Last updated 7th November 2024. Have you been injured while carrying out manual handling tasks at work? If so, this guide on manual handling injury claims could help you understand whether you have valid grounds to claim compensation.
Our guide will start by explaining how settlements are calculated in successful personal injury claims following a manual handling accident. We also clarify who would be eligible to start an accident at work claim and how long you have to start legal proceedings. Furthermore, we detail the types of evidence you can use to support your claim.
In addition to this, we look at the health and safety laws which apply to manual activities in the workplace and explain how manual handling injuries can be prevented as much as possible.
After this, we explain the benefits of starting a personal injury claim with No Win No Fee legal representation, including no upfront or ongoing costs.
To find out more about claims for manual handling injuries, please feel free to connect with our team in the following ways:
- You can call 7 days a week, 24 hours a day on 0800 408 7826
- Fill out the call-back form and contact us online.
- Speak to our advisor through the live chat option below about your potential manual handling compensation claim.
Jump To A Section
- Compensation Calculator For Manual Handling Injury Claims
- Can I Claim Compensation For A Manual Handling Accident?
- What Evidence Can Help You In Manual Handling Injury Claims?
- How Can Manual Handling Accidents Be Prevented?
- How Much Will It Cost To Claim For Manual Handling Injuries?
- Read More About Manual Handling Injury Claims
Compensation Calculator For Manual Handling Injury Claims
Payouts awarded for successful manual handling injury claims can comprise up to two heads of loss. The main one is called general damages. This compensates the claimant for the suffering and pain created by the injuries, including physical injuries and/or psychological injuries, such as anxiety.
To calculate a value for general damages, reference can be made to a medical report generated from an independent medical assessment that you may need to attend as part of the claims process. If you instruct a personal injury solicitor, they could organise this for you.
Alongside medical evidence, those who calculate general damages consult publications like the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document lists award bracket amounts for different injuries based on severity. To illustrate, we’ve compiled a table below of typical manual handling injuries.
Each case varies and how much you could claim will differ so please keep in mind that these figures are strictly guideline amounts only. Furthermore, our first entry comes from a source other than the JCG.
Award Bracket Guidelines
You can use this table as an alternative to an accident at work compensation calculator.
| Type of Harm | Severity Level | Notes | Award Bracket Guidelines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries and Financial Losses | Severe | Compensation for the pain and suffering of multiple severe injuries and the financial losses incurred, such as care costs, medical bills and lost income. | Up to £500,000 plus |
| Knee | (a) Severe (i) | Serious knee injuries that disrupt the joint, prompt the development of osteoarthritis, cause gross ligamentous damage and give rise to considerable pain, loss of function and lengthy treatment. | £85,100 to £117,410 |
| Hand | (a) Serious Damage to Both Hands | Permanent cosmetic disability and significant function loss. | £68,070 to £103,200 |
| Back | (a) Severe (iii) | Instances of disc lesions, fractures of discs or soft tissue injuries that lead to chronic conditions despite treatment. | £47,320 to £85,100 |
| Wrist | (a) Complete Loss of Function | Injuries that cause a complete function loss in the wrist where an arthrodesis has been carried out. | £58,710 to £73,050 |
| Arm | (b) Injuries Resulting in Permanent and Substantial Disablement | Cases of serious fractures of one (or both) forearms leaving a significant and permanent residual disability which can be either cosmetic or functional. | £47,810 to £73,050 |
| Foot | (e) Serious | Injuries that lead to ongoing pain caused by traumatic arthritis. | £30,500 to £47,840 |
| Shoulder | (c) Moderate | Cases of frozen shoulder that limits movement and causes symptoms of discomfort that persist for approximately two years. | £9,630 to £15,580 |
Claiming Special Damages After Manual Handling Accidents
Special damages can also comprise payouts awarded in successful manual handling claims. This head of loss compensates the claimant for the financial harm caused by the injury. It is essential to have documented evidence that proves you suffered loss or expense because of the injury. For example, you may have:
- Payslips showing a current or future loss in earnings because of time off work.
- Receipts for medical bills.
- Travel tickets or receipts showing costs for travelling to essential appointments.
- Paid invoices and receipts for adaptations needed at home or to your car.
Call our team to find out how much compensation you could be owed following a successful manual handling injury claim.
Can I Claim Compensation For A Manual Handling Accident?
Manual handling is the term used to describe using physical force to carry, push, lift and drag objects as part of your job. Employers are required to take steps to prevent a manual handling accident at work.
In workplaces a duty of care is owed by the employer to their employees as outlined in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA). This means that employers have to take reasonable steps to prevent harm to employees as they work.
Amongst the many ways to ensure this, employers can carry out risk assessments of their workplace and on-site procedures. Additionally, the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 sets out the more specific responsibilities they have regarding manual handling activities. It states they must:
- Avoid manual handling tasks (when possible).
