An office does not at first inspection appear to be an environment with the potential to provide much in the way of hazards for the workers within. There are no dangerous chemicals, blast furnaces, perilous high places, powerful machinery or the requirement to handle hazardous substances or the risk of falling from great heights or having heavy objects fall on you from those heights. In short the average office appears on the surface as a safe, non-threatening environment, until that is, we put on our health and safety inspector’s hat and subject that workplace to more rigorous scrutiny.
The Health and Safety Executive estimate that only a little over 50% of office accidents get reported and that this under reporting is probably due to the popular misconception that the office is an inherently benign environment and that if anybody suffers an accident in an office it is due entirely to the victims own clumsiness or bad luck rather than any glaring deficiency in the standards of health and safety. In fact it is almost always negligence on the part of the employer in fulfilling their legal duty to keep their employees safe at work that causes office accidents. Let us return to our examination of our hypothetical ‘safe’ office; one in which the employees have got so used to the sub-standard level of risk control that they now take the situation for granted. We find:
• Frayed carpet – a trip hazard.
• Computer cables run across walkways – a trip hazard.
• Supplies and files on high shelving but no step ladder to access them – a fall hazard.
• Large cardboard boxes with heavy office supplies in them – a manual handling hazard – and because the boxes obstruct walkways also a trip hazard.
• No portable appliance testing (PAT) stickers on any of the electrical equipment – an electrocution/fire hazard.
• Desks covered with loose objects for want of storage space – a slip or trip hazard should they roll onto the floor.
Our hypothetical office is an extreme example of a death trap for the unwary, masquerading as a comfortable, familiar working environment but unfortunately, even in these health and safety conscious times, it is not uncommon for one or more of the above hazards to be found in office spaces across the country – unidentified as a health and safety risk or identified but ignored.
Work in an office? Suffered an injury there? – you could be entitled to compensation
If you work in an office and suffered an injury there that was not your fault, you could be entitled to make an office accident compensation claim. For help with how to claim compensation – contact our specialists today. But remember that it’s essential that you don’t delay making your claim, or you risk losing your right to make a compensation claim entirely.
It’s also worth noting, that although accidents are not involved, office workers may be entitled to claim compensation for long-term health problems – in particular for conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome
Wherever you live in the UK, email us today at salisbury@bishopslaw.com and ask a personal injury solicitor a question for free.
