Burns victim secures six figure compensation award
September 09, 2011
Posted by:Sarmad Gassoub
I recently negotiated a settlement for a client of mine. He was awarded the sum of £105,000 for injuries sustained following an accident at work in 2009. The circumstances of the accident were quite dramatic. He worked as a senior installation engineer and was at a site in a Cambridge science park, helping to remove an existing obsolete air conditioning system and replace it with a newer, more efficient model.
The accident occurred as a consequence of my client’s co-worker’s negligence. My client was collecting oil from the pipes of the old air conditioning system which was being flushed out with the use of pressurised gas by his co-worker. The co-worker should have used non-flammable nitrogen gas but instead he used a canister of flammable oxygen gas in error.
The gas ignited and there was a large explosion. My client suffered horrific burns to both his arms and to his flank as well as facial burns. He required skin graft surgery and his burn scars only started to heal over a prolonged period of nearly 2 years (during which he had to try and avoid direct exposure to sunlight). He also went on to suffer a post-traumatic stress disorder as a consequence of his experience.
Upon notification of the claim, my client’s employers accepted full liability for his accident and agreed to compensate him for his injuries and his financial losses. They agreed to pay his lost earnings whilst he was absent from work and to help fund a new career direction. My client is very pleased with the settlement and the opportunity that it allows him to put the past behind him and to get on with his life.