Defective Equipment

Injury due to the use of Defective Equipment in the Workplace

In most places of work, equipment and machinery is used to carry out certain tasks. This includes various tools, apparatus, appliances or anything else provided to you to assist you in doing your job.

This includes but is not limited to:

• Power machinery
• Tools
• Factory machinery
• Appliances e.g. kettles
• Electrical devices e.g. laptops
• Instruments e.g. knives, scalpels
• Mobile vehicles e.g. forklift trucks

Unfortunately, defective equipment can cause significant injury to the users and others through no fault of their own.

Main Causes of Injury Where Amputation May Occur

There are many accidents which could result in an amputation injury occurring. Some of the most common ones are:

• Lacerations
• Broken bones
• Crush Injuries
• Burns
• Amputations

Essentially, equipment that is defective or poorly maintained may become dangerous to use. Controls and assessments should be in place to detect these faults and equipment should not be used until it is repaired to the correct standard. If you unknowingly use dangerous equipment that you think is safe, you are being put at unnecessary risk of injury.

Employers Responsibilities

By law, employers should ensure the equipment used by its workers are safe and suitable for the job. They are bound by the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) which place a duty of care on businesses who own and have control work equipment.

By law, employers must ensure work equipment is:

• Subjected to regular risk assessments
• Safe to use
• CE marked and came with a Declaration of Conformity
• Maintained in a safe condition
• Maintenance logs kept up to date
• Inspected to check it has been installed correctly
• Inspected to check for signs of deterioration
• Being used for its intended use
• Only being used by workers who have had adequate training and any supervisors have also been trained
• Accompanied by adequate and clear safety instructions in English
• Not exposing users to dangerous hot or cold temperatures
• Complete with adequate controls to start, stop and control it
• Stabilised by clamping if necessary

There should also be suitable safety controls in place such as:

• Emergency stop devices
• Isolation from energy sources
• Visible warning signs and markings
• Protective devices and controls such as safety guards which prevent access to a dangerous part of the machinery
• Braking devices in any driven machinery
• Protection against crushing by machinery rolling over such as restraints and a rollover protection system

How Can We Help You?

At Injury Lawyers UK, we have a team of dedicated lawyers who have years of experience in claiming against workplaces for failing in their duty to protect employee health and safety to legal standards. We understand how stressful and life changing injuries can be for both yourself and your family. This doesn’t just take into consideration the pain you have suffered but also the emotional distress caused, loss of past and future earnings, an inability to do the job you are trained for, effects on your personal life and rehabilitation services.

Our advisers will initially take you through the process of discussing your case and then be able to tell you if you have a potentially successful claim to be made. We believe in speaking in clear and jargon-free terms so that you always have a full understanding of the process.

We always aim to secure the maximum amount of compensation available so that you get the justice you deserve. Our policy is a no win no fee – meaning you do not pay a penny unless we win your case. This takes the stress out of claiming compensation as you know there are no costs to yourself until compensation is secured.