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| Industrial Injuries Compensation |
Unlike most personal injury claims, if you are claiming for an industrial injury in the UK there are several ways to obtain financial relief for the hardships you might experience. For example you may be able to claim for Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit if your condition has caused you to miss work for over two months or if your physical ailments are diagnosed as being one of many "prescribed diseases" that the agency already recognises such as:
> Diseases caused by working with Asbestos
> Industrial Deafness
> Chronic Bronchitis
> Asthma
> Pneumoconiosis (including silicosis and asbestosis)
> Mesothelioma
> Tenosynovitis and Tendonitis
> Vibration White Finger
Industrial Deafness has many causes but the main one is too much noise at work without sufficient protection being provided. To meet the criteria for occupational deafness benefits you must have been employed in one or more of the prescribed occupations (ask your local benefits office for a current list) at any time on or after 5 July 1948 for a total of at least 10 years. In claims for occupational deafness, the benefits agency will arrange for you to have a hearing test to see if you have an average hearing loss of at least 50 decibels in both ears caused by damage to the inner ear. In at least one ear this must be due to noise at work. You must claim within 5 years of leaving the employment which may have caused the deafness. If you are making a claim against your employer you may not have as long to make industrial injury claims as you do to make the benefits one and should talk to a solicitor as soon as you are officially diagnosed.
Tenosynovitis and Tendonitis symptoms include pain, tenderness and swelling of the affected part of the tendon. The skin over and around the area may be warm and you may have reduced movement of that part of your body. In some cases the inflammation lasts just a few days and then goes away on it's own but in some cases it can last weeks or months if not treated properly. Any tendon of the body can be affected with some areas of the body being more prone to these problems such as tendons over the wrist and hand.
Vibration White Finger: Hand-arm vibration is vibration transmitted into your hands and arms when you use some types of power tool. Exposure can cause hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) which affects the nerves, blood vessels, muscles and joints of the hand, wrist and arm and can become severely disabling if ignored. This includes vibration white finger which causes severe pain in the affected fingers. In the cold and wet, the tips of your fingers go white then red (hence the name "white finger") and are quite painful on recovery. The numbness in your hands could become permanent and you won't be able to feel things at all. Other injuries resulting from vibration includes carpal tunnel syndrome which is a nerve disorder which may involve pain, tingling, numbness and weakness in the hand.
If after a medical exam the benefits agency agrees that you have the disorder you are claiming for your will be entitled to your payments. At this point this does not preclude you from making an industrial injury compensation action against your employer for not taking care of you. Obviously this will depend on whether the company you worked for is still in business and in some cases you may not be able to claim should you have contracted the disease prior to certain substances being labelled as dangerous. Industrial disease claims and even industrial deafness compensation cases are very individual in nature and you will need to discuss in some detail with an experienced industrial lawyer before it becomes apparent whether you have a case or not. Industrial disease solicitors are best chosen based on experience as such cases can be drawn out so one that knows what they are doing is paramount.
Industrial accidents are far easier to process as there is normally documentation of an actual incident leading the injuries for which you are claiming. Industrial accident compensation can be pursued for any injury that you obtain at your place of work whether the injury was preventable or not. Most industrial injuries claims occur solely from the standpoint that the job itself is dangerous and people are injured whilst doing it. Just because you job is dangerous to begin with does not preclude you from seeking industrial injuries action.
Other Work Compensation Claim Types:
> Accident in the Workplace
> Industrial Disease Claims
> Repetitive Strain Injury
> Unfair Dismissal Compensation Claims
> Sex, Race, Age and Disability Acts & Solicitors
Disclaimer: Although this site is updated as often as possible the information provided may not accurately reflect the current laws, procedures and/or facilities available to you. To ensure that you get the most up to date information make sure you consult an actual solicitor before pursuing any action. The articles on this site are for informational purposes only and are not intended to advise any particular action or inaction. Please read our terms of use for more information.
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