Statistics reveal that in the UK, at least one person is killed every six weeks after getting involved in forklift truck accidents. There are hundreds more who sustain minor as well as serious injuries as a result of such accidents.
Forklift trucks are used in numerous industries and they are often used to position items or products on high stacks. Although forklift trucks are very useful equipment, they can be very dangerous as well. In fact, they are among the most dangerous equipments used in workplaces today.
Research has shown that more than 70 percent of accidents caused by forklift trucks cause injury not to the driver of the vehicle, but to someone else. This means that any person who is working in the vicinity of the vehicle or any person who is around the premises as a visitor is at a greater risk of getting involved in an accident than the driver of the vehicle itself.
When visiting garden centres, warehouses and DIY stores, members of the public are also at a risk of sustaining injuries caused by forklift trucks. If you work in an industry where forklifts are used on a regular basis, you may be entitled to make an injury claim if you get involved in an accident involving forklift trucks. Apart from workers, members of the public may also be entitled to make injury claims if they have been injured in similar accidents.
At the workplace, forklift accidents can occur due to numerous reasons. There are numerous causes of such accidents and numerous ways in which such accidents can give rise to injury claims. Some examples of how these accidents can happen include:
- forklifts toppling over as a result of an unsuitable surface such as drains and potholes
- loads falling from the forklift and causing injury to a worker on the ground or a passerby
- forklift colliding with a pedestrian or crushing them between the vehicle and a structure or an object
- forklifts colliding with objects, equipments and lockers and causing them to fall on workers on the ground
- forklifts colliding with another vehicle or truck
- forklift being driven carelessly
An injury claim can be made by a worker if he has sustained injuries in a forklift truck accident due to no fault. Such injury claims are usually made against the employer. But, before you start with an injury claim, it is important to understand what the claims procedure involves and how much your claim is worth.
