If you or a family member have been involved in a building site accident it is imperative that you talk to a solicitor if you wish to pursue a claim.
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Being involved in a construction accident, regardless of how serious the workplace accident was, can be a traumatic experience – whether you have sustained any injuries or not. In cases where you are involved in a building site accident that was not your fault, there may be a legal remedy. This legal remedy, you can seek by way of a building site accident claim.
It is essential to take all necessary safety precautions on a construction site as they have the highest injury rates of all working environments by a considerable margin. Employers of construction sites have a responsibility to ensure that the best possible safety procedures are carried out and followed. An employer is accountable for safety hazards causing personal injury to an employee.
The most common building site accident claims are:
Following a building site accident, there are a number of steps you should follow:
Your health is your wealth and should be your first priority. Immediately after a building site accident, take a second to assess yourself to determine if you have any injuries. Then check if anybody else involved in the accident need medical attention. If you or anyone else involved has sustained a serious injury ensure that you contact an ambulance to attend the scene.
For minor injuries, you must remember that minor injuries where you ‘feel fine’ could progress to more serious injuries in the future. In this case it is always better to be safe than sorry and advisable that you go to your nearest accident and emergency (A&E) or local GP to be checked out.
It is critical to report the accident to your superior, i.e. a supervisor or manager on site. It doesn’t matter how small you think the accident may be. By law, accidents at work are required to be reported if the person is injured and can’t perform their daily work tasks for more than three days. Make sure to fill out an Accident Report Form. This can be used for reference in any medical examination and will also prevent any similar accidents from happening in the future.
If possible, try to collect the contact details of anybody that witnessed your accident. This may be of use if you do decide to pursue a building site accident claim. It is also useful to find out if there is any CCTV in the area where your accident happened.
It is important that you collect all the relevant information in connection with your accident:
If you are considering moving forward with a building site accident claim for any personal injuries sustained it is advisable that you speak with a building site accident claims solicitor as soon as possible. If you are proceeding with a claim, the first step will be submitting your claim to the Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) for assessment. A building site accident solicitor can help you in preparing your application to the Injuries Board and ensure that you follow the process in the correct format, meaning that you can move forward with your claim quickly without unnecessary delays.
It is important to remember to keep copies of any expenses that you have incurred as a result of the accident. It is also imperative to retain copies of medical reports or incident report forms where possible as you will need them when making a claim.
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Once you have gathered all the relevant information in relation to your injury it is then time to move forward with your claim. It is important to use a specialist building site accident solicitor to help you with this.
When you decide you want to move forward with your building site accident claim it is important to have all the relevant information to hand when contacting a solicitor. Important information to have on hand at this point is:
Solicitors are aware of the building site accident claim process and can avoid any legal bumps in the road you might encounter if you did this process yourself. It is their job to be your trusted advisor on all legal matters throughout your case.
One of the most important documents in your case is a medical report. Your solicitor will ask for your doctor’s or hospital details so they can obtain a report on your injuries.
As soon as your solicitor has gathered all the information, your building site accident claim will be submitted to the Personal Injuries Assessment Board for assessment. You solicitor will do this for you. Once the Injuries Board assess your claim your solicitor will revert with a suggested settlement amount. At this stage you have a choice to accept the Injuries Board assessment or reject it and move the next steps.
At this point one of two scenarios will unfold:
a. If both you and your employer accept the Injuries Board assessment, your case is settled and the your employer will be ordered to pay settlement to you.
b. If either you or your employer reject the Injuries Board assessment, then you move to the next stage and your solicitor will issue legal proceedings.
Before you start to concern yourself with court and everything that comes with it, it’s important to understand that only a very small percentage of cases actually make it to a courtroom.
Settlement meetings will be arranged where a settlement can be negotiated. Most cases are settled at this point without ever having to step foot into a courtroom and remember it’s your solicitor’s job to be with you every step of the way, right beside you to ensure that your best interests are met at all stages. Your solicitor is to be your trusted advisor throughout the process and to let you focus of your recovery, as they focus on settling your case.
At Tracey Solicitors LLP, we make law accessible to all – regardless of your knowledge or experience with the claims process. For more information and a confidential discussion on your building site accident, phone 01 649 9900 or email ask@traceysolicitors.ie to tell us about your case, where you can speak with a member of our team straight away.
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If you are to proceed with a building site accident claim you may be entitled to claim compensation for the accident and added expenses you may have incurred. These claims are called damages.
General damages are non-financial damages such as pain and suffering and/or physical and emotional injuries following a building site accident.
Special damages are out of pocket expenses incurred as a result of the building site accident, for example, loss of earnings (if you are out of work), medical bills, and added travel costs as a result of the accident (for example, travel to and from the hospital). Learn more about Special Damages.
The statute of limitations are the legal time limits on how long you have to make a claim — these vary depending on the situation. The general rule for most personal injury cases is that the person has two years from the date of the accident or date of knowledge of the accident to make a claim for compensation. Contacting a solicitor to discuss your case will help you in determining how long you have left to make a claim.
Learn more about Time LimitsEmployers have a duty to ensure safety standards are met in the workplace. These in theory should help to minimise the amount of building site accidents.
The duties of an employer include:
A breach of these duties by the employer can lead to accidents. If an employee has sustained an injury and it is found that it was caused by employer negligence then the employer is likely to be found liable.
Being involved in a building site accident, as an employee can be a traumatic experience, especially if you have suffered any personal injuries. The most common injury claims that can occur after a building site accident are:
We draw on more than 35 years of experience in personal injury law to provide you with expert advice and legal services.
We’re here to help you with your claim, and will work with you to ensure you understand every step of your legal journey.
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