Council loses fight in injury at work claim

An injury at work claim resulted in compensation payment of more than £2,000 when a woman hurt her back, but the local authority at fault contested paying for legal fees.

Kirklees Council has been ordered by a judge to cover the cost of the case, in which a heavy lifting-related accident at work saw Hayley Kaye awarded £2,197, after she was forced to take sick leave from her job as a gardener, The Huddersfield Daily Examiner reports.

Lord Justice Jackson, senior judge at the Court of Appeal, commented: “I dread to think what costs were run up as this case proceeded towards trial."

He revealed his "regret" at the local authority's failure to make a "modest offer" to settle the injury at work claim, implying such a move would have saved the expense of legal services fees and paying for medical examinations.

A recent work accident payout resulted in £100,000 compensation for a nurse who injured her back while lifting the leg of an obese patient, indicating the dangers involved when individuals are hurt through not fault of their own.

Published by Phil Hammond