£2,600 awarded to worker following painful hand injury on shopfloor

A manufacturing worker, whose injuries at work required major surgery to his right hand, was awarded £2,600 after his employer settled out of court before the case was brought to trial.

James Lunt, from Liverpool, was working as a team leader at electrical heating appliance manufacturer Glen Dimplex Ltd when the incident occurred in July 2018.

He trapped his right middle finger between a storage rack that he was returning and another rack that had been incorrectly placed down with its brakes on, meaning it did not give way and subsequently caused injury.

James’ finger suffered a painful cut that needed surgery to be repaired.

James, 66, said: “Moving these storage racks was obviously something I’d done previously but, because the other rack was protruding outwards, my finger became trapped.

“The pain was unbearable and I ended up having to undergo surgery to repair the damage. Even after the operation, I was in pain for about 18 months, meaning I couldn’t play golf or carry on with my usual duties at work.

“The team at Hampson Hughes were fantastic from start to finish and explained the process very well to me, giving me peace of mind that my case was in safe hands.”

James’ employer initially denied any liability, claiming that he had caused the accident himself; however, the matter was settled out of court in September 2020, just a week before it was due to go to trial.

Nicholas Cowley, solicitor at Hampson Hughes, said: “This was an accident that could have quite clearly been avoided had James’ colleagues followed their training and instruction on how racks were to be stored.

“James was an extremely experienced member of staff at the time and knew how to correctly go about the job he was doing, so we were not willing to accept his employer’s claim that he had caused his injuries himself.

“We worked hard to maintain James’ claim and were pleased to eventually have it settled for £2,600.”

If you have suffered an injury at work, you could be entitled to personal injury compensation, take a look at our Accidents at Work page for more information.

Remember, we offer you a FREE no-obligation consultation. Chat to one of our professional and friendly advisers today on 0800 888 7870 or email .