Fell at work. What to do?

BeardedBadger

I fell down the stairs at work. What should I do? Just looking for opinions

BeatlesFan1992

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

I fell down the stairs at work. What should I do? Just looking for opinions

Depending on the situation. Where? When? How? Why? Was there cameras? Was there people around? Spillages? Signs on the floor?

BeardedBadger

Hi sorry I didn't know it would require so much info.
It happened yesterday at about two o clock. I was carrying back of old food which had been left in a room for two weeks because the manager refused to pay someone to get rid of them. I slipped it a puddle of leakage from one of the bags and fell and hit my back. Later on that day I went to the doctor and he sent me to uchg for an xray where (after waiting almost 9 hours to be seen) they said I had a lot of blunt trauma but no visible breaks.
As far as I know there are no cameras in the area and no one saw me fall but 3 people ran to help me.

BeardedBadger

And there were no signs on the floor

mickdw

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

Hi sorry I didn't know it would require so much info.
It happened yesterday at about two o clock. I was carrying back of old food which had been left in a room for two weeks because the manager refused to pay someone to get rid of them. I slipped it a puddle of leakage from one of the bags and fell and hit my back. Later on that day I went to the doctor and he sent me to uchg for an xray where (after waiting almost 9 hours to be seen) they said I had a lot of blunt trauma but no visible breaks.
As far as I know there are no cameras in the area and no one saw me fall but 3 people ran to help me.

Thank your lucky stars that you are not injured and have a few weeks off with a sore back.

gctest50

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

I fell down the stairs at work. What should I do? Just looking for opinions

was there anything slippery on the steps ?

BeardedBadger

There was a puddle of leakage from the bags that had been carried down by the guy who had gone down before me

BeardedBadger

And Mickdw I don't mean to sound like a little pr**ck but I'm a student and I just lost my medical card and had to pay for everything yesterday and may have to pay 300 euro for an MRI scan after my follow up with my GP. I've just finished college and I can't afford all that stuff but it's not something I'm comfortable putting off either. I just want to know what my entitlements would be

moc moc a moc

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

I fell down the stairs at work. What should I do? Just looking for opinions

Have you tried standing up?

davo10

If you are considering making a claim then you will have to show your employer was negligent. If you slipped on liquid which dripped from a bag being carried by someone walking in front of you, then I'm not sure how your employer could have prevented this as they probably were not informed of its existence.

Also bare in mind that the food may not have been provided by the employer but rather was brought in by employees who should have cleaned up after themselves.

iwillhtfu

You slipped in work.

It was a work place accident. File a report if you had to go to the doctor then let them now. If he's signed you off work let them know. It's fairly straight forward.

If you're looking to make a few quid off a claim then excuse me but you're an asshole. You're employer should be insured for work place accidents.

The best course of action is to talk to you employer.

Also a student with a medical card. FFS I hope it's not based on income and you have a genuine requirement. To many folks that require them losing out.

NipNip

I think you need to log an accident at work thing? Did you do this? Then you can either approach your employer directly for reimbursement of your medical fees or go to a solicitor. Keep all your receipts. Since you have referred to your employer negatively in the OP, I'm assuming you're not too hopeful of him paying for your costs?

ezra_pound

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

And there were no signs on the floor

Why would there be signs on the floor?

Ave Sodalis

iwillhtfu wrote: »

Also a student with a medical card. FFS I hope it's not based on income and you have a genuine requirement. To many folks that require them losing out.

Slightly off topic but although medical cards been taken off those who are sick was a very bad decision, income based medical cards are genuine too. They may not be sick now but if something does happen, these people generally wouldn't be able to afford treatment or to even go to be diagnosed in the first place.
OP, other than report it, not much you can do and if you want a court case, tis not really the nicest way to make money (if you can). The leakage only just happened, and you weren't hurt. It doesn't sound like the employer was at fault here.

littlemac1980

Just go see a solicitor if you think you might have a claim - or are wondering if you do.

BeardedBadger

I think I'm going to wait and see how much treatment is required first just to see how much I will be out of pocket.
Thanks for all the advice guys

davo10

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

I think I'm going to wait and see how much treatment is required first just to see how much I will be out of pocket.
Thanks for all the advice guys

How much you are out of pocket will have no baring on your employer's liability for your injuries. You can try your luck with a claim but you may end up being further out of pocket due to associated legal expenses. Your call.

BeatlesFan1992

ezra_pound wrote: »

Why would there be signs on the floor?

If there is spillage on the floor, usually a sign would be placed to let employers know that the floor is wet.

Nino Brown

BeatlesFan1992 wrote: »

If there is spillage on the floor, usually a sign would be placed to let employers know that the floor is wet.

A spillage from what the OP was carrying.

BeardedBadger

Nino Brown wrote: »

A spillage from what the OP was carrying.

I hadn't been carrying the bags before my fall. I had just been called in from home to help with the removal of the bags. The fall happened the first time I moved to go down the stairs

Afroshack

ArseMonger1 wrote: »

I fell down the stairs at work. What should I do? Just looking for opinions

Get back up. Someone could trip over you!

