Personal Injury & Accidents Service
As a CWU member when you make a personal injury claim with UnionLine, you are guaranteed 100% of the compensation you are awarded. All of the costs of making a personal injury claim are covered by your CWU membership. Our personal injury team work to secure the best possible outcome for our members claim. We deal with:
Accidents at work
Personal injuries at work can include lacerations or broken bones, or more serious injuries such as burns, amputations and sometimes fatalities. More than half of all employees don’t claim for accidents at work when they rightfully could do. Part of the reason for this may be that they are worried about upsetting their employer. A good employer should have insurance to cover the risk of accidents or injury in the workplace.
If a member makes a claim, their employer is far more likely to fix the cause of the problem. By making a claim the member is in fact helping their work colleagues by ensuring accidents and injuries don’t happen again.
If a member does have an accident they must make sure they inform the employer about the accident either by making sure it is recorded in the accident book or by giving them details of the accident and injury at a later date.
Industrial disease
Industrial disease is the term used to describe a condition or illness which has developed through exposure to a dangerous substance or unsafe conditions in the workplace.
Animal attacks
If a member or a family member has been attacked by an animal or suffered an injury because of an animal’s behaviour, they may be entitled to compensation under the Animals Act 1971. This act distinguishes between dangerous and non-dangerous animals, but the standard of proof required is higher when the animal causing the injury is classed as non-dangerous. It is important to establish the owner of an animal if a member wishes to bring an animal attack claim. Most claims under the act are from domestic animals, usually dogs. It is the owner of the animal who is liable for the damage.
Slips and trips
UnionLine can help CWU members make a personal injury claim if they have suffered a trip or slip, when a local authority or third party was at fault. The member may have fallen on a public highway or in a public place. A council has a duty to maintain pavements and highways for public use. Many serious injuries can arise from their failure to fulfil that duty.
A member may have suffered an injury through a slip, trip or fall on someone else’s property. Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, those in occupation or control of premises must take care, as is reasonable in the circumstances, to ensure that any visitor will be safe.
Defective products
UnionLine has a specialist team dealing with personal injury claims relating to defective products. If a member or a member of their family is suffering from a personal injury caused by a faulty or dangerous product, they may be able to claim compensation under the Consumer Protection Act 1987.
Clinical negligence
When a member visits a consultant or a GP or visit a hospital for treatment, they should expect to be treated with an appropriate standard of skill and care. However, in some instances they may feel they have received substandard care. If this has caused you injury, they may have a claim against the doctor or hospital which treated them. Clinical negligence claims are a very different type of case to deal with compared to other personal injury claims. When instructing a solicitor to deal with a clinical negligence claim, it is important to us at UnionLine that we choose a firm with the experience to bring a claim to a successful conclusion.
At UnionLine we have teams of specialist medical negligence solicitors and lawyers who deal exclusively with medical negligence matters. They will be able to review individual circumstances and let the member know if they think it’s a valid case.
Road traffic accidents
UnionLine’s dedicated personal injury team has vast experience dealing with a substantial range of road traffic accidents. We always strive to obtain the maximum amount of compensation for our members, making the process as quick and easy as possible. We can help anyone who has suffered injuries in a road traffic accident which was someone else’s fault. We have extensive experience in acting for drivers, passengers, cyclists, motorcyclists, and children injured in road accidents.
Criminal injuries
Through CWU Legal Services, UnionLine can assist members with their claim for compensation if they have been attacked or assaulted in the UK during the last two years. Their claim will be pursued through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). Members are covered through their union membership and it is free for CWU members and their families to make their claim to the CICA with UnionLine.