Personal injury advice from
Thompsons Solicitors
Crush Injury Claims
If you or a member of your family has suffered a crush injury as the result of an accident caused by someone else, you may be entitled to make a compensation claim.
At The Legal Line, our lawyers are specialists in all areas of personal injury, with extensive experience in recovering compensation for the victims of crush injuries. Contact us on 0800 0328511, or by completing a claim enquiry form online, for cost-free, confidential accident claim advice.
Crush Injuries
Causes of Crush Injuries
Making a Crush Injury Claim
Crush Injury Compensation
Our Personal Injury Solicitors
Successful Crush Injury Compensation Claims
Crush Injuries
A crush injury occurs when part of the body is trapped between two objects or surfaces and is subjected to a large amount of force or pressure. This can restrict the circulation of blood and cause damage to the affected body part.
The effects of crush injuries range in severity, from bruising or minor skin damage to a very serious injury, where a person may be left with a permanent disability. Some of the known effects of crush injuries are detailed below:
• Bruising –Minor bruising generally only lasts for a short period, with mild tenderness and discolouration. Widespread, severe bruising however, can be debilitating and very painful.
• Lacerations – Wounds can be caused if something sharp is crushed against the skin, or the skin may split or burst open purely because of the amount of pressure exerted upon it. Layers of skin may even be removed.
• Muscle, tendon and ligament damage – Some crush injuries affect the tissues below the skin, which may impair the use of limbs and joints.
• Nerve damage – If nerves are crushed or severed there can be a loss of sensation and movement in the affected area.
• Fractures – Bones are rigid, so if excessive pressure is applied to them they may snap or shatter. Fractures in crush injury cases are often not ‘clean breaks’, so the treatment required to repair them can be complicated and lengthy.
• Internal bleeding – Blood vessels or internal organs may be damaged in a crush injury and this can cause internal bleeding.
• Crush syndrome – If part of the body is crushed for a prolonged period of time, muscle tissue may begin to break down and toxins can accumulate. When the body part is freed, this material is released into the person’s system and can cause clinical shock and life-threatening problems with kidney function. This is known as crush syndrome.
• Compartment syndrome – Compartment syndrome is a serious condition that can arise following a crush injury, where the tissues, nerves and blood vessels within a limb are damaged and a build-up of pressure occurs, affecting circulation. Surgery is usually necessary to relieve the pressure.
• Paralysis – Paralysis may occur if there is a crush injury affecting the spine or spinal cord, or as the result of a brain injury.
Someone who has sustained a crush injury may make a full or partial recovery, or they could be left permanently disabled. Crush injuries can have a significant impact on a person’s quality of life and ability to work, so if the injury was caused by the negligence of someone else, it is important to seek advice from an experienced solicitor to find out if a personal injury claim can be made.
Crush injuries can be very difficult to treat because they often involve multiple structures and tissues. Sometimes a digit or limb may be so badly damaged that it cannot be reconstructed and amputation is necessary.
In some cases crush injuries can even be fatal, in particular if the head or torso are affected.
Causes of Crush Injuries
Crush injuries can occur in many different ways. Something as simple as dropping a heavy object onto your foot or trapping a finger in a door can cause a crush injury, or a person may also suffer crush injuries in a car accident, or accident at work.
Some of the causes of crush injuries include:
• Accidents involving vehicles – The driver or passengers of a vehicle may be crushed if they are involved in a road accident. Crush injuries can also occur if a vehicle is driven into or over a pedestrian. This would include road vehicles and also work vehicles, such as tractors used on farms or forklift trucks used in warehouses.
• Manual handling accidents – When lifting and moving heavy objects, either alone or with colleagues, care must be taken to ensure that the task is carried out safely and using any relevant equipment. If something heavy is dropped onto someone or they become trapped between it and another object, this may result in a crush injury.
• Accidents involving machinery – Accidents involving machinery are a major cause of crush injuries in factory accidents and other workplace accidents, for example where the working parts of a machine are not guarded sufficiently and part of a person’s body is caught and pulled in. Hand and finger injuries are especially common in this type of accident.
• Structural collapses – If part of a structure, such as a wall or ceiling, collapses, falling masonry and debris can cause crush injuries, for example in a building site accident or accident at home.
• Falling objects – Objects dropped from a height can cause crush injuries.