NomadicGray

File an accident report. If there's long term damage talk to a solicitor.
Don't be a sack who claims for damage that isn't there.
Hopefully you'll be back to normal quick enough and your employer can take care of your medical expenses that resulted from the slip

grumpydwarf

In today's Independent, a Dunnes Stores worker who injured her knee when she slipped on a frozen potato chip has been awarded over €82,000 by the High Court. If you are not injured, it would be false to make a claim

Bluefox21

I think it's a shame that the majority of the advice in here is don't make register a claim although I can understand why.

OP is from the look of things a recent graduate who probably can't afford a couple of hundred euro on medical scans and what I can only assume to be missed hours at work.

Hopefully you are not trying to take advantage of the situation and make a quick buck. First step is to inform your employer. No need to threaten a claim just tell them you had an accident while on the premises and ask if they will cover medical expenses. If like others have said you believe they have been negligent (and they are not very receptive to helping you out..) then look at speaking to a Solicitor. Most will charge no fee for first consultation.

Just because the majority are taking advantage of the system doesn't mean it can't serve to help somebody who has been genuinely put out.

I am pie

Check the the Dunnes claim. Someone dropped chips, the women fell and hurt her knee. The judge ruled that Dunnes were vicariously responsible and that on the balance of probability they were dropped by someone who Dunnes were responsible for, their employee.

You probably should have organised a photo or a witness of the accident and spillage or documented it somehow.

john.han

davo10 wrote: »

How much you are out of pocket will have no baring on your employer's liability for your injuries. As stated above, if the leakage happened just before you walked on the stairs, the stairs are safe and the employer was unaware of the leakage, how can they be held responsible. Also your colleague may have been removing food brought in by employees. You can try your luck with a claim but you may end up being further out of pocket due to associated legal expenses. Your call.

Okay, this isn't meant to be in any way shape or form legal advice, but the above is nonsense and should be removed, of course the employer may still be liable, it is their duty to provide a safe place of work. A court would look at whether carrying leaky bags down stairs as instructed was a safe practice, they'd look at whether the employer required staff to wear non-slip shoes, they'd look at a lot of things and not just if the leak/spill occurred just prior to the incident. It is very possible the employer by instructing the staff created the risk and liability can follow from that.

The OP should as others have said file an incident report, inform your employer of the expenses you've incurred and I would very much be inclined to phone a solicitor to arrange a consultation to see what they think.

davo10

john.han wrote: »

Okay, this isn't meant to be in any way shape or form legal advice, but the above is nonsense and should be removed, of course the employer may still be liable, it is their duty to provide a safe place of work. A court would look at whether carrying leaky bags down stairs as instructed was a safe practice, they'd look at whether the employer required staff to wear non-slip shoes, they'd look at a lot of things and not just if the leak/spill occurred just prior to the incident. It is very possible the employer by instructing the staff created the risk and liability can follow from that.

The OP should as others have said file an incident report, inform your employer of the expenses you've incurred and I would very much be inclined to phone a solicitor to arrange a consultation to see what they think.

OP said he/she wasn't working, but called in to help clean up mess made by employees.

Employee one walks in front spilling liquid, employee two walking behind slips on it. If stairs meet safety standards, is this employers fault? I don't know, maybe it is, I'd like to see you prove it though john.han.

I've removed that part of my post because I'm not sure if it's correct, if you are sure the OP has a case, great, but OP may have to pay either way.

john.han

davo10 wrote: »

OP said he/she wasn't working, but called in to help clean up mess made by employees.

Employee one walks in front spilling liquid, employee two walking behind slips on it. If stairs meet safety standards, is this employers fault? I don't know, maybe it is, I'd like to see you prove it though john.han.

I've removed that part of my post because I'm not sure if it's correct, if you are sure the OP has a case, great, but OP may have to pay either way.

Vicarious liability covers the actions of the other staff member and introduces liability where that staff member is doing something in the course of their work (very broadly interpreted). But it's also clear an instruction came to clear out rubbish, it's the employer's responsibility to ensure this is done safely, carrying potentially leaking wet rubbish up/down stairs is an inherently dangerous process and would be the employers responsibility to investigate if this was happening and safeguard against accidents.

myshirt

Shoddy reporting, poor googling, and chats down the pub.. they are all adding to the compo culture.

What outcome does that serve to report the Dunnes Stores chip story the way they have... it's ridiculous. The reality is this case went through the motions. It's Ireland. Our legal system is well developed. It's not a Mickey Mouse system. Can we please have a level of confidence in the legitimacy and quality of judgements that is at least one notch above this shoddy journalism.

Plain fact op, focus on your health first and foremost. Secondly, put in a claim on professional advices - I have known soft tissue injuries from 10mph rta's. Don't think you are alright. Listen to medical advice. Listen to legal advice. But certainly, 1 million percent, don't chance your arm, because it won't work out.

I hope you feel better soon.