How to Make a Chemical Injury Claim

Chemical burns and injuries can stop you from being able to go about your day-to-day life, sometimes for a long period of time. In serious cases, you might have even suffered damage to your nervous system and internal organs, which can have life-changing consequences.

In the short term, you may suffer from severe burns or irritation if your skin has come in to contact with dangerous chemicals (or if you’ve inhaled them), or serious eye injuries if a chemical has splashed into your face. But even a small amount of exposure to harmful chemicals can lead to the initial injury becoming serious very quickly.

Any chemical injury can be very painful and difficult to come to terms with – but if it was caused by somebody else’s negligence, then this can make your situation even more frustrating. Although making a claim can’t take back what you’ve been through, getting in touch with a specialist solicitor can help you get your life back on track and recover the costs of your injury.

You can get in touch with a trained legal adviser for free on 0800 234 6438 for a chat about how you can move forward with a claim.

If you work with potentially harmful liquids and gases, then you’re at greater risk of suffering from a chemical injury – especially if your employer has failed to follow health and safety laws put in place to protect you.

While certain types of work do carry significantly more risks than others, all employers have a legal duty to do everything they can to keep you safe. For example, they should provide proper training and protective equipment, as well as carrying out risk assessments to avoid accidents where possible.

If your employer has not followed these health and safety rules, you might be able to make a claim to recover the costs of your injury.

Below, we’ve given some examples of industries which can sometimes lead to chemical burns and injuries:

Agricultural work often involves daily use of pesticides and fertilisers, which may put a farm worker at risk of injury. If you’re an agricultural employee, you may also be at risk of inhaling exhaust fumes from machinery. Read more about making a farm accident claim.

Industrial cleaning products are used in many industries. As with any harsh chemicals, they should come with warning labels and instructions for use. Often, the corrosive cleaning products used can result in skin allergies, severe burns and asthma.

Manufacturing and engineering work often requires the use of adhesive and paints, which could be harmful if they come in to contact with your skin. Also, exposure to fumes from soldering and welding can lead to long-term respiratory problems.

COSHH, or the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, lists the steps that employers should take to make sure any staff who use strong chemicals as part of their job are as safe as possible.

Some key things that your employer should do to avoid injuries are:

• Provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – this is anything that can be used to protect you from injury, and might include a protective apron, gloves and eye goggles
• Safe storage of chemicals – all chemicals should be kept in sealed containers, and stored where they’re unlikely to be knocked over or damaged
• Risk assessments – employers should carry out regular risk assessments to make sure hazards are being taken into consideration. They should then put measures in place to avoid accidents from happening

Any employer should also make sure that you’ve been fully trained to use these types of substances before you begin any work, and it’s just as important as an employee that you follow any training you’ve been given.

If you’ve suffered from a chemical injury within the last three years and it wasn’t your fault, then it’s likely you’ll be able to make a compensation claim. To take the first steps, you can speak to a legal adviser for free on 0800 234 6438, or fill in the claim form on this page and they’ll call you back.

It can sometimes be difficult to know whether your accident was somebody else’s fault without speaking to an expert – your legal adviser will have the knowledge to be able to let you know whether you can make a claim, and they’ll pass you on to a specialist solicitor if you decide you want to go ahead.