• Accidents involving animals – If large animals, for example cows or horses, are kept or handled incorrectly, they are capable of causing crushing injuries.
• Doors and windows – It is not uncommon for people to trap their fingers in doors and windows and some of these accidents cannot be avoided. Others however are caused by windows and doors that are poorly maintained, defective or unsuitable for their location. It is especially common for children to have this type of accident, so all relevant safety precautions should be in place in premises such as schools and nurseries. This may include measures such as slowing mechanisms on doors to prevent them from slamming shut.
Making a Crush Injury Claim
If you suffer a crush injury and you believe that your accident was caused by the negligent actions of someone else, or their failure to act, you may be entitled to make a personal injury claim. The first steps to take are to obtain medical advice about your injury and to record as much information as you can about the accident (for example witness details, the time and date of the incident and so on).
You should seek the advice of a specialist personal injury lawyer at the earliest opportunity. They will advise first of all whether your case has good prospects of success and, if so, how best to pursue it. Your lawyer will collate all of the necessary evidence, calculate your losses and handle the claim on your behalf.
In any personal injury claim it is necessary to show that the person you are making a claim against owed you a duty of care, failed in that duty of care (were negligent), and that the injury you sustained was a reasonably foreseeable consequence of that negligence. They may also be liable if they breached a statutory regulation.
Who you claim against will depend upon the type of accident you were involved in. It may be, for example, another driver in a road accident, your employer if you suffered an injury at work, or the owner or occupier of a commercial premises if you were involved in an accident in a public place.
Some people will be unable to work whilst recovering from crush injuries, either because of the nature of their job or the severity of the injury. Carrying out their regular duties, such as looking after their children and home can also be a problem. This can result in a loss of earnings, costs for care and assistance they may require and transport costs if the injury renders them unable to drive. Making a compensation claim can be very helpful under these circumstances, to ensure that the accident does not result in unnecessary financial difficulties.
Crush Injury Compensation
There are two elements to a compensation award for a crush injury. The first, called general damages, is for the pain and suffering you have gone through and any loss of amenity (for example an inability to play sports, walk the dog or drive). The award for loss of amenity can be for a short period after an accident or forever if that is what the medical evidence supports.
The second element of a compensation award, for your losses and expenses, is known as special damages and aims to put you back in a position financially as if the accident had never occurred. This may include an amount for loss of earnings, costs of treatment and so on. It is important to keep receipts for any expenditure you have related to your crush injury so that these can be reclaimed.
In serious cases, where a person may no longer be able to continue their employment, this can be taken into account. Costs for care, equipment, transport and housing modifications can also be factored into the calculations.
If the person is still able to work but not in the same role as before, particularly if they held a public service role such as a doctor, firefighter or police officer, an extra amount may be awarded for loss of ‘congenial employment’. These awards are made in recognition that some jobs provide greater rewards than monetary benefits alone, such as the satisfaction gained from providing a service to the public. A court can also make a financial award to recognise that an injured worker's prospects on the open labour market may be limited.
Our Personal Injury Solicitors
At The Legal Line, our solicitors have extensive experience in recovering compensation for the victims of crush injuries and can provide specific injury claim advice on your case.
From your initial enquiry right through to the conclusion of your claim, your case will be handled in a sympathetic, efficient and professional manner and you will receive 100% of any compensation awarded.
Successful Crush Injury Compensation Claims
We have assisted clients with a wide range of crush injury claims. Details of a small selection of these cases can be found below, or by visiting our news and personal injury clients sections:
Council Worker Compensated for Severe Crush Injury in Accident at Work
Manual Handling Accident Results in Serious Foot Injury
Compensation for Employee Crushed by Vehicle in Accident at Work
Our Lawyers Secure £600,000 Compensation for Victim of Serious Workplace Accident
Industrial Injury Compensation for Man Seriously Injured in Factory Accident
Factory Worker’s Hand Trapped by Dangerous Conveyor in Workplace Accident
Substantial Compensation for Serious Accident at Work
Ferry Employee’s Fingers Crushed in Accident at Work
Serious Injury Compensation for Pedestrian Who Lost Leg in Road Accident
Claim Made Against Waste Company for Fatal Accident
Successful Claim for Child’s Injury at Nursery
Compensation for Victim’s Family After Fatal Factory Accident
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