In the last five years Lancashire police officers have claimed £250,000 in compensation payments from their employers.
The compensation is for a range of incidents including slips, trips, and falls together with injuries from road traffic accidents and dog bites.
The figures, which were released following a freedom of information request, were criticised by Robert Oxley of the Taxpayers Alliance, who said:
“Police forces should look after civilian staff in the workplace but also fight questionable claims so that taxpayers’ money isn’t diverted away from the frontline.
“Some police officers are more at risk of injury or accident than those who are deskbound, but many of these incidents looks trivial and money could be saved by cutting the number of claims.”
One officer received £16,000 for a fall while another received £11,269. No details as to the extent of the injuries or the circumstances were released.
Another officer received £46,603 after suffering a dog bite.
A police officer involved in a road accident received £12,898. Again, no details of the accident were released.
A police spokesman said: “We take our responsibility for the health and safety of all our employees seriously and when an incident does occur, we take every precaution to prevent it happening again.
“Every case is judged on its own merit, these are complex issues and we are satisfied that if compensation is paid out, that it is proportionate to the level of injuries sustained.”
