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Work Accident Claims Ireland
The following is a small list of the do's and
don'ts concerning a work accident in Ireland. If you would like
to make a work accident claim in Ireland please complete the work
accident claim form. The Employer in Ireland has a particular
duty towards his Employee. He is by Law obliged to provide a safe
place of work, a safe system of work and Employees are supposed
to be correctly trained. In the real world however, particularly
in view of the large degree of unemployment, work places are often
unsatisfactory but this of itself may not be sufficient for one
to succeed in a claim against ones Employer. Certain Judges may
take the view that an Employer is only supposed to do what is
reasonable in the circumstances in providing employment.
D
O
Always report an accident to ones Employer
or to the Supervisor or to somebody in authority.
If there is no record of the accident having been reported this
will initially cast doubt on the claim in the eyes of the Employer.
Go to a Doctor or to Hospital if this is
deemed necessary. One of the questions which will be
asked in connection with a claim is when you first attended with
you doctor or at a hospital.
If therefore you feel that it is not necessary to go to a doctor
and that the injury may go away, it is essential that you simply
attend with your General Practitioner and inform him of your injury
even if you have no intention of bringing a claim. The doctor
will then have a record of the initial attendance and complaint
in the event that subsequently the injury becomes more serious
and it is necessary to bring a claim.
Remember that there is no obligation on
an Employer to pay the employee whilst the employee is out of
work. This is one of the most misunderstood areas of
the Employer/employee relationship. Many companies will have particular
Insurance arrangements whereby an employee is paid whilst out
sick. This is not however an obligation on the Employer. If one
is out of work, the employee must seek Social Welfare benefit.
On the other hand, you will normally at a later stage be claiming
for your loss of earnings from your Employer because you are holding
your Employer responsible for your injuries. The verified loss
of earnings will be recovered when ascertained at the conclusion
of your case.
DON'T
Don't sign an admission of liability
or other document which holds you responsible for the accident.
This is often very difficult where an employee is pressurised
to sign a statement and does not wish to jeopardise his job. Nevertheless
wherever possible one should politely decline to sign such a document.
It is worthy of note that if one does sign a statement in relation
to ones accident it may subsequently be disregarded at the Hearing
of your claim and it is not necessarily in itself deemed an admission
of liability as far as the claim is concerned.
Don't forget that insurance cover is very
expensive in the Republic of Ireland in relation to Employers
Liability claims. This means that very often there is
an excess on the policy . In other words the Employer will have
to pay a given amount for example the first £5,000 in any
claim. This may well mean that the Employer has significant influence
and interest in the outcome of the case.
Don't forget that although the employee
may have a cause of action against the Employer for negligence
which resulted in personal injury this does not mean that the
Employer can necessarily dismiss the employee simply because a
claim is being brought. If the Employer tries to dismiss
the employee on these grounds then the employee will have a separate
action in the Labour Court for wrongful dismissal. Such an action
on the part of the employee is quite separate to the action for
personal injuries. Normally however, no Employer would risk an
unfair dismissal action by letting an employee go following an
accident. If there is a genuine accident at work the Employer
realises that the employee is entitled to be compensated and that's
why insurance was arranged in the first place. An Employer may
however be entitled to dismiss an employee for different reasons
(nothing to do with the action for personal injuries) and the
employee's rights in these circumstances will depend on, among
other things, whether proper warnings were given and whether the
employee has worked with the company for a sufficiently lengthy
period of time (normally twelve months) to acquire statutory rights.
Naturally we would be pleased to advise on rights of this nature
separately from personal injuries action if so required.
* In contentious business , a solicitor may not calculate fees
or other charges as a percentage or proportion of any award or
settlement
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