A Door Slammed On My Fingers At Work, Could I Claim?
Last updated 7th March 2024. By Cat Way. This guide explains how you can claim if a door slammed on your fingers at work. We outline the eligibility criteria you should meet and the injuries you could suffer.
Firstly, we highlight how your employer is responsible for your safety in the workplace. Under health and safety law, employers must take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety and well-being while at work.
Moreover, we explore the personal injury compensation time limit you should adhere to and what forms of evidence can be advantageous to accident at work claims. Following this, we discuss the payouts you could be entitled to receive and distinguish between the damages. Additionally, we also outline the assistance that legal professionals may use to value your injuries.
Furthermore, our guide discusses what you can expect when entering into a No Win No Fee agreement with solicitors and how this can be financially beneficial.
To summarise, please keep on reading our guide for further information on making a claim after a door slammed on your fingers at work. Comparatively, you can reach our team to discuss your queries in the following ways:
- Call us on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us by completing and submitting our form
- Use our chat to receive live advice
Select A Section
- How Do I Claim If A Door Slammed On My Fingers At Work?
- Injuries Caused By A Door Slamming On Your Fingers At Work
- How To Prove Your Finger Injuries Happened In The Workplace
- What Could I Claim If A Door Slammed On My Fingers At Work?
- Could Legal Expert Help Me To Make A No Win No Fee Claim?
- Further Information On Workplace Accident Claims
How Do I Claim If A Door Slammed On My Fingers At Work
If a door slammed on your fingers at work, you could be eligible to claim compensation. The Health and Safety At Work etc. Act 1974 states that your employer is legally required to take reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety at work. They could be liable for your injuries if they do not do this.
You should be able to illustrate that:
- Your employer owed you a duty of care at the time of your injuries.
- There was a breach of this duty.
- The breach led to your injuries.
If you can show this, your employer could be liable for your injuries which amounts to negligence.
Your employer could breach their duty in a number of ways. Examples include:
- You may not have been given the necessary personal protective equipment you require, such as safety gloves, leading to a hand injury.
- A door which did not have an anti-slam mechanism fitted led to your finger being trapped.
- There may be damage to the door due to lack of maintenance by your employer, leading to a finger injury if it slams unexpectedly.
For more information on making a personal injury claim, please contact us for a free consultation.
Work Accident Claim Time Limits
When making an accident claim, there is a time limit to be aware of. The Limitation Act 1980 states that generally, you have three years from the accident or the date you became aware of the negligence involved to start a claim.
Exceptions to this time limit include:
- If a person is under eighteen at the time of the accident, they will have three years from their eighteenth birthday to make a claim.
- A person lacking the mental capacity to claim will have three years from the date they recover their mental capacity in the event that this happens.
A litigation friend can claim on behalf of these individuals. They are a trusted adult with the person’s best interests.
Injuries Caused By A Door Slamming On Your Fingers At Work
After a door slammed on your fingers at work, you could sustain various different injuries. A few examples are:
- Broken or fractured fingers.
- Lacerations or cuts.
- Crushing injury.
- Amputated finger/fingertip.
If your employer’s negligence caused you to sustain injuries, you could claim for compensation. After receiving the required medical attention, please contact our team to learn more about claiming for your injuries.
How To Prove Your Finger Injuries Happened In The Workplace
Evidence can be beneficial when making a claim for your finger injury. Examples of evidence that can help to support your claim include:
- CCTV footage and photographs of your injuries and the site of the accident.
- A diary illustrating your symptoms and the mental impact.
- Copies of medical records.
- Witness contact information.
A solicitor from our panel could assist you in gathering these forms of evidence. Please contact our advisors for more information about what evidence could be useful to your claim.
What Could I Claim If A Door Slammed On My Fingers At Work?
If a door slammed on your fingers at work caused because your employer failed to uphold their duty of care to you as an employee, you might be eligible to claim compensation. There are two types of damages you could claim for, the first being general damages. These aim to cover the pain and suffering you have endured due to your injuries.
