Making a claim
Introduction
Because of the nature of occupational illness work, there is a good deal of information that we need to obtain before we can advise on the prospects of success and pursuing a claim for damages. You will appreciate that, in many instances, individuals have been exposed to a good deal of exposure to a particularly harmful dust or fume etc., over a considerable number of years with different employers. We have to look at each exposure and detail that exposure within a statement prepared for the individual. We also have to look at when the injury commenced, the symptoms it creates and the effect of those symptoms on the everyday life of the sufferer not only in the working environment but also at home.
We therefore arrange to interview a client and spend some time preparing a detailed statement of the nature of the exposure and the illness suffered. This statement is sent to the client for his consideration to make sure it is accurate.
We also obtain a number of documents which we need to study before giving advice. These can include medical records, occupational health records, employment histories and statements from witnesses.
In respect of pursuing a claim, we have to succeed on a number of different issues. In brief, these are as follows:
- Condition - We have to be able to show that the client is suffering from a specific occupational illness or condition. This may sound obvious but the nature of the condition has to be identified, e.g. asbestosis.
- Causation - The claimant has to prove that the disease or illness has been caused by exposure to an injurious agent at the place of employment. Difficulties can arise when other exposures may well have created the condition, or indeed when the condition may develop without any exposure at the workplace. For example, deafness can result from the ageing process in addition to noise at the workplace. We obtain reports from the country’s leading consultants in respect of the occupational illnesses we have outlined to provide their opinion as to the causative link between the exposure and the condition.
- Foreseeability - We have to be able to show that, at the time of the exposure, the employers ought to have been aware of the potential dangers of exposing their workers to the injurious dust/fume etc. This can often require expert evidence from a consulting engineer to identify the government papers and advice that individual employers ought to have been aware of at the time when they were exposing their employees to such dust or fume.
- Negligence - We have to be able to show that the employer failed in the duty of care to their employee in exposing him to the injurious agent. We look to see what the employer should have known of the dangers and what they ought properly and reasonably to have done to prevent the exposure.
- Limitation - Lastly, we have to commence proceedings within three years of the date when the client knew or ought to have known that his condition may be work-related. This may not be an easy date to identify and we have to investigate the nature of the claimant’s knowledge of his condition and what he should have known in relation to its likely cause.
We have to, therefore, obtain evidence to make sure that we clear the hurdles listed above. If we do, then we have good prospects of success in pursuing a claim for damages.
Contact us now
To discuss making a claim further, contact us now on 0870 143 0970 or enquiries@rjw.co.uk.
