Claiming For A Head Injury At Work

By Cat Mulligan. Last Updated 29th September 2023. Below, you will find a guide to making a head injury at work claim. It will explain how these injuries can come about. It will also go over why you may have a valid claim. Additionally, you will learn how a No Win No Fee solicitor may be able to help, by processing your claim.

Something to think about is that each claim is unique in some way. You might have specific questions that fall outside of the scope of this guide. If this is the case, our expert advisors can provide the answers that you need. You can call and speak with them on 0800 408 7825. Or, if you prefer, you can ask us to call you back by using our contact form.

a man receiving treatment from a paramedic for a head injury at work

Select A Section:

Who Could Claim For A Workplace Head Injury?

If you suffer a head injury due to the negligence of your employer, you may be able to make a head injury at work claim. You can choose to engage a personal injury lawyer to process a compensation claim for you. If you are unable to make the claim yourself due to having a reduced mental capacity, a litigation friend can make the claim on your behalf.

What Is A Litigation Friend?

If you suffer a traumatic brain injury (TBI), this could result in brain damage. Your mental capacity could be reduced to a state where you cannot manage your own personal injury claim. In such cases, it is possible for a litigation friend to manage the claim for you. The same holds true for people under 18, a litigation friend can manage their claim for them.

Can I Claim If I Am No Longer Able To Work?

Some head injuries are minor in nature, such as a trivial contusions. Others are longer lasting but will heal eventually, such as a concussion or a skull fracture. However, when the brain is damaged, the prognosis for a full recovery can be lower. This could mean you can no longer work at all.

In lots of areas of life including at work, you are owed a duty of care. Your employer must take reasonable steps to protect your health and wellbeing while carrying out work duties. If they fail in this regard and their negligence results in you suffering a head or brain injury you may be eligible for two types of damages.

General damages look to compensate for the suffering caused by the injury and any treatment required. While special damages reimburse expenses and losses caused by the injury itself. If your head in at work claim is successful then any loss of earnings both past and future can be reimbursed to you.   

Limitation Periods For Workplace Head Injury Claims

In order to receive head injury claims payouts, you need to start your head injury at work claim within the time limit. We have given an overview of these time limits below.

  • In most cases, the time limit will be three years from the date of knowledge of harm or the date you become aware that negligence caused the head injury.
  • For people under 18, the time limit will be three years from their 18th birthday.

In some cases, other factors might have an impact on the time limit. For example, if the claimant is covered by the Mental Capacity Act 2005. Those who have a reduced mental capacity are unable to claim by themselves. A litigation friend is needed. For this reason, the time limit is frozen. If you recover your mental capacity and no claim was made then you have three years to start a claim. Call and speak to one of our claim experts to find out which time limit applies to your claim.

What Steps Should Employers Take To Prevent Head Injuries At Work?

Your employer has to ensure that the work environment is kept healthy and safe. Multiple bodies of regulations enforce this. Such as the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.

That said, not all accidents in the workplace are due to the negligence of your employer. But when they fail to adhere to health and safety legislation accidents have room to happen.

The Health and Safety Executive provide statistics on workplace accidents. Below are some of the most common non-fatal accidents that happen in the workplace. It is important to remember that these accidents do not reflect those caused by employer negligence.

A vehicle accident or a falling object can cause an injury such as a fractured skull, and could even result in a brain injury. If such accidents at work can be proven to be the employer’s fault, you could be able to make a head injury at work claim.

Evidence For Head Injury At Work Claims

Here, we’ve assembled a short list of examples that could help support a claim for a head injury at work. There will be other forms of evidence too, this is not a complete list.

  • Medical records – Get your medical records to present. Information on your injuries and the treatment you receive act as evidence to support the presence of the injuries, as well as assist in the compensation valuation process.
  • CCTV footage – Request the footage if the incident that caused the injury was captured.
  • Photographs – Take pictures of the hazards that led to your injuries, or even of the injuries themselves.
  • Contact information for witnesses – So you can get in touch with eyewitnesses. They may be willing to submit a statement supporting your story.

Get in touch today for more information. Our advisors are ready to assist you with No Win No Fee head injury claims on a 24/7 basis.

Calculating Compensation For A Head Injury At Work Claim

We cannot give you an average figure for the head injury claim amount you might receive. This is because all claims are somewhat unique. However, we can provide you with this example table. It gives some ranges ofc compensation for different injuries. You can use this to roughly estimate the value of your head injury at work claim. A personal injury calculator could also help to do the same thing. This table includes data that was provided in the guidelines produced by the Judicial College. These same guidelines are used by the legal system to value injuries.

Injury Severity Compensation Notes
Brain Damage Very Severe £282,010 to £403,990 A patient at the top of this bracket may be able to follow basic commands, open their eyes, and return to sleep and waking patterns.
Brain Damage Moderately Severe £219,070 to £282,010 There will be serious disabilities for the injured person. Continual professional and other care will be required and there will be substantial dependence on others. There are two types of disabilities: physical, such as limb paralysis, and cognitive, such as marked impairment in intelligence and personality.
Brain Damage Moderate (i) £150,110 to £219,070 Symptoms include intellectual deficit, personality change, impairment of vision, the ability to speak, and other senses, as well as an increased risk of suffering from epilepsy.
Brain Damage Moderate (ii) £90,720 to £150,110 Cases in which there is a moderate to modest intellectual decline, the ability to have a job is greatly diminished.
Brain Damage Moderate (iii) £43,060 to £90,720 There may be cases in which concentration and memory are affected, the ability to work is limited, where epilepsy is a small risk, and any dependence on others is minimal.
Brain Damage Less Severe £15,320 to £43,060 In these situations, the injured individual will have recovered well and will be able to return to work and normal social life.
Brain or Head Injury Minor £2,210 to £12,770 There will be little brain damage, if any, in these cases.
Mental Harm Severe £54,830 to £115,730 A person suffering an injury in such a case will experience very severe issues with all aspects of life. The prognosis is very poor.
Mental Harm Moderately Severe £19,070 to £54,830 As with above the claimant will experience negative affects with all aspects of life but with professional help there is room for some recovery.
Mental Harm Moderate £5,860 to £19,070 There will be a good recovery by the time of trial and any remaining symptoms will not be major.

About Special Damages

The table above covers general damages, paid for pain, suffering and harm you faced. You may also have suffered monetary loss. For example, lost wages. And in this case, you could try to claim special damages.

You can claim for both past and future losses. However, you need to prove these losses by providing documented proof. Call and speak to a member of our claims team for some advice about doing this.

Could I Make A No Win No Fee Head Injury At Work Claim?

If you are interested in claiming head injury at work compensation, a solicitor from our panel may be able to help. They work on a No Win No Fee basis, which means that they offer their clients a kind of No Win No Fee arrangement known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

When you work with a solicitor under a CFA, you aren’t expected to pay an upfront fee for their work on your claim, either upfront or as their services continue. Likewise, if your claim fails, then you won’t pay a fee for your solicitor’s work.

If your head injury at work claim succeeds, then a success fee will be deducted from your compensation. This success fee is taken as a small, legally capped percentage, which helps to make sure that the majority of your compensation stays with you.

Our advisors are here to help. If you’d like to learn more about claiming head injury at work compensation with the help of one of a solicitor from our panel, get in touch. One of our advisors can offer a free evaluation of your claim and may be able to put you in contact with a solicitor. To learn more:

Learn More About Head Injury At Work Claims

Some useful links.

Head Injury And Concussion

Reporting Accidents And Incidents At Work

Returning To Work After Brain Injury

More guides.

Accident At Work Rights

Get An Injury Lawyer

How To Claim