I Didn’t Take Time Off Work After An Accident, Could I Still Claim?

You may know that if you are injured in a workplace accident, you might be entitled to sue your employer. This could result in compensation to cover your pain and suffering as well as any costs you incur. However, you may not realise that if you didn’t take time off work after an accident, you could still be eligible to claim. In this article, we’ll explain why that’s the case and look at your rights following an accident at work.

As we move through this guide, we will look at why you could claim, what your claim could include and how much might be paid. Additionally, we’ll explain what evidence you will need to supply to back up your claim. Towards the end of the guide, we will provide more information on how No Win No Fee claims work as well.

I didn’t take time off work after an accident could I still claim guide

If you are thinking of starting a claim, we are here to help. When you get in touch, a specialist from our team will review your claim and offer free legal advice. At this point, you are under no obligation to proceed. However, if your claim is suitable, we could connect you to a personal injury solicitor. Any case they decide to work on will be managed on a No Win No Fee basis.

Remember, even if you didn’t take time off following an accident, you could still claim compensation for your injuries. On that basis, if you would like our support, please call us today on 0161 696 9685 to begin. Alternatively, please carry on reading to find out more.

Select A Section

A Guide On If You Can Claim If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work After An Accident
Calculate Your Compensation For An Accident If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work
What Other Damages Could I Claim?
What Is A Personal Injury Claim?
Your Rights After An Accident At Work?
Do I Have To Take Time Off After A Workplace Accident?
Is My Claim Affected By Not Taking Time Off Work?
What Happens If I Don’t Stop Working?
Workplace Safety Statistics
No Win No Fee Claims If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work After An Accident
Speak To Our Experts
What Else Do You Need To Know About Injury Claims?

A Guide On If You Can Claim If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work After An Accident

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 means that employers owe staff a legal duty of care to try and keep them safe whilst working. That means that risk assessments need to be conducted regularly and any risks that are identified need to be dealt with. If you are injured in an accident at work, that was caused by your employer’s negligence, then you might be able to seek damages for your suffering. That’s the case even if you didn’t take time off work after an accident.

Failure to adhere to health and safety legislation means that you could be compensated for injuries caused by a negligent employer. However, it doesn’t specify that time has to be taken off work to make you eligible. That makes sense because some injuries won’t have an impact on your ability to work even if you are in pain. For example, if you damage ligaments in your leg, you may still be able to carry out your duties if you work in an office. However, the same injury might prevent a bricklayer from working on a building site.

You should bear in mind that there is a time limit to make workplace accident claims. In most cases, you will have 3-years from the date of your accident. We advise you to start your claim as soon as you can. That’s because gathering evidence takes time and you’ll need to do that before you can submit your claim. We also advise that taking on legal representation should make the claim easier. Furthermore, we believe that using a personal injury solicitor could improve your chance of receiving the right amount of compensation.

Therefore, to check if a personal injury solicitor from our panel could help you claim, please contact our team of specialists today.

Calculate Your Compensation For An Accident If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work

Let’s begin the main part of this guide by considering how much compensation you could receive. The first part of most injury claims is called general damages. That’s compensation which aims to cover your pain and suffering. As lawyers and insurers use the Judicial College Guidelines to determine compensation levels, we’ve used it to populate the table below.

We have listed several different injuries along with the potential compensation amount. However, you should use these figures as guidance because each claim is different. If your claim is accepted by a solicitor, they will calculate a personalised estimate after reviewing your case in more detail.

Injury	Severity	Compensation Bracket	More Details
Neck	Moderate	£12,900 to £23,460	Covers Wrenching injuries or soft-tissue injuries which result in stiffness, discomfort, serious loss of movement and permanent or recurring pain.
Back	Minor	£7,410 to £11,730	Back injuries where the soft tissue is damaged. In this category, symptoms will be almost fully resolved in around 2-5-years (without surgery).
Shoulder	Moderate	£7,410 to £11,980	Frozen shoulder injuries where there is limited movement and discomfort for around 2-years.
Elbow	Severe	£36,770 to £51,460	Elbow injuries that are seriously disabling.
Knee	Moderate	£13,920 to £24,580	Covers torn cartilage, dislocation of the knee or torn meniscus injuries.
Ankle	Severe	£29,380 to £46,980	Where injuries where metal plates, pins and screws are used to fix the injury and result in residual disability or where extensive treatment is needed.

