I’ve Had an Accident at Work, What Should I Do
An accident at work can leave you dealing with two different problems at the same time: an injury, and the fact that the place where it happened is also the place that pays your wages.
An accident at work can leave you dealing with two different problems at the same time: an injury, and the fact that the place where it happened is also the place that pays your wages.
You may be wondering whether you should report it, whether you will be blamed, how long you can afford to be off, what colleagues will say, or whether raising concerns will make returning to work awkward.
The first priority is your health. The employment, reporting, insurance and legal questions can then be dealt with in a more organised way.
Get treatment and make sure the accident is recorded
Seek appropriate medical attention and follow clinical advice. If symptoms develop or worsen later, do not dismiss them simply because you finished the shift or initially thought the injury was minor.
Tell the employer about the accident and follow the workplace reporting procedure. An accident book, incident form, manager’s report or internal health-and-safety system may be used depending on the workplace.
Write your own factual note while events are fresh: what task you were doing, where you were, equipment involved, what happened immediately beforehand, who saw it and what happened afterwards. Keep relevant photographs or communications where appropriate.
Do not alter the account to make it sound more dramatic. A clear contemporaneous record is more useful than an embellished one.
Is it a RIDDOR report?
Some work-related deaths, injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences must be reported under RIDDOR. But the injured employee does not normally submit the RIDDOR report personally.
The legal reporting duty sits with the relevant ‘responsible person’, such as the employer, self-employed person or person in control of premises. If you think a report should have been made, you can ask your employer whether it has been reported and raise concerns through appropriate workplace or HSE routes.
An accident not being RIDDOR-reportable does not mean it was unimportant, and RIDDOR reporting does not by itself decide whether anybody was legally negligent.
What happens to my pay while I am off?
Check your employment contract and workplace policies. You may have contractual or occupational sick pay above the statutory minimum.
Current Statutory Sick Pay rules may also provide support if you meet the eligibility requirements. If an absence becomes prolonged or household income falls substantially, it can be worth checking wider benefit entitlement rather than waiting until savings have been exhausted.
Keep work and money questions separate from the legal claim question. Compensation, if available, can take time; it is not a substitute for dealing with today’s income problem.
Should I speak to a solicitor?
An accident at work does not automatically mean your employer was negligent. A legal claim usually requires consideration of the duty owed, what happened, whether reasonable precautions were taken, causation, injury and financial loss.
Employers are generally required to carry Employers’ Liability insurance, which is designed to respond to qualifying liabilities for employee injury or illness caused by work. That means a claim is not usually the same thing as personally demanding that a manager pays compensation from their own pocket.
If you need an assessment of your own legal position, a specialist personal-injury solicitor can advise. MH360 does not decide whether a claim should be brought.
Do not ignore the emotional aftermath
A workplace accident can change how safe the workplace feels. Returning to the same machine, staircase, vehicle, ward, warehouse, kitchen or construction site can bring the event back immediately.
You may also feel embarrassed, angry or guilty, particularly if colleagues witnessed the accident or somebody else was hurt.
Mental-health support can be accessed independently of any claim. Counselling can help you process the accident and its effect on confidence, sleep, identity and work without turning emotional recovery into evidence for litigation.
Important informationThis guide provides general information and is not intended to provide legal, financial, medical or other professional advice. Individual circumstances can be different. You may wish to check current information from official sources and seek advice from an appropriately qualified professional before making important decisions.