Helmets, head injuries and construction accidents

Few injuries can be as traumatic as a head injury. A head injury may result in damage to the brain, skull and spine or to a person's facial appearance. Yet every year in the UK many construction workers are killed or injured when they suffer traumatic head injuries.

In reality, this kind of construction accident should be avoidable. In recognition of the need to reduce head injury-inducing construction accidents the Construction (Head Protection) Regulations were introduced by the government in 1989.

Under the terms of these regulations all construction workers who work in an environment where there is a foreseeable danger of suffering a head injury in a construction accident must wear appropriate head protection.

According to these regulations, the only people exempt from taking this construction accident prevention measure are turban-wearing Sikhs.

Wearing protective headgear does not mean those in the construction industry can become complacent about the head injury risk of construction accidents. Instead, helmets should be considered as a last line of defence.

Their use should be planned as part of a wider strategy of health and safety. The risks of the kinds of construction accidents which cause head injuries should be minimised by taking such action as systematically controlling loose objects, securely tying any movable loads and building additional guards wherever necessary.

If employers fail to provide any of the necessary construction accident preventative safety measures they may find themselves facing no win, no fee claims for head injury compensation.

Choosing the right head injury protection
To prevent a head injury from occurring in a construction accident, workers should be fitted with helmets which are suitable for the individual.

Most importantly, any helmet should meet the standards of the British Standard for safety helmets. Any helmet should also be suitable for the individual and be capable of being adjusted to an ideal fit.

Different safety helmet designs are suitable for a variety of construction jobs. For example, some may have reduced or lengthened peaks. Others may have attachment points for additional personal protective equipment such as eye-goggles or face-masks.

What are the responsibilities of an employer with regard to safety helmets?
All construction industry employers must provide their employees with suitable safety helmets or risk both personal injuries to their workforces and resultant work accident compensation claims.

It is also advisable that any employer lays out clear rules which apply to everyone on the construction site. These rules should also apply to all visitors, who, naturally, should also be fitted with a suitable safety helmet.

Employers also have a duty to ensure they minimise the construction accident head injury risk by correctly storing and maintaining all personal protective headwear.

No win, no fee construction accident claims with the experts
If you have suffered personal injuries while working on a construction site, you may be entitled to claim work accident compensation.

Here at YouClaim, over the years, our panel of no win, no fee solicitors have helped thousands of UK workers claim personal injury compensation.

But when you consider that our panel contains many of the finest personal injury solicitors in the UK, it is no surprise we enjoy such resounding success in securing positive compensation outcomes for our clients.

When you claim with us you will never, at any stage, have to pay either us or the opposing side a single penny in costs or fees.

In addition, you will keep 100% of any compensation awarded you as we never take a cut from any of our clients.

So you can rest assured that your construction accident claim will never cost you a thing. That is a guarantee.

If you wish to get in touch with us you can fill out an online claim form, request a call back at a time convenient to you or, alternatively, call us now on 0800 10 757 95.