One of the most important factors used to set the level of compensation is how severe your injuries were. Therefore, as part of the claims process, you will need to have a medical assessment. The appointments are usually booked locally.

The meeting will be conducted by an independent specialist. They will use several methods to understand your injuries. They include an examination, asking you questions and reading your medical records. Once they have finished, they will write a report that explains the injuries you sustained and your future prognosis.

What Other Damages Could I Claim?

Alongside your general damages claim, you might need to look at claiming for any expenses you’ve had to pay for as a result of your injuries. This type of claim is called special damages. You won’t receive more money than you’ve spent though as special damages are not a fine. They are used to return you, financially, to the same position you were in before your accident.

What you can claim for varies depending on how you’ve been affected but special damages could include:

Medical expenses. You may need to claim for the cost of services not offered on the NHS, prescription costs or the cost of other medication.
Travel costs. You might be required to attend a hospital or medical practice on a number of occasions during your recovery. If that’s the case, claims could include the cost of fuel, public transport fares or parking fees.
Care costs. While you are recovering, you may need help with daily tasks and activities. Therefore, you might be able to claim an hourly rate for the person who cared for you. Alternatively, claims might be needed to cover the cost of a professional carer in more serious cases.
Vehicle or home modifications. Where injuries result in a disability, making changes to your home or vehicle could make it easier to cope with daily activities. If that’s true, you could be able to claim for the cost of those changes.
Lost income. If you didn’t take time off work after an accident, this category isn’t likely to apply to you.
Future lost income. However, if your injury deteriorates and affects your long-term ability to work, you could ask for future lost income to be considered. Your age, salary and employment prospects will all be considered in this category.

What Is A Personal Injury Claim?

For a personal injury solicitor to take on your claim, you will need to show them that:

The defendant (your employer) owed you a duty of care.
That an accident occurred because of the defendant’s negligence.
As a result, you suffered an injury or were made ill.

If you can’t prove all of those things, the defendant could deny liability for your injuries or even claim the accident didn’t happen. Therefore, evidence to back up your claim is vital. Our advice is to take the following steps following an accident at work:

Report the incident. Record accidents in an accident report book. Your copy could help to prove when and where the accident took place and how you were injured.
Get treatment. On top of any first aid given on-site, you should visit A&E to have your injuries treated. Copies of your medical notes could help prove the extent of any injuries.
Take photographs. Where possible, photograph the accident scene as soon as possible. Try to include the cause of the accident before it is taken away or repaired. CCTV footage could also help here.
Seek witnesses. If anybody else saw what happened, gather their details. A personal injury solicitor might ask them for a statement later on.
Record costs. Keep a record of any financial expenses you incur during your treatment and recovery.

Once you have gathered your evidence, why not call our team for a free assessment of your case? An advisor will go through everything with you and let you know if you could progress to a claim. If your claim is suitable, a personal injury solicitor could represent you on a No Win No Fee basis.

What Rights Do You Have After An Accident At Work?

If you are injured as a result of a workplace accident (caused by your employer’s negligence), you are fully entitled to seek compensation. In fact, employers are obliged to have insurance in place to cover such claims. This is explained in the Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969.

Furthermore, employers cannot:

Stop you from making a claim.
Treat you differently because you are claiming.
Discipline you or demote you as a result of your claim.
Sack or fire you because of your claim.

Should you be treated any differently because you decided to claim, your employer could face a separate claim for unfair or constructive dismissal.

If you would like our help, please get in touch today. Generally, you will not need to deal with your employer if you work with a lawyer. They will handle everything for you, and, in most cases, all communication will be through your employer’s insurer.

Do I Have To Take Time Off After A Workplace Accident?

Legally, you are under no obligation to take time off from work if you’re injured in an accident. You will need to decide whether your injuries will prevent you from carrying out your normal duties safely.

Here are some things to consider before returning to work:

How serious your injuries are and the level of pain they are causing.
Your role at work and the type of workplace you are based in. For example, if you work in a physically demanding role, will your injuries allow you to continue.
Whether your injuries will get worse if you work.
Your doctor’s recommendations about your ability to work. Your company may also ask occupational health to verify your fitness to work.

Remember, whether you return to work or not will not affect your eligibility to claim for your injuries. Therefore, it is important that you review your options carefully.

