By Danielle Newton. Last Updated 21st August 2023. In this guide, we will look at back injury at work claim amounts in the UK. If you’ve sustained a back injury at work due to a breach of duty of care, you could be entitled to compensation from your employer. We can help you identify how much your back injury could be worth and explain how to claim.
Back injury at work claim amounts guide
To get free advice about making a claim, you can speak to our skilled team of advisors today at 0800 408 7825 or by using our contact form. If you have the grounds to make a successful claim, they can connect you with a personal injury lawyer from our panel of experienced solicitors.
They can help you get your compensation by representing you in a personal injury claim. Read on for more information about back injury at work claim amounts.
Select A Section
- Back Injury At Work Claim Amounts Explained
- What Could Cause A Back Injury At Work?
- Symptoms And Treatments For Back Injuries At Work
- Could I Claim For A Back Injury At Work?
- What Is The Average Payout For A Back Injury At Work?
- No Win No Fee Back Injury At Work Claims
- Information On Back Injury Claims
Back Injury At Work Claim Amounts Explained
If you have been part of an accident at work caused by a breach of duty of care, our guide can help show you how much compensation you could be owed. Accident causes may include slips, trips and falls on level ground, falls from a height or injuries sustained while handling, lifting and carrying.
To claim, you would need to be able to prove that the accident in which you were injured was caused by someone breaching their duty of care towards you. We will further explore duty of care later on in this guide.
A back injury after an accident at work could make your life significantly more difficult. It could cause difficulties in your home life or even mean you cannot return to work for a long time, resulting in loss of income.
If your employer is liable for your injury, you could be owed compensation. This compensation can cover the financial loss and any impact on your quality of life that your injuries have on you.
Our guide can help you value your claim according to the severity of the injury and the effect it’s had on your life. It’s important to note that all values are just estimates, and each case is valued individually.
If you have any further questions after this article, please feel free to get in touch.
What Could Cause A Back Injury At Work?
According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), there are various ways in which you could damage your back at work. If you have a job that consists of manual labour, for example, you could be at risk of straining your back with repetitive heavy lifting. Or perhaps by falling from a height, if you work in construction and are regularly required to work on tall scaffolding.
Your employer is bound by a duty of care to all employees, as laid out in Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. As part of this duty of care, they need to take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety.
If they fail to do this, for example by failing to give you proper training or giving you faulty equipment to use, and you’re injured as a result, you may be able to claim. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a new employee or have worked there for some time; you still have the right to claim compensation if you were injured.
Speak to our claims team today for more information. Alternatively, read on for more information on back injury symptoms and treatment.
Symptoms And Treatments For Back Injuries At Work
According to the NHS, most back pain is not a sign of anything serious. It may feel worse or better if you lie down or sit up straight, or it may make moving painful.
Back pain could be a sign of sprain or strain. What’s more, injuries to the back can cause pain or discomfort in the neck, too.
In more severe cases back pain can be a sign of more serious conditions. It could be a broken bone in the spine, a slipped disc or sciatica.
A slipped or bulging disc is where the cushion of tissue between the vertebrae slips out. It can be painful if it presses on a nerve.
You might suffer a slipped disc in a manual handling accident. For example, you may not have been trained on safe lifting techniques, or could be made to lift something that is too heavy for you.
A slipped disc can also cause sciatica. This is where your sciatic nerve is compressed, causing pain or a tingling sensation in your back, buttocks and legs.
There are a number of different treatments available for back pain, and they will vary depending on the condition you are suffering from. For example, you could be offered painkiller injections, physiotherapy or psychological support to cope with the pain. You should always seek medical attention for back pain to prevent it from getting worse.
If you’ve sustained a back injury at work because of your employer’s negligence, you may be able to claim. Speak to us today for more information.
Could I Claim For A Back Injury At Work?
In order to claim compensation, you need to show that your employer breached the duty of care that they owe you. One of the ways you can do this is by collecting evidence.
It’s always advisable to log your accident as soon as possible, as this can be key evidence in a claim. You could also provide CCTV footage that showed the accident taking place or photographs of the hazard that caused the accident.
Medical records can also support your claim. For this reason, it’s really important that you seek medical attention for your injuries.
It is first important to decipher who was at fault. If it is clear that the other party was entirely at fault, it is likely to make your claim much easier.