When valuing your injuries, solicitors may use the Judicial College Guidelines to assist them. These provide compensation brackets for numerous injuries. These amounts are in the table below. However, you should only use these as a guide, as the amounts are not definite.
Guideline Compensation Brackets
Injury | Severity | Notes | Value |
---|---|---|---|
Hand | Amputation of Index and Middle and/or Ring Fingers (d) | The use of the hand is little and the grip is exceedingly weak. | £61,910 to £90,750 |
Serious (e) | The hand has been reduced to half of its capacity. Fingers may have been amputated and rejoined with cosmetic disfigurement. | £29,000 to £61,910 | |
Severe Fractures to Fingers (f) | Partial amputations have resulted in deformity, impaired grip and disturbed sensation. | Up to £36,740 | |
Very Serious Injury to Thumb (s) | The thumb has been severed at the base and grafted but a deformed digit has remained that is essentially useless. | £19,600 to £35,010 | |
Less Serious (g) | A severe crush injury results in impaired function that is significant despite surgeries or without surgery taken place. | £14,450 to £29,000 | |
Total and Partial Loss Of Index Finger (i) | Total loss or disfigurement of the index finger causing impairment of grip. | £12,170 to £18,740 | |
Serious Injury to Ring or Middle Fingers (k) | Fractures or injuries that are serious and cause stiffness, deformity, and a loss of grip. | £10,320 to £16,340 | |
Moderate (h) | Soft tissue injuries, crush injuries, and penetrative wounds. | £5,720 to £13,280 | |
Moderate Injuries to the Thumb (u) | There is damage to the tendons or nerves and injuries may necessitate arthrodesis of the interphalangeal joint. | £9,670 to £12,590 | |
Fracture of Index Finger (j) | Fracture has recovered but the grip is still impaired and pain persists. | £9,110 to £12,240 |
You could claim for special damages. These compensate you for the financial losses you have incurred due to your injuries. Examples of these include:
- Loss of earnings. You can illustrate this through payslips.
- Costs of home or equipment adaptations. You can show this through invoices.
- Public transport costs. Tickets from buses or trains can demonstrate this.
Could Legal Expert Help Me To Make A No Win No Fee Claim?
Now that you know more about the claims process after your finger is slammed in a door at work, you may be interested in starting a claim. One of our expert solicitors could help you do this by offering their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a kind of No Win No Fee contract.
When a solicitor works under a CFA, they don’t require a fee to start working on your claim. They also won’t take any ongoing fees to retain their services, nor will they take a fee for their services if your claim isn’t a success.
In fact, the only time your solicitor will take a fee for their work is if your trapped finger claim succeeds. In this case, they are due a success fee. This is taken straight from your compensation as a legislatively-capped percentage, which means the majority of your compensation goes to you.
Our advisors are here to help. If you’d like to find out if one of our solicitors could help you claim after your finger was trapped in a door, contact our team today. They can evaluate your claim for free and offer more information surrounding the accident at work claims process. They can also provide further insight into what a Conditional Fee Agreement is and how it could help you. To get started:
- Call us on 0800 073 8804
- Use the live chat box
- Contact us online
Get In Touch With Our Team
If you have any queries about making a personal injury claim, please get in touch with us:
- Call us on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us through our online form.
- Use our chat to receive support.
Further Information On Workplace Accident Claims
Thank you for reading our guide on making a personal injury claim after a door slammed on your fingers at work. For more of our information, please explore the links below:
- Find out Who Pays Your Damages After A Work-Related Injury with our informative accident at work claims guide.
- Get help pursuing Facial Injury Claims and learn more about the personal injury compensation claims process.
- Learn about claiming for Nerve Damage Caused By An Accident At Work and find out if you could be eligible for compensation.
For more information, visit the sites linked:
- Risk Assessment – HSE
- Statutory Sick Pay – Government Guidance
- Broken Finger Or Thumb – NHS