Can You Sue For Falling Down Stairs At Work?
By Lewis Aaliyah. Last Updated 27th December 2024. Falling down the stairs at work can be a painful and traumatic experience. If you fell down the stairs at work and it wasn’t your fault, then you may be able to claim compensation if you were injured. That’s where we’re here to help.
Our advisors are available to take your call night or day. Once we know more about the circumstance surrounding your case, we may be able to put you in contact with our panel of personal injury solicitors.
By getting in touch with us today, you could get the process of claiming compensation started. Whether you had a slip, trip or fall, if you were injured and it wasn’t your fault then you could have a valid claim. Get in touch with us today and we will do our absolute best to assist you. Read on for more information.
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Our expert advisors are ready and waiting to help you. They’re available 24/7 and give free legal advice.
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Services And Information
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- The Criteria For Claiming For Injuries From Falling Down Stairs
- What Can Cause You To Fall Down Stairs At Work?
- The Kind Of Injuries Can You Get From Falling Down The Stairs
- Calculating Compensation For Falling Down Stairs At Work
- I Had A Fall At Work, What Should I Do?
- Claim For A Fall – No Win No Fee Solicitors
- Other Information
The Criteria For Claiming For Injuries From Falling Down Stairs
If you have suffered injuries from falling down the stairs at work, you may be eligible to make a personal injury claim. However, you will need to prove that your injuries were caused by your employer breaching their duty of care. Together, this is known as negligence.
Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, your employer owes you a duty of care. Per this duty, they must take reasonable steps to ensure your safety while you are in the workplace and performing work-related duties. If they were to breach this duty of care, you could become injured, and you may be eligible to make an accident at work claim.
Contact our advisors today to discuss your potential fall at work claim and receive free advice.
How Much Time Do I Have To Claim For Falling Down Stairs At Work?
If you fall down the stairs at work and it wasn’t your fault, you generally have 3 years from the date of the accident to make a claim.
There are some exceptions to the 3-year time limit which we’ll explain below:
Child Accident Claims
If someone under the age of 18 suffers a workplace accident, they have until their 18th birthday before the 3-year time limit begins. Prior to this date, their case can be pursued by someone else for them.
Anyone under 18 cannot legally make their own personal injury claim. However, an individual known as a litigation friend could do so on their behalf. For example, a litigation friend can be a parent, guardian or solicitor.
Claiming For Individuals with Reduced Mental Capacity
If someone lacks the mental capacity to claim, then the 3-year time limit functions slightly differently again. The time limit only starts from the date the injured party regains sufficient mental capacity to pursue their own claim. However, before this happens, a litigation friend could claim on their behalf.
What Can Cause You To Fall Down Stairs At Work?
There are many possible scenarios that could lead to you falling down the stairs at your place of work. The causes could range from damaged stairs or a damaged floor to items being left or dropped on the stairs.
Some other causes for falling down the stairs at work include:
- Loose or unstable handrail/banister
- Torn carpet or another form of damaged floor
- Wet floor signs not being properly displayed
- Spilt liquids not being attended to
- Insufficient or poor lighting
- Inappropriate flooring material without non-slip properties
Your employer has a responsibility to protect your health and safety. If you’re injured due to their negligence, you could claim.
The Kind Of Injuries Can You Get From Falling Down The Stairs
As a result of falling down the stairs at work, there are a number of injuries you could sustain. The severity of these injuries can vary depending on a number of factors. Some injuries that could be sustained are:
- Spinal/disc injuries: Compressed or slipped discs are not uncommon after falling down the stairs. Not only is the pain known to be very extreme in some cases, but there can also be a great deal of treatment/physiotherapy involved during recovery.
- Nerve damage: This can be felt in a number of ways. Tingling and burning are not uncommon symptoms, but some fine motor function has also been known to be lost or affected. This kind of injury may not present itself immediately following the accident but could start to display itself further down the line. There can be extensive rehabilitation involved.
- Head/brain injuries: A head injury or brain injury can range from minor to severe. Taking a blow to the head can lead to a concussion. Whilst a concussion can seem to rectify itself relatively quickly in a number of days or weeks, there can still be lasting damage for some. Memory loss, changes in behaviour and waves of nausea are all concussion symptoms that have been known to occur to varying degrees of persistence. Severe damage to the brain can lead to irreversible side effects.
