I Fell at Work What Are My Rights?

If you’re involved in a fall at work, you could be seriously hurt and face months or even years of pain and suffering. If your fall was caused by your employer’s negligence, you may be interested in suing them for any discomfort and hardship you’ve suffered (or will suffer in the future). In this guide, we’ll answer the question, “I fell at work what are my rights?” to help you understand your options with regards to sick pay, time off work and compensation for any injuries.

We provide free initial consultations for anyone who has fallen at work and is considering making a personal injury claim. If you contact us, a specialist will review your case for free, explain your legal options and answer your questions. You could be connected with a solicitor from our team if your case is valid and if they agree to represent you, you’ll benefit from their No Win, No Fee service.

To learn more about your rights following a fall at work, you can:

• Call our legal advisors on 0333 241 2519 now.
• Use our free live chat service 7 days a week.

Please get in touch with any questions or read on for more on your rights if you’re injured in a fall at work.

What Are My Immediate Steps After Falling at Work?

In the immediate aftermath of a fall at work, you should:

• Check for injuries: If you’ve suffered a serious back or neck injury, you should wait for advice from a paramedic before moving to avoid more serious injuries. Otherwise, you should speak to the first aider or visit A&E to have your injuries properly checked over.
• Make the area safe: If you’re able to do so safely, you should try to prevent anyone else from being injured. For instance, if you tripped on a broken tile and fell over, you should use a warning sign or something similar to highlight the danger.
• Collect evidence: At this point, you won’t know if you’re entitled to compensation for your injuries. However, you should take photos, write down who witnessed your fall and collect any other evidence you might need later on if you do decide to sue your employer.

Taking these steps can go some way to prevent similar slips, trips and falls in the future and may help if you decide to seek compensation for your injuries at a later date.

Do I Need to Report My Fall at Work to My Employer?

You should always report workplace accidents as soon as you possibly can. Usually, this will be right after the accident but if you are hospitalised by your fall, it might happen later.

You should make your report verbally to a supervisor or manager initially but follow this up with an email or letter to confirm what happened.

Legally, your employer will need to record the incident in the company’s accident book. You have the right to ask for a copy of the accident report as it could be useful evidence to support any future claim against your employer.

What Information Should Be Included in the Accident Report?

The accident report needs some specific information to ensure that your employer meets their legal obligations. For instance, the form should include details about:

• Who was injured in the incident?
• What happened and how it happened?
• The date, time and location of your fall.
• Information about anyone who witnessed your fall at work.
• Any treatment (first aid) received at the accident scene or whether you were taken to hospital.

Some falls at work will need to be reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013 if the incident resulted in a reportable injury.

Am I Entitled to Medical Treatment for Injuries Sustained From a Fall at Work?

Legally, employers must comply with the rules of the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981

This means that they need to provide appropriate and adequate facilities, staff and equipment to make sure staff who are injured in a fall at work receive immediate attention. The type of cover needed will vary depending on the type of workplace.

If first aid is not appropriate, your employer may need to ensure that any injuries are diagnosed in a hospital. This might mean calling an ambulance, driving you to the hospital or ensuring that you are fit enough to make your own way there.

Crucially, you should tell your employer about any medical recommendations you receive and any further appointments that you need to attend to help ensure as swift a recovery as possible.

Will I Be Paid While Off Work Recovering From a Fall?

If you’ve had a fall at work and need time off to recover, check your contract. Some employers offer paid sick leave, which means you might still get your normal wages (or a portion of them) while you’re off.

If your employer doesn’t offer contractual sick pay, you might still be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay (SSP). SSP is £116.75 per week (£118.75 from 6 April 2025) and can be paid for up to 28 weeks.

If you’re not entitled to SSP payments, you could be entitled to Universal Credit payments or Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) depending on your circumstances.

Can I Claim Compensation for My Injuries?

It might be possible to claim compensation after falling at work if:

• At the time of your accident, you were owed a duty of care by your employer.
• You fell at work as a result of your employer’s negligence.
• As a result of your fall, you sustained an injury or injuries.

Claims are possible for anything but the most minor injuries. For instance, if you tripped on cables, you might have the right to claim compensation for broken bones, soft tissue injuries, spinal injuries, paralysation or brain injuries.

How Much Compensation Could Be Paid for A Fall At Work?

If you make a successful accident at work claim, your compensation would depend upon:

• The pain, suffering and loss of amenity your injuries have caused (general damages). Generally, this will be determined by using copies of your medical records, a personal statement and an independent medical report regarding your injuries.
• Any out-of-pocket expenses you’ve incurred because of your injuries. For instance, you could claim back loss of earnings, medical expenses, travel costs and the cost of modifying your home to make it more accessible.

As such, the amount of compensation you’ll receive will largely be calculated on the severity of your injuries. If your claim is accepted by one of our solicitors, they’ll provide a personalised compensation estimate once they’ve got a full understanding of how you’ve suffered because of your fall at work.

What Evidence Can Be Used to Support a Compensation Claim?

Proving why you fell at work, the extent of your injuries and why your employer was to blame for your fall are all essential if you’re to receive a compensation payout. Therefore, you should try to collect as much evidence to support your case as possible.

This could include some or all of the following types of evidence:

• Accident report forms or investigation reports from the HSE.
• Hospital or GP records to confirm your injuries.
• Video footage of your fall if it was captured on a mobile phone or CCTV camera.
• Details of anyone who witnessed your fall (in case statements are needed later on).
• Photographs of the accident scene (to prove what happened) and any visible injuries.
• Financial records to prove any losses you’ve incurred after falling at work.

The more evidence you’re able to secure, the better your chances of making a successful claim. If one of our solicitors agrees to support you, they may agree to collect any further evidence needed as part of their service. Therefore, if you fell at work and would like to claim, please get in touch to see if you have a feasible claim.

How Do I Make a Compensation Claim for a Fall at Work?

To start, we would suggest speaking to a legal advisor to check the validity of your fall-at-work claim. If you contact our team for free legal advice and your case seems strong enough, it could be passed to one of our solicitors to:

• Help to collect and collate evidence to support your case.
• Prepare your claim and file it on time.
• Handle all communications with your employer (and their insurance provider) on your behalf.
• Fight your corner if any aspect of the claim is disputed.
• Try to ensure that a fair level of compensation is paid if the claim is won.
• Ensure you are kept up to date throughout the claims process.

It is worth pointing out that all claims handled by our solicitors are managed on a No Win, No Fee basis. As such, you won’t be charged for your solicitor’s work unless the case is won and you are compensated.

If that happens, you’ll pay your solicitor a success fee. This is an agreed percentage of any settlement you receive which is legally capped at 25 per cent.

To see if you can make a No Win, No Fee fall at work compensation claim, please call our legal advisors now.

Can I Claim on Behalf of a Loved One Who Was Injured at Work?

In some cases, you may be able to act as a litigation friend to help a loved one to claim compensation for a fall at work. That could be true if the injured party doesn’t have the mental capacity to claim compensation themselves.

For instance, you could claim on their behalf if they sustained brain damage or severe spine injury at work.

Contacting Us About Your Rights After a Fall at Work

If you fell at work and would like to clarify your rights, please get in touch by:

• Calling our legal advisors on 0333 241 2519.
• Using our free live chat service day or night.

When you get in touch, your claim will be reviewed by a specialist advisor for free. They will try to answer all of your questions related to your fall and provide free legal advice about your next steps. If your claim is strong enough and accepted by one of our solicitors,  you’ll be represented on a No Win, No Fee basis.