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Common reasons why people don’t claim against accidents at work

Accidents in the workplace are extremely common and according to recent national figures, over a million people suffer from accidents at work every year in the UK.

If you have an accident at work that was not your fault, such as a fall on a slippery floor or sustain an injury through lifting a heavy item, you may well be entitled to compensation. Despite the fact that hundreds of people are receiving monetary compensation due to becoming injured or ill through accidents occurring in the workplace, many people fail to put in a claim against their employer.

Below are three of the most common reasons why people chose not to file a claim for compensation that they are more than likely entitled to. If you are deliberating about whether or not to make a compensation claim due to an accident at work, it is important that you understand that the most common reasons against making a claim are, more often than not, not valid.

My employer will be out of pocket

You may have a good relationship with your employer, you may have worked for the same company for years and feel a degree of ‘loyalty’ towards them, you may be grateful for the promotion you have just received or may be gearing towards a promotion. There are numerous reasons why employees choose not to make a compensation claim for an accident at work and worrying about upsetting the applecart is perhaps the most common.

It is important to realise that any legal action taken against an organisation, whether it is for medical negligence compensation or compensation for a fall at work, is not taken directly against your employer. Every company is legally obliged to have liability insurance and this policy will protect your employer if an accident at work takes place. This effectively means that if you make a compensation claim for an accident at work the compensation will be taken from the insurance company and your employer will not be directly out of pocket.

There will be a lengthy court case

A hefty 80% of personal injury claims are settled out of court, as stated by Personal Injury Ireland. As the majority of claims never even make it into court, the common perception that such claims involve lengthy court cases is generally misperceived. Injury lawyers who handle cases on behalf of injured parties will also manage these claims as quickly and professionally as possible. This means there is little or no disruption to your life, meaning the potential lengthy of compensatory action should never affect your decision to seek financial reparation.

It will cost money to pursue the claim

In almost all claims for compensation against incidents at work, the injured party will be able to make a no win no fee claim through a compensation lawyer. This means that there is absolutely no financial commitment required by the claimant and some lawyers will even take their fees from the other side – giving you the full compensation you have been awarded.