£75,000 compensation for joiner’s injury

Neil Thompson was working for a company which specialises in the design and fitting-out of commercial premises. As he lifted out a window on the first floor of an office block by hand, he twisted and injured the muscles and nerves in the back of his neck and shoulder, which subsequently required surgery. He wasn’t able to return to his former employment again.
Personal Injury Law experts, Rapid Solicitors, took up his case. A source explained: “Performing a seemingly straightforward task can sometimes result in severe consequences, as in this case. Some people might ask where the fault lies for the injury in these circumstances. In this instance, the employer had a responsibility under Manual Handling Operations Regulations and Workplace Regulations to ensure safe systems of work, the provision of adequate training, provision of adequate supervision and so on. The use of more people or manual lifting equipment would have prevented injury.”
A Partner at Rapid said: “The first step was to prove negligence. We gathered the evidence relating to the company’s training of employees, manual handling risk assessment, witness statements and so on. After a long, hard battle, we persuaded the Defendant’s to admit liability, thereby avoiding a costly trial and avoiding further stress for our client. The next step was to gather the right expert medical evidence and evidence pertaining to loss of earnings, to allow us to properly value the amount of damages. This case was complex because the injury exacerbated a pre-existing condition. Both Rapid and the company’s Defendants obtained a significant amount of evidence from Orthopaedic specialists, Psychologists and Pain Management experts. We arranged for the Orthopaedics to meet up and hold a case conference as well as providing detailed assessment reports, following physical examination of our client and his medical history. Following this, we were able to persuade the Defendant’s to settle for £75,000 damages to include his loss of earnings.”

The above account relates to a recent, genuine client of Rapid Solicitors. Only names and places have been changed to maintain client confidentiality. All other information, such as injuries, accident circumstances and compensation amounts are accurate.