What’s my claim worth deal with these types of claims on a regular basis and have some of the most experienced lawyers in this field of personal injury.
The UK Acoustic Safety Programme states ‘An Acoustic Incident is a sudden, unexpected, noise event, which is perceived as loud, transmitted through a telephone or headset. Acoustic Shock is an adverse response to an acoustic incident resulting in alteration of auditory function” The injury is not due to faulty equipment. The high pitched tones are not easy to trace and are difficult to prevent as they are caused by random events such as incorrectly dialled fax machines or mobile interference. The ‘shrieks’ or noise created cause a strong muscle contraction in the middle of the ear, resulting in a strain of these muscles.
There are immediate effects such as ear ache, hearing loss, numbness and pain in the neck or jaw. However, there may be serious long term effects. These include headaches, sleep disturbance, anxiety or even depression. These are the most troubling effects, Dr Harvey Dillion, Director of Research at National Acoustic Laboratories states ‘Sufferers of acoustic shock are hypersensitive to loud sounds and exhibit a fear of reoccurrence. This reaction may even effect co-workers’.
Therefore the EU Noise at Work Directive is not focused upon the management of Acoustic Shock but rather its prevention. In Europe, anyone who wears a headset or has regular consistent use of telephones should, by law, be protected from the amount of noise exposed to their ears. No one wearing a headset should be exposed to sound pressure levels of more than 85 decibels in any eight hour shift in a 24 hour cycle.
The Directive does not protect you against acoustic shocks, as already discussed they are random and hard to prevent. The Directive simply highlights the necessity for employers to protect their staff against the possibility of injury. Thus the Directive gives employers guidelines to follow to help reduce the risk. These include; the performance of annual audits of the work environment, undertaking of audiometric evaluation and monitoring of hearing and most importantly, consider the education of your staff. Teaching staff the safety needs of the Directive can be part of Health and Safety sessions. This will motivate employees to take control of their hearing health and also reduce some of the pressure upon employers, especially in a time where industrial injury and personal injury cases are substantially increasing with the use of ‘no win, no fee’ lawyers.
If you think you have suffered an acoustic injury and may be suffering from any adverse effects, contact what’s ym claim worth, direct on 0800 849 2220 to pursue a acoustic shock compensation claim and our experienced solicitors will be able to help process your claim.