However, you may also be able to claim if you were partially at fault. This is called a “split liability claim”. The amount of compensation will be reduced according to how responsible you were for your injuries. For example, if you are deemed to be 50% at fault, your compensation will be reduced accordingly.
If you were fully at fault for the accident, however, it would not be possible for you to make a claim against your employer.
What Is The Average Payout For A Back Injury At Work?
Before starting your claim, you might be wondering, ‘What is the average payout for a back injury at work in the UK?’ Each claim is decided on a case-by-case basis, so knowing the average compensation payout may not be beneficial to you. Instead, you may prefer to know how compensation is calculated in personal injury claims.
If your claim for an accident at work is successful, your settlement could consist of two heads of claim: general and special damages.
General damages compensate for the physical pain and mental suffering that has been caused by your back injury. To help when assigning value to your claim, legal professionals can refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) from Judiciary UK. This text lists guideline compensation brackets for different types of injuries.
In our table below, we’ve provided figures for back injuries from the 16th edition of the JCG. It is only to be used as guidance.
Injury Severity Amount Notes
Back Severe (i) £91,090 to £160,980 This includes cases involving serious damage to the spinal cord and nerve roots. This could lead to severe pain and disability with the possibility of paralysis.
Back Severe (ii) £74,160 to £88,430 This includes cases where there could be damage that causes loss of sensation or impaired mobility.
Back Severe (iii) £38,780 to £69,730 This includes cases where there could be damage to the discs, vertebrae or soft tissues that causes a long term chronic condition or disability.
Back Moderate (i) £27,760 to £38,780 This includes cases where there is a consistent pain or discomfort or a condition that could result in surgery.
Back Moderate (ii) £12,510 to £27,760 This includes cases where the damage can cause backache, soft tissue injuries, prolapsed discs or exacerbation of a pre-existing condition. Amount could depend on the severity of the original injury, lasting pain or impact of symptoms.
Back Minor (i) £7,890 to £12,510 This includes cases where a full recovery occurs without surgery within two to five years.
Back Minor (ii) £4,350 to £7,890 This includes cases where a full recovery occurs without surgery between one and two years.
Back Minor (iv) Up to £2,450 This includes cases where a full recovery occurs without surgery within three months.
Additionally, your settlement might include special damages. This head of claim recovers financial losses caused by your back injury.
Some examples of the financial losses you could claim under special damages include:
- Healthcare expenses, such as medication costs and physical therapy.
- Home help, such as a cleaner for household chores while you recover.
- Travel expenses, such as taxi fares.
- Loss of earnings for time spent off work to recover.
To include special damages in your claim, you should submit evidence, such as bank statements and receipts.
If you would like a free claim valuation based on your circumstances instead of working out the average payout for a back injury at work, you can contact our advisors.
No Win No Fee Back Injury At Work Claims
We hope you’ve found our guide on back injury at work claim amounts helpful. If you think you’re eligible to make a personal injury claim, call us today on 0800 408 7825. Alternatively, you can get in touch via our website.
If your case is passed along to a solicitor from our panel, they can represent you on a No Win No Fee basis. This means that if your case is not successful, you will not have to pay anything to your solicitor. In the event of a successful claim, your solicitor will deduct a legally capped “success fee” from your claim.
To find out more about No Win No Fee agreements, speak to our team today. If your claim is valid, you could be appointed a solicitor from our panel.
Information On Back Injury Claims
Accident at Work Back Injury Compensation Guide – A comprehensive guide to compensation cases for back injuries at work.
Your Rights After an Accident at Work – An article explaining your legal rights after an accident at work.
The Importance of Reporting Accidents in the Workplace – An article explaining why reporting accidents in the workplace is important.
Lost Wages Claims Guide – A comprehensive guide on claiming back on lost wages.
Physiotherapy Services – Find physiotherapy in your area on the NHS website.
Manual Handling– Guidance from HSE on manual handling techniques.
Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents – A charity that aims to reduce the rate of accidental injury through advice and guidance.
We also have some other guides you may find useful:
- Public accident claims hot spots
- Council slip and trip accidents
- Public transport accidents
- How to make a public liability claim
- Making a claim against the council
- Claiming for a pothole injury
- Making a claim against a shop
- Accidents in a public park
- Cycling accident claims
- Claiming for injuries suffered while shopping
Thank you for reading our guide on back injury at work claim amounts.
Article by AO
Publisher ET