We dealt with a claim for a client who was injured at work. He injured both shoulders and required surgery. Our client, Mr P worked for the local Council and was required to bring in very heavy wooden bins at the end of each season. On the day of his accident he had lifted 18 bins down steps and taken them to his van. He then had to get inside the van and pull all of the bins up into the van. As he was doing this he injured both shoulders.
Over the following couple of days he developed severe pain in both shoulders and noticed that although he was able to move his arms, he could not forward flex them or abduct them beyond 90 degrees. He went to his GP and later on in the year had surgery .
We considered the details of Mr P’s claim and agreed it had good prospects of success and a claim was submitted to the Defendant contending they failed to provide him with training and a safe system of work.
The Defendant denied liability stating our client was not required to lift the bins and that he was fully trained. After a review of extensive disclosure by the solicitor dealing with the claim it transpired that training was only provided after the accident. Highly confident of our client’s prospects of succeeding, the Solicitor dealing with the claim arranged for our client to be medically examined by an Orthopaedic Surgeon specialising in shoulder injuries.
Expert evidence was obtained who confirmed the Claimant had suffered from sub acromial impingement in both shoulders but that he may have developed this in any case, even if the accident did not happen. The accident was an aggravating factor and the onset of symptoms was brought forward by 5 years as a result of the accident.
The Expert said that only a small proportion are referred for hospital management and that our client was in this group and this would have been contributed to by having to continue with full active duties rather than being given a light duties role.
The Expert estimated the probability of him having surgery was increased by 50% as a result of his continued deployment in active duties. The solicitor dealing with the claim took a detailed witness statement from Mr P regarding the accident circumstances, the injury and how this had affected him.
Medical evidence and a schedule detailing Mr P’s financial losses were disclosed to the Defendant’s Solicitors inviting their offers despite liability still being denied. This was an attempt to settle the claim for Mr P however the Defendant continued to maintain their denial of liability and court proceedings were issued .
The claim proceeded along the court timetable and having considered the medical evidence and having regard to the JC Guidelines, instructions were taken from Mr P to make a Part 36 offer to try to settle his claim. A Part 36 offer was made by his solicitor for £17,500. This was rejected however a counter offer was received the Defendant’s Solicitors for £12,500. This was considered too low and a further counter offer was made by Mr P’s solicitor for £15,000 which was accepted by the Defendant bringing the claim to a conclusion.
If you have been injured in an accident at work please let us see if we can help you. Give us a call on 01244 568 535 or email info@whatsmyclaimworth.co.uk or use our Claims Calculator to see how much your injury may be worth. All claims are dealt with on a no win, no fee basis.