Workplace Accident –Head & Back Injury – Sydney Compensation Lawyers

Workplace Accident –Head & Back Injury Compensation

If you have been involved in a work place accident that resulted in you suffering a head or back injury or any other type of injury, contact Walker Law Group now. Our lawyers are experts in the area of workers compensation and can assist you in resolving your case. Workers compensation is a complex area of law, but with guidance from the solicitors are Walker Law Group, it is simplified and easier to understand. Our lawyers are Approved Legal Service Providers with IRO. This means that we can file an application with the workers compensation Independent Review Office (IRO) on your behalf and if it is successful, IRO will cover our legal fees for your case. Walker Law Group will be with you every step of the way to ensure that you understand exactly what is happening at each stage of your case. To find out how Walker Law Group can assist you with your workplace injury workers compensation claim, contact us now on 1300 363 013. Alternatively, email us at enquiry@walkerlawgroup.com.au.

Recent case- Tamex Transport Services Pty Ltd heavily fined after worker suffers a head injury

Workplace Injury – The circumstances

On 24 February 2014, an employee was involved in a workplace accident that resulted in him suffering head and back injuries. The employee was a truck driver who was delivering freight to a depot and assisting with the unloading of a truck. The transport company involved was Tamex Transport Services Pty Ltd.

The injury occurred as the truck driver was standing at the rear of the truck, unbuckling the restraint to prepare for unloading. He was within 2 metres of a forklift at the time. He was then struck in the head by a freight cage door that was being removed from a higher level with the forklift. This accident led to serious head and back injuries, which were permanent in nature.

Workplace Injury – The allegations

Following this accident, SafeWork NSW charged the transport company with breaches of 2 key sections of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW). SafeWork NSW alleged that sections 19(1) and 32 had been breached.

Workplace Injury – The legislation

Section 19 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) refers to the primary duty of care, which a person or company must ensure for their workers. Several considerations must be taken into account to ensure that this primary duty of care is fulfilled including, but not limited to:

• The provision and maintenance of a work environment without risks to health and safety, and
• The provision and maintenance of safe plant and structures, and
• The provision and maintenance of safe systems of work, and
• The safe use, handling, and storage of plant, structures, and substances, and
• The provision of training, information, and supervision necessary to protect all workers from risks to their health and safety in carried out the course of business.

Section 32 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW) states that failing to comply with a health and safety duty if an offence. According to this section, a person commits an offence if the person had a health and safety duty, and that person did not comply with that duty and that failure to comply exposed and individual to a risk of death or serious injury. The maximum penalty, which could have been applied in this case was $1,500,000.

Workplace Injury – The decision

SafeWork NSW claim was based on the fact that the transport company had failed to fulfill the primary duty of care and the health and safe duty of care expressed in sections 19 and 32 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW). In particular, they had failed to ensure, as far as reasonably possible that the health and safety of the worker was protected because they did not take the necessary steps to ensure that the health and safety risks that were present, were minimised or eliminated.

In March 2017, the District Court of NSW found in favour of SafeWork NSW and charged Tamex Transport Services Pty Ltd with a breach of the Act. The Court fined the company $220,000.

Peter Dunphy, the Executive Director of SafeWork NSW stated the following:

‘”Under work health and safety laws, businesses must have traffic management plans to reduce the risk of forklift incidents… In this incident Tamex Transport failed to implement and enforce a traffic management plan and provide appropriate training to workers.”

In failing to take the required steps to prevent the work health and safety risk, the truck driver suffered serious and permanent head and back injuries, which could have been prevented if reasonable measures were taken by the Tamex Transport.

Between July 2012 and July 2014, 1,360 workers were injured in New South Wales, 5 of which passed away. This weighed a huge burden on the NSW workers compensation scheme, costing approximately $15.8 million. Employers are responsible for ensuring that any health and safety risks in the workplace are averted and that there is an action plan in place to minimize and prevent accidents. By not having this in place, they are risking the health and lives of their workers. If you have been involved in a similar incident to the one described above, then you may have the right to compensation. Your employer may be further liable to SafeWork NSW and may be sued for a breach of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (NSW). If this sounds like your situation, then you must contact Walker Law Group immediately.

At Walker Law Group, we specialise in the legal area of workers compensation. If you have been involved in a workplace incident, which resulted in an injury, then you need to speak to one of the competent IRO lawyers at Walker Law Group. Our workers compensation lawyers are IRO certified which means that they can apply for grant of funding for your workers compensation case. This means that, if the insurer denies or disagrees on liability in your case, our expert lawyers will be able to provide you with free, independent legal advice. Using their vast knowledge and experience from working on these types of cases, our lawyers will provide you with accurate and timely legal advice about your situation. To find out how we can help you come to the best outcome in your case, contact Walker Law Group and speak to one of our friendly legal representatives on 1300 363 013. You can reach us by email on enquiry@walkerlawgroup.com.au.