Construction is a notoriously dangerous industry to work in, and workers in this sector are around 50 per cent more likely to suffer from an injury compared to the all-industry rate, according to Health & Safety Executive figures.

These same statistics show that of the 4,919 non-fatal injuries reported by employees in the construction industry so far this year, 30 per cent of them were caused by slips, trips or falls.

Such accidents may be an occupational hazard to a certain extent, but as Martin White, personal injury solicitor at WBW Solicitors explains, if you are forced to work in bad weather your employer may be liable for any injuries you suffer.

Your employer has a legal duty to assess and minimise the risk of injury to employees at work – particularly during the winter months when conditions for outside workers are more hazardous. This includes providing adequate training and protective clothing to enable you to carry out your work as safely as possible in bad weather, ensuring you get regular breaks and making sure you are not required to work in unnecessarily dangerous conditions.

If your employer breaches this duty, and you are injured in a slip, trip or fall while working on a construction site in bad weather, you could be entitled to compensation. Such accidents could include:

  • slipping on ice because your employer neglected to grit working areas;
  • tripping over objects covered by snow; or
  • falling over because heavy rain limited your visibility.

How a solicitor can help

If you were injured because of extreme weather conditions and you believe your employer was at fault, you should consult our team of experienced personal injury lawyers as soon as possible because there are strict time limits for bringing a claim for compensation.

We will help you prepare your claim, gathering the medical evidence and witness statements you need to bring your case to a successful conclusion. As we are based in the West Country, we can easily visit the scene of your accident to find proof to strengthen your claim if required.

We can help you claim compensation to cover your medical care and rehabilitation, as well as long term living and loss of earning costs if your injury is serious. We can also help arrange interim payments, to help ease the pain from loss of earnings and cover medical expenses and travelling costs while you are debilitated.

For further information, please contact Martin White in the personal injury team on 01395 272241 or email [email protected].  WBW Solicitors have personal injury solicitors in nine offices across Devon & Cornwall.