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Many factory accidents are preventable but unfortunately due to the negligence of the employer, an employee may suffer personal injury or sometimes even die. Occasionally, however, an accident may be ruled to have been unforeseeable and the company for which the employee works, or worked, might not be found liable.
Melted chocolate in America
In July 2009, a US company in New Jersey, which melted down chocolate for other companies who then made it into confectionary, was brought to the media's attention when an employee suffered a fatal head injury when working at one of the factory's mixing tanks.
The worker, who was 29, was pouring solid chocolate into one of the melting and mixing tanks when one of the rotating blades hit him. Unconscious, he fell into the tank and was unfortunately not recovered until he had been submerged for around ten minutes, in the 120 degree liquid, by which time he had died.
The police investigated the case and suspected no employer negligence. The conclusion was reached that the man had simply lost his footing and regrettably been hit by the blades as a result.
If this unusual incident was brought to the courts, it could have been deemed an unforeseeable event, but the worker's family may have been able to make a claim if the tank sides where too low or there were no barriers between employees and the blades.
Hot drinks in Britain
In 2005 the BBC published a news piece listing some of the most unusual accidents of that year in the UK.
Amongst them was the statistic that 1,481 people, many of whom were children, suffered personal injury from hot drinks. In most of these cases, if the people had tried to claim compensation, they would have been unlikely to win.
Spilling or drinking a liquid which is too hot and causes an injury, is more often than not the injured person's fault. In the cases of children, it is up to their parents to warn them of the temperature of the drink or be careful around their child if there are hot drinks in the vicinity. Nevertheless, reports showed that in 2010, an average of 1,500 children were still being scalded every year.
Directgov note that a hot drink can scald a child even 15 minutes after it has been made and that parents should take responsibility for their children to keep them safe.
Many catering companies put warning labels on their hot drink containers, such as the well-known but poorly worded "Caution: Hot beverages are hot", which so many websites, forums and magazines have been amused by. Some hot chocolate mixing powders also have a warning in their instructions reminding people that once the drink has been made, it may be too hot to drink immediately.
In a factory, a worker might be scalded or very badly burned if a drink has been placed in an unsafe place or if they are working with a boiling liquid during their working day. In these cases, some employees could seek compensation by claiming that the employer should not have allowed hot drinks in a certain area of the work place or did not provide the correct protection from burns.
Tarzans in the UK
In 2005, another type of incident, which the victim would be unlikely to be able to claim for, affected 1,839 people in the UK, 78% of them children. This large number of people all experienced a fall from a tree. Similarly to drinking a hot beverage, climbing a tree holds personal risk which adults should be aware of, and children should be warned about or away from.
If on the other hand a worker, such as a tree surgeon, falls from a tree and they have not been given appropriate safety harnesses or training by their employers, then making an accident at work claim could be a possibility.
Comparative safety of modern-day factories
British factories have improved dramatically since their introduction during the Industrial Revolution in the 1800s. Factory workers of the past, many of whom were children seen to be just the right size to fit between the dangerous machines, often suffered horrendous personal injury in factory accidents s and did not receive compensation at any point. Some of the incidents were fatal, and the family who relied on that individual would be left destitute.
Today's health and safety measures in the workplace have reduced the number of factory accidents and no win, no fee solicitors have made it possible for anyone who has a valid case, to claim the compensation due to them for their suffering and resultant loss of earnings.
Making a factory accident claim
YouClaim's solicitors work on a no win, no fee basis and don't take a cut of your remuneration, which means that you will get 100% compensation should your claim be successful.
If you would like to make a compensation claim for an accident at work, then just fill in our short online claim form, or talk to one of our advisers on live help. You could claim for your factory accident injuries today.
