Injured worker could get £4.2m

A badly injured machine operator has won a damages package which could reach £4.2 million, should he live for another 20 years. The 57-year-old from Barnsley was awarded the settlement after suffering severe brain damage when he was hit in the face by a connecting metal bar fixing a grapple to a boom.

Christopher Kaye was changing the grapple attachment on the excavator carrying the connecting bar when it sprang out and knocked him to the ground on a construction site in Sheffield. He underwent life-saving surgery at Sheffield Hospital but now needs 24-hour care. At first the company concerned, Euro Dismantling Services Ltd, denied responsibility but accepted nine tenths liability later, according to lawyers for Mr Kaye. The worker is to receive a £1.75 million lump sum and extra annual £135,000 payments for life following the accident in October 2008.

His legal team said his training was inadequate and gear which could have enabled him to do the job more safely was only bought after the accident. The firm denied claims that a similar accident happened beforehand. IBB’s Personal Injury and Clinical Negligence Team, comments:

“There are risks associated with demolition, the key ones being falls from height, injury from failing materials and uncontrolled collapse of a structure. Therefore all demolition, dismantling and structural alterations should be carefully planned and supervised by specialist project teams. Those responsible for a construction site and workers on the site have a duty to assess, eliminate and control the risks and provide a safe system of work.”

IBB Solicitors has built a reputation for quality of service in pursuing compensation in cases involving accident, illness or death, including accidents at work. If you would like advice on personal injury issues, contact a member of IBB’s Personal Injury team: call us on 01895 207972 or email PI@ibblaw.co.uk.