Tripping hazard leads to £2,750 compensation for CWU member

[POSTMAN]

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A postal worker has won a damages claim against the Royal Mail after falling foul of a tripping hazard at his workplace.

On 21 February 2012 the worker, a member of the Communication Workers' Union, was going about his normal morning routine at the Royal Mail's Heathrow depot. Walking towards the culling station, he tripped on a torn anti-fatigue mat and he fell, glancing his face against the corner of a metal conveyor.

He suffered a cut to his eyebrow, bruising to his face and a soft tissue injury to his left knee. Although the CWU member was not forced to take time off work – for some months he was placed on rehabilitation duties – he would not properly recover from his injuries for a full year.

On his behalf we submitted a claim for compensation to his employer. The Royal Mail promptly accepted responsibility under the Occupiers' Liability Act and the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations: as defendant, it had failed to provide a safe place for our client to work and the anti-fatigue mat had been defective, constituting a tripping hazard that caused him to fall.

Our client duly received personal injury compensation of £2,750. Sometime after the accident, the floor problem was rectified and a safety cushion was fixed to the metal conveyor.