If you have been injured at work, whether that is a physical injury or psychological injury, there are steps that you must follow. Additionally, if you are considering going down the personal injury compensation route, it is important to understand your legal rights and seek help before acting on this. It can be hard to know where to turn, but this article will provide you with a step-by-step guide for what to do after getting injured at work.
Step 1. Seek Medical Advice
Depending on the severity of your injury, you should seek medical advice as soon as possible. If your employer tries to prevent you in any way from going to receive help – this is illegal! If there is no first aider on-site, go to your GP or the accident and emergency, depending on how severe the injury is. Do not ignore your injury as this can make it get worse.
Step 2. Record What Happened
Once you have had some time to get the medical help you need, it is crucial that you write down and record the details of your accident. Typically, there will be a workplace protocol of how and where to record the details. If you are unsure, ask your employer. Failing that, just write it down for yourself to help you remember an accurate account of what happened.
Step 3. Recover
Make sure you take the time to recover. Experiencing an accident at work can be emotionally overwhelming. You need to take the time to physically and mentally recover from your injury. If your employer is attempting to make you come back to work before you are ready, then you should get legal advice immediately. If you are not ready to return to work then that is the bottom line. Otherwise, you put not only yourself at risk, but those around you as you are an unfit employee.
Step 4. Seek Legal Advice
It is important to seek legal advice so that you can be sure everything is being done correctly, and that your employer is not taking advantage of you. According to the experts from the law offices of Pius Joseph, hiring a legal professional can help them in their case and ensure that every injured employee gets the compensation that they deserve. Having a legal expert behind your back is always a good idea.
Step 5. Talk To Your Employer
Once you know your legal rights, you should talk to your employer so that you can both communicate where you stand, how you feel, and how you wish to proceed. This level of open communication will hopefully prevent any unnecessary misunderstandings
However, if at any point you are feeling pressured by your employer to return to work, you should withdraw from engaging with them as that is illegal on their part. Additionally, if they try and bully you into not making a claim, this is also illegal. If at any point you are unsure, that is when it is best to have legal advisers by your side.
Step 6. Claim Compensation
It is your right to claim compensation, so if you have suffered an injury at work, and it is the fault of the workplace/employer, that is when you can make a personal injury claim. Negligent employers will have failed to provide a safe working environment for their staff and that is illegal.
Don’t be scared to make a claim. Often workers who get injured can be put off by making claims as they are scared it will lead to them being sacked or discriminated against. Both of these actions are illegal, and a case could be made against that also.
Who Can Claim Compensation?
If you have been injured at work, you can only claim compensation if it is the fault of the employer. If your accident has been caused by a negligent employer or an unsafe workplace, you will then be able to make a viable claim.
As you can see there is a lot to consider when making an injury claim, however, it is well worth going through the process to get the necessary compensation for you. Seeking legal advice should be on top of the priority list, second to seeking medical help. Having lawyers by your side will be not only a comfort to you, but they will also make sure that you are not getting conned out of what is rightfully yours. Employers can cut corners, and they may even make threats sometimes, but with the right injury attorney, you will be protected throughout this process.