According to a firm of personal injury lawyers in the North East, the recession has led to increased numbers of personal injury claims for compensation. The personal injury lawyers, TBI Solicitors, claim that compensation claims for accidents at work are rising very quickly as businesses have to make cut backs in the workplace.
The firm claims that businesses are cutting back on expenses, which makes health and safety less of a priority. Also, because of the lack of money available to families at the moment, more people are inclined to make a claim for compensation when they get injured at work.
Personal injury lawyer Helen Elstob stated:
We believe the recession could well be having an impact on the number of workplace accidents.
It is understandable that many businesses are currently taking actions to reduce costs, but it is vital that workers’ safety is not compromised.
Saving on health and safety is a false economy too as claims against employers can cost thousands for the employer. Even the most minor injuries in the industrial sector can fetch between £16,000 and £25,000 in compensation.
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I have to say that I find the whole recession issue a bit of a red herring. The biggest issue that we have seen in recent years is not an increase in clams per se but an increase in the total cost of those claims. The recession may bring increased claims for a period – but with that a greater impact will by claims legal costs that have a more detrimental effect on a recession.
Comment by Mark Brickles — September 7, 2009 @ 7:06 pm
That’s an interesting point Mark, perhaps if legal costs increase, the number of claims will start to decrease as people find it’s not as financially worth it?
Comment by Michael — September 17, 2009 @ 5:43 pm