£290,000 obtained for injured carpenter

Posted 03/11/2015

Tim Gleave, a personal injury specialist at Ashtons Legal, has obtained a settlement of £290,000 for Norfolk man, Mr C, who was injured when falling from a ladder at work. Mr C was a still learning his trade when he was asked by his foreman to cut a piece of bargeboard that was over eight feet above the ground. To reach this he had a ladder standing on a platform made from planks of wood balanced on steel trestles. He fell when a colleague who was supporting the ladder walked away and as a result fractured both elbows. Although Mr C will be able to work again in the future, the result of this incident is that he will no longer be able to work as a carpenter.

Tim comments: “We brought Mr C’s claim under the Work at Height Regulations. No risk assessment had been carried out and the scaffolding and platform provided were inadequate for the job. This sort of injury, and subsequent claim, should be totally avoidable if everyone complied with all the relevant Health and Safety legislation.”