- Broken bones: Fractures can occur in almost any bone in the body as a result of falling down the stairs at work. The height of your fall and the angle at which you hit the ground can affect which bone could be broken, and how badly. Sprains and bruising can sometimes be mistaken for broken bones, so it’s always best to seek medical attention to make sure.
Calculating Compensation For Falling Down Stairs At Work
There are two potential heads of claim in personal injury cases: general damages and special damages.
General damages are intended to address the level of physical or mental pain and suffering that the individual endured as a result of someone else’s negligence. Recovery time also factors into this amount.
This figure can be calculated using a publication known as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). The JCG is used by the people responsible for valuing injuries for a claim. It contains a list of different injuries and recommended awards for differing levels of severity.
We’ve created the compensation table below to illustrate the potential compensation awards you could receive.
| Injury To: | Category | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Areas | Severe and with significant financial loss | Up to £500,000+ |
| Head/Brain | Moderately Severe | £267,340 to £344,150 |
| Head/Brain | Moderate (iii) | £52,550 to £110,720 |
| Back | Severe (i) | £111,150 to £196,450 |
| Back | Severe (iii) | £47,320 to £85,100 |
| Ankle | Very Severe | £61,090 to £85,070 |
| Ankle | Moderate | £16,770 to £32,450 |
| Shoulder | Severe | £23,430 to £58,610 |
| Knee | Moderate (i) | £18,110 to £31,960 |
| Foot | Modest | Up to £16,770 |
The second head of claim is special damages. Special damages are calculated on a case-by-case basis. This bespoke amount is paid to cover any financial losses or additional outgoings that the claimant may have experienced due to their injuries after falling down the stairs at work.
For example, as a result of the injuries, you may have taken time off work which resulted in a loss of earnings.
You can prove special damages by providing documents such as bank statements or payslips.
If you’d like a free, accurate estimate of what you could claim, why not get in touch today?
I Had A Fall At Work, What Should I Do?
After falling down the stairs at work, you may not be sure what to do. Here are some suggested steps that could prove helpful, especially if you want to make an accident at work claim.
- Seek medical attention. Common questions about workplace falls include, “I fell down the stairs, should I go to the doctor?” or “If I fell down stairs, should I go to hospital?” If you have injuries that need tending to, it’s important to get the medical treatment you need.
- Collect evidence of your treatment. Once you’ve been treated, you have a right to request a copy of your medical records. This will be very important for a potential workplace accident claim.
- Inform your workplace. If you slipped down the stairs at work and suffered harm, it should be noted in the workplace’s accident book. Ask to see the book entry to make sure it’s accurate, and get a copy because it is also useful evidence.
- Speak to any witnesses. Collect contact details for anyone who saw what happened and what caused it. You don’t have to gather statements.
- Get legal advice. If you work with a professional lawyer who has a proven track record in handling personal injury claims, your chances of receiving compensation could improve. At UK Law, a solicitor from our expert panel will know what to do.
For more advice, or to see if a solicitor can help you with your workplace fall claim, call our helpline through the number above.
Claim For A Fall – No Win No Fee Solicitors
When making a fall at work claim, you might seek the help of solicitors to help you. However, if you are worried about the financial risk of using solicitors, our panel of accident at work solicitors could work with you on a No Win No Fee basis.
Under this type of arrangement, you may not be required to pay an upfront fee. If your claim is unsuccessful, you won’t need to pay your solicitor’s fees at all. If your claim succeeds, they will deduct a success fee from your compensation. The percentage that No Win No Fee solicitors take is legally capped under the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013.
If you want to claim for a fall injury and think you’d benefit from working with an expert solicitor from our panel, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Get In Touch About Falling Down The Stairs At Work
To find out more, why not get in touch with our advisors? They give free legal advice and are available 24/7. Plus, you won’t be under any obligation to proceed with our services. You can get in touch by:
- Calling us on 020 3870 4868.
- Using our live chat to get instant answers.
- Using our online claim form to request a callback.
Other Information
Here are some additional resources to explore regarding your injury:
- Statistics for injuries sustained from falls from a height in the food and drink industry
- NHS advice regarding falls
- More on concussions and related symptoms
- We also have our own guides that are related to claiming:
- Your rights following an accident at work in the UK
- Guide to claims for accidents on holiday
- How much compensation you could be awarded following a slip, trip or fall
Thank you for reading our guide exploring whether you could be eligible to claim after falling down the stairs at work.
Writer IB
Checked by HT