If you didn’t take time off after an accident at work, but you would like to check if you could be compensated, please get in touch today. We offer free legal advice about claiming during a no-obligation telephone consultation.

Is My Claim Affected By Not Taking Time Off Work?

In short, no. As mentioned earlier, if you have been injured at work, and you can demonstrate that the accident was caused by negligence, you could be entitled to claim. Some scenarios that could entitle you to claim include:

Injuries caused because you were not given suitable Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
Where you are injured because of poorly maintained or faulty work equipment.
Injuries that happen because you are tired due to a lack of rest breaks.
Accidents that result in injuries because you were not trained adequately.
Injuring yourself because you weren’t made aware of the company’s health and safety procedures.

We are here to help if you’d like guidance on what to do next. When you’ve armed yourself with all of the evidence available, please get in touch. We will go through your claim and could partner you with a solicitor from our panel if your case appears viable.

What Happens If I Don’t Stop Working?

As we have already explained, it is your choice whether you return to work after an accident or take time off to recover. If you do continue working, it is important that:

You report the accident and your injuries to your employer.
The accident is recorded formally in an accident report book.
You have sought medical attention for your injuries.

The reason these things are important is that, without them, you could find it difficult to prove that your suffering was caused by the accident and not the fact you carried on working.

As well as respecting your right to return to work, your employer must help you to recover. Therefore, if they believe working is causing you to suffer, they may suggest taking time off or asking for an occupational health assessment.

We can help you if you decide that you would like to make a claim. Our specialist advisors will review your case with you, give free legal advice, and explain your options to you.

Workplace Safety Statistics

In this section, we are briefly going to cover some workplace statistics from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). In the year 2019/20:

111 people were killed at work.
693,000 people were injured at work.
The estimated cost of ill health and workplace injuries was £16.2 billion.
1.6 million employees were affected by work-related illnesses.
65,427 injuries had to be reported to the HSE under RIDDOR rules.

Some of those numbers might surprise you and, of course, there’s no way of knowing how many were caused by employer negligence.

However, if you are one of the people who has suffered because your employer was negligent, we could help you claim. Our advice is free whether you begin a claim or not. So, why not get in touch today to find out whether you might be eligible to be compensated?

No Win No Fee Claims If You Didn’t Take Time Off Work After An Accident

Many people fail to make workplace accident claims because they’re too worried about the cost of hiring a solicitor. We advise using a solicitor that will who offer a No Win No Fee service. If your claim is accepted, you will get access to a legal specialist, but your financial risk will be lowered.

Before your claim is taken on, the solicitor will need to review it. For claims they take on, a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) is used to fund the solicitor’s work. The CFA makes it clear what the solicitor must achieve before they get paid. The document will also show that:

There are no upfront charges to pay the solicitor.
The solicitor’s fees are not passed on to you while your claim is processed.
You are not liable to pay your solicitor’s fees if the claim fails.

Should your solicitor win compensation for you, they will retain a percentage of it to cover the cost of their work. This is called a success fee which is listed in the CFA. To prevent overcharging for legal services, the success fee is capped by law.

Would you like to proceed on a No Win No Fee basis? If so, call our team now to have your claim reviewed for free.

Speak To Our Experts

You have almost completed this article on claiming if you didn’t take time off work after an accident. Hopefully, our guide has helped you understand your rights following a workplace accident. If you would now like to talk with us about your options, you can:

Call for free legal advice on 0161 696 9685.
Ask an online specialist about claiming via live chat.
Send a message through our online enquiry page so that we can call you back.

When you make contact, an advisor will guide you through the process. They will begin by assessing your claim with you. During your consultation, you will receive free legal advice on how to proceed. If the claim appears viable, you might be partnered with a personal injury solicitor. If your claim is accepted, your solicitor will represent you on a No Win No Fee basis.

What Else Do You Need To Know About Injury Claims?

Thank you for visiting our site today and reading about an accident at work claims when you didn’t take time off. In this final section, we have provided some useful links that might be relevant during a claim. Please let an advisor know if there is anything else we can help with.

RIDDOR – The Reporting of Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013.

Raising A Problem At Work – This article from Acas explains what you should do if you want to report a workplace problem.

Broken Bones – This article helps you to identify the symptoms of broken bones.

Below, you can find links to lots more guides on accidents at work:

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