- Assess the risk of injury posed by any manual handling tasks that cannot be avoided.
- Take steps to reduce the risk as much as possible.
Failure to do so could lead to an accident at work leading to injury. In order for manual handling injury claims to be eligible, the following criteria need to be met:
- Your employer owed you a duty of care.
- A breach of this duty occurred.
- You suffered a physical and/or psychological injury as a result.
If you have any concerns or questions about workplace accident claims, please reach out to the team for personalised and free information.
What Is The Manual Handling Injury Claim Time Limit?
Personal injury claims have a time limit of three years starting from the date of injury. This is outlined in the Limitation Act 1980. There are exceptions that can be made, however.
You can learn more about the exceptions and how long you have to begin a manual handling injury claim using the number above.
What Evidence Can Help You In Manual Handling Injury Claims?
In manual handling injury claims, it’s important to gather as much supporting evidence as you can that shows how an employer’s negligent actions or inactions were the root cause of your manual handling injury. As such, the following can help:
- CCTV footage that shows your accident.
- The contact details of eyewitnesses who are willing to provide a supporting statement at a later date.
- A personal diary that details important dates, developments and treatments.
- Photographs of the cause of the accident and your injuries.
- A copy of the incident report from the on-site accident book (which all companies with more than 10 employees need to keep by law).
- Copies of medical evidence such as X-rays, specialists reports and proof of prescribed medications
To gather all of this evidence by yourself can seem daunting. For this reason, our panel of solicitors can help collect evidence for their clients as part of their work.
Here are some other duties that are a part of our panel’s work:
- Ensuring settlements are accurately valued.
- Ensuring claims are filed on time.
- Sending correspondence on the client’s behalf to the defendant.
- Finding legal representation for clients if the claim must go to court.
- Sending regular updates throughout the case.
- Explaining legal jargon.
So, contact us to find out whether you can make a manual handling claim and receive help from one of the solicitors from our panel.
How Long Will A Manual Handling Claim Take?
There is no set time frame for how long a personal injury claim will take to settle. It depends on numerous factors such as:
- The severity of your injuries and any on-going problems.
- The length of the recovery period involved.
- How long it takes to gather evidence.
- If the employer accepts or contests liability for your injuries.
It can also depend on the complexity of the case. For example, if the claim is for a minor broken foot or hand injury that recovers quickly, it may settle more quickly than if the claim is for a severe back injury that causes ongoing issues.
Find out more about how long manual handling injury claims could take by calling the number above.
How Can Manual Handling Accidents Be Prevented?
One of the main ways that manual handling accidents in the workplace can be prevented is through regular risk assessments. This can allow employers to reduce the risk of injury posed by any hazardous manual handling tasks that can’t be avoided. Examples of steps they could take include:
- Make the load easier to grasp by making it smaller or lighter
- Adapt the workplace to reduce carrying distances and the need to use unnatural lifting techniques
- Improve the work environment, such as providing more space, better flooring, and extra lighting to prevent a slip, trip and fall
- Ensure the person carrying out the manual handling task is trained to lift as safely as possible
How Much Will It Cost To Claim For Manual Handling Injuries?
As you consider starting a manual handling injury claim, you may prefer to instruct a solicitor to help you. However, concerns about the cost of seeking legal representation might be preventing you from doing so.
To assist with this, the solicitors on our panel are able to provide their services to eligible claimants through a type of No Win No Fee contract. The particular one they offer is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) which has many advantages.
Under a CFA, there are no upfront or ongoing fees for your solicitor’s work. Should the claim fail, no fees apply for completed work done by the solicitor. When the claim outcome is a success, the solicitors deduct a small and legally limited percentage from the work injury settlement as their success fee. Due to the cap, you keep the most of your compensation.
Why not find out if you could qualify to access legal representation under No Win No Fee terms? After a brief assessment of your case with our team, you could start a manual handling injury claim with an expert solicitor by your side. To learn more:
- You can call 7 days a week, 24 hours a day on 0800 408 7826
- Fill out the call-back form and contact us online.
- Speak to our advisor through the live chat option below.
Read More About Manual Handling Injury Claims
In addition to this guide about manual handling injury claims, you might some of our other guides helpful:
- Here is general information on the personal injury claims process.
- A guide on claiming compensation for a wrist injury and how much you could be awarded.
- Further reading on what your claim could be worth in this guide.
Also, we provide some external resources to help:
- This article looks at manual handling at work by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
- Advice on how to request CCTV footage of yourself from GOV.UK.
- Lastly, information on first aid from the NHS.
We hope that our guide to manual handling injury claims has helped. If you have any other concerns or questions, please reach out to our advisors for assistance on the contact details above.