I Was Injured In An Accident Due To Gross Misconduct At Work, Can I Claim?

This guide will explore when a claim could be made following gross misconduct at work. In the workplace, you are owed a duty of care by your employer. This means they should take reasonable steps to ensure they keep the working environment safe. This includes ensuring other employees are following workplace policies and taking action if they don’t. However, if your employer fails to do so, causing you to sustain harm as a result of another employee’s gross misconduct, you may be able to seek compensation.

Gross misconduct at work claims guide

This guide explains what constitutes gross misconduct and how it could lead to you sustaining harm.

In addition, we will explore the compensation you may receive for your injury if you’re eligible to claim.

If you wish to seek legal representation but are unsure about doing so due to the costs often associated with hiring a solicitor, this guide could help. We provide information on the services our panel of solicitors could offer on a No Win No Fee basis.

For more information on your potential personal injury claim, you can get in touch with our team by:

Calling us on 0161 696 9685
Completing our contact form
Using our live chat feature

Select A Section

What Is Considered Gross Misconduct At Work?
What Are Your Rights If You’re Injured In The Workplace?
Could Gross Misconduct At Work Cause Accidents?
Could Gross Misconduct At Work Lead To Dismissal?
Accident Claims Calculator
Find Out If You Could Make An Accident Claim Against Your Employer

What Is Considered Gross Misconduct At Work?

Gross misconduct at work constitutes an employee’s actions in the workplace that have very serious effects. Examples can include the following:

Theft
Physical violence
Gross negligence i.e. the serious lack of care of their duties or other people
Fraud
Serious insubordination i.e. refusing to take orders that are lawful and reasonable from a supervisor

If an employer’s negligence leads to gross misconduct resulting in you becoming harmed, then you may have grounds to claim. Call our team to find out more.

What Are Your Rights If You’re Injured In The Workplace?

In the workplace, your employer has a duty of care to ensure they keep you safe whilst working. A part of this is taking reasonable steps to reduce or remove the risks posed by known hazards.

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 sets out some of the general steps an employer can take:

Providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Employees should have access to appropriate PPE where necessary. Inadequate PPE such as dented hard hats could endanger employees leading to a head injury or serious brain injuries.
General housekeeping – The workspace and pathways should be cleared of all spills and obstructions or signposted. Loose wires are slip, trip, and fall hazards that could cause harm.
Providing sufficient training and supervision – All employees should have access to free and relevant training to perform their job safely. Inadequate training could result in poor knowledge of health and safety procedures such as how to operate machinery properly, leading to accidents and potential injury.
Taking action to address issues in the workplace: If your employer is made aware of certain issues, such as an employee coming into work under the influence of alcohol but fails to take action. This could lead to gross misconduct at work causing other employees to sustain harm due to the safety risk posed by their co-worker operating machinery under the influence.

Call our team to find out whether you’re eligible to seek accident at work compensation if you’re injured due to their negligence.

How Many People Are Injured At Work?

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) collected reports made by employers under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR).

As per these reports, there were 51,211 non-fatal injuries sustained by employees in 2020/21. Of these 8% were caused by acts of violence.

Could Gross Misconduct At Work Cause Accidents?

There are certain incidents of gross misconduct at work that could lead to someone sustaining harm in an accident.

For example, an employee may have been getting increasingly obnoxious and demonstrating a temper when conversing with other employees. Despite your employer being aware of the situation, they failed to do anything about it. As a result, the employee may have gone on to attack another employee causing them physical harm and psychological trauma.

It is important to note that not all accidents lead to claims, you must be able to prove that an employer’s negligence led to gross misconduct that caused you to suffer an injury at work.

Could Gross Misconduct At Work Lead To Dismissal?

In the event of gross misconduct at work, your employer should launch an investigation and proceed through the disciplinary procedure. The results of this could lead to dismissal from work.

It’s important to note that actions seen as gross misconduct can vary depending on the business and type of workplace. As such, your workplace may have a unique set of policies and rules.

You should consult your workplace handbook for more information or speak with your employer.

Accident Claims Calculator

Generally, your claim may comprise general and special damages. General damages seek to compensate for the impact your injuries have had on your quality of life. This can include the physical pain and emotional suffering you have experienced.

The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) publishes bracket compensation amounts that solicitors can refer to when valuing the general damages head of claim. We have included these in the table below. The figures are based on the most recent publication of the JCG, published in April 2022.

As each claim is valued based on its unique circumstances, you should only use the figures as a guide.

Injury	Compensation	Notes
Severe knee injuries (a) (i)	£69,730 to £96,210	A serious knee injury involving joint disruption and other issues.
Fracture of jaws (e) (i)	£30,490 to £45,540	Very serious multiple fractures that result in ongoing issues and lengthy treatment.
Wrist injury (b)	£24,500 to £39,170	A permanent disability, with minimal useful remaining movement.
Moderate neck injury (b) (i)	£24,990 to £38,490	This bracket includes injuries such as dislocations and fractures causing immediate issues.
Less severe injuries to the elbow (b)	£15,650 to £32,010	The injured person may experience function impairment, but there is no major surgery undertaken and no significant disability.
Moderate ankle injuries (c)	£13,740 to £26,590	Ligament tears, fractures and other moderate injuries that cause walking and standing difficulties with awkwardness on stairs.
Fractures of nose or nasal complex (c) (i)	£10,640 to £23,130	This bracket includes serious fractures that require multiple operations and may cause other permanent issues.
Moderate shoulder injuries (c)	£7,890 to £12,770	Cases of frozen shoulder where movement is limited. There are symptoms of discomfort lasting for two years.
Minor back injuries (c) (i)	£7,890 to £12,510	The individual may undergo a full recovery, or to a nuisance level, within five years.
Moderate toe injuries (e)	Up to £9,600	Injuries in this bracket include simple fractures or lacerations affecting one or more toes.

Additionally, you may receive special damages which compensate for the financial losses caused by your injuries. These can include:

Loss of earnings
Domestic care, i.e. cooking and gardening
Child care costs
Travelling costs between medical appointments

For more information about gross misconduct at work compensation claim amounts, speak to our advisors today.

Find Out If You Could Make An Accident Claim Against Your Employer

If you would like to find out if you can make gross misconduct at work claim, then talk to our advisors today. After exploring the validity of your case, they may be able to forward you to our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors.

Working under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), our solicitors require no upfront or ongoing costs for their services. You also don’t need to pay for their services if your claim fails.

If your claim is successful, a success fee is deducted. This is a small percentage taken from your compensation that is capped by law.

For more information on whether a solicitor from our panel could represent your claim on this basis, get in touch. An advisor can also answer any other questions you may have regarding your potential claim.

Calling us on 0161 696 9685
Completing our contact form
Using our live chat feature

Employment Accident Claim Resources

We have included some additional resources below.

GOV- Statutory Sick Pay
NHS- When to visit an urgent treatment centre
HSE- Accidents and investigations

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

Contact our advisors today for more information about your potential gross misconduct at work claim.

Page by KN

Published by NL

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I Was Injured At Work Due To Gross Misconduct, Can I Claim?

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