving:

• long-term or permanent disability, such as a spinal cord injury, amputation or brain injury
• a significant loss of function affecting mobility, cognition or independence
• severe psychological harm, particularly where it affects daily life or your ability to work
• an extended recovery period or the need for ongoing medical care and rehabilitation

For these claims to succeed, detailed medical evidence needs to be gathered. At Switalskis, we work with independent medical experts to establish the nature and cause of your injury, link it to the accident and understand the full impact on your life.

If you’re unsure whether your workplace injury counts as serious, you should speak to us as soon as possible. We offer a free consultation, where a solicitor from our team will listen to what happened, assess the nature of the injuries,  the medical evidence and the wider effect on your life before advising on your next steps.

When can you claim compensation for a serious injury at work?

Employers have a legal duty to take reasonable steps to protect employees and prevent workplace accidents. This includes following health and safety legislation, carrying out regular risk assessments, providing suitable training and equipment and dealing with foreseeable risks before someone is harmed.

If your workplace injury was caused by unsafe working conditions, poor training, faulty equipment or another failure by your employer, you may be able to claim compensation.

To make a successful claim, your solicitor will need to show that:

• Your employer had a responsibility to take reasonable care for your safety
• They failed to meet that responsibility
• The accident occurred as a direct result
• You suffered injuries because of the accident

An employer may be negligent if they fail to deal with risks that should have been spotted and addressed. This could include poor training, unsafe equipment, a lack of proper risk assessments or allowing dangerous working conditions to continue after concerns have been raised.

What should you do after a serious accident at work?

The actions you take after a serious accident at work can affect your legal options later. Your first priority should always be your health. Seek immediate medical attention, even if you’re unsure how serious the injury is. Medical treatment protects your wellbeing and creates medical records that will later support a claim.

If you are able, you should also report the accident as soon as possible. Make sure the incident is recorded in your employer’s accident book, with details of when, where and how the accident occurred. If the entry is inaccurate, ask for it to be corrected.

Where possible, you should also seek to:

• Take photographs of the accident scene
• Document your injuries over time
• Collect witness details so your solicitor can contact them for a statement
• Keep copies of medical reports and treatment records
• Maintain records of lost earnings, sick pay and expenses
• Keep letters or emails from your employer about the accident

These steps will preserve evidence, clarify what happened and show the effect the injury has had on your life. They can also make it easier for a solicitor to advise you on whether you may be able to claim compensation. Your employer should also keep their own records. Recording accidents and notifying the Health and Safety Executive are legal requirements in certain circumstances, and these records can also support a claim.

We understand that this may not be possible after a serious accident, especially if you were taken to hospital or needed urgent treatment. You don’t need to have everything in place before speaking to a solicitor. Switalskis can work with the evidence you already have and seek further information to strengthen your case.

Can you claim if your employer denies liability?

You may still be able to claim if your employer denies liability. This simply means they do not accept responsibility for the accident at that stage.

If this happens, evidence becomes especially important. Medical evidence, witness statements, accident book records, risk assessments, training records, maintenance documents and Health and Safety Executive reports will be needed to show what happened and whether your employer failed in their legal obligation to keep you safe.

If your employer’s insurance company refuses to accept liability or make a fair offer, your solicitor may decide to begin court proceedings to secure the compensation you’re entitled to. However, most personal injury claims settle before a final court hearing. In many cases, the prospect of going to court can encourage the other side to make a fair settlement offer.

What can serious injury compensation cover?

Compensation for a serious workplace injury is usually split into two parts: general damages and special damages.

General damages cover the actual injuries sustained and their effect on your life. This can include pain, suffering, reduced mobility, loss of independence, psychological distress and the impact on your day-to-day activities.

Special damages cover past and future financial losses caused by the accident. This can include lost earnings, medical expenses, treatment costs, rehabilitation, travel expenses, care needs and future financial losses.

For life-changing injuries, compensation may also cover lifelong treatment, rehabilitation and support, adaptations to your home or vehicle and specialist equipment. This is why medical evidence and expert medical reports are so important: they provide a more accurate estimate of what you need now and what you may need in the future.

What if you are self-employed?

You may still be able to make a work claim if you are self-employed. The key question is not your employment status, but who controlled the workplace, the task and the risks involved.

For example, a main contractor, site operator, business owner or another organisation may have been responsible for health and safety matters on a site. If their negligence caused your accident, you may be able to claim compensation.

Self-employed workers should still seek legal advice after a serious workplace accident. A solicitor can review the circumstances, identify who may be responsible and explain whether you have a claim.

Can you claim on a no win, no fee basis?

Many accident at work claims are handled on a no win, no fee basis. This is also known as a conditional fee agreement.

This means you won’t need to pay legal fees upfront. If your claim is unsuccessful, you won’t pay our legal fees. If your claim succeeds, a percentage of your compensation will be used to cover our fees. This means you can make a claim without financial risk. We'll explain this clearly before you decide whether to move forward, so you understand how fees and any costs will work from the start.

How long do you have to make a workplace injury claim?

In most personal injury claims, you have three years from the date the accident occurred to start court proceedings. If you miss this deadline, you may lose your right to claim compensation.

There are exceptions. If the injured party lacks mental capacity, there may be no time limit unless they regain capacity. If the injured person is under 18, the three-year period usually starts on their 18th birthday.

Even though the time limits give you years to make a claim, it’s best to seek legal advice as soon as possible. Evidence can become harder to gather over time. Witness memories may fade, documents may be harder to find and unsafe working conditions may be changed after the incident occurred.

Find out how Switalskis can help you

Every serious injury or catastrophic workplace injury claim is different, and it’s only possible to cover the basics without a full understanding of your experience. The best way to get no obligation advice on your legal options, the claims process and the compensation you could be owed is to speak to an experienced solicitor.

The Switalskis serious injury team has extensive experience handling complex and high-value workplace injury claims. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help and what to expect from your claim. Call Switalskis on 0800 138 0458 or get in touch via the form on our site .