Case Study: £32,800 Awarded in Compensation for Man who Suffered Broken Jaw in Accident at Work

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Amy Baker

Graduate Solicitor Apprentice

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Kevin was cleaning a clay pigeon trap at work one day when the spring-loaded trap arm of the trap released into his face and jaw, causing his jawto break. Workplace accidents are more common than you would think. According to The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), 565,000 working people sustained an injury at work during 2021/2022. Along with this, more than 61,713 non-fatal injuries were reported by employers during this time.

Kevin was immediately taken to A&E with pain in his jaw and bleeding to his face and mouth. An x-ray was taken and Kevin was diagnosed with a comminuted jaw fracture – this meant that his jaw bone had broken into three or more pieces. A comminuted fracture may not be that rare, but it is an extremely complex injuries with high rates of complication.

They tried to wire his jaw together in A&E, but this didn’t work.Kevin was then transferred to another hospital where he had surgery to fix the fracture with a metal plate.

Kevin had also had an upper molar tooth (one of the 3 teeth at the back of the mouth) knocked out in the accident, damage to three more teeth and a cut on his left cheek which has left a noticeable scar.

As well as the above injuries, Kevin had pain in his chest, neck and head, because of the altered posture due to his jaw pain. He also suffered from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression, which have both had a significant impact on his life leaving him with panic attacks, flashbacks, nightmares and poor concentration.

Two years after his accident, Kevin still had numbness in his lower lip and chin, had pain and clicking in his jaw and this was made worse by eating hard foods. Lying on his left side also caused pain in his jaw, so it is evident that this accident had had a significanta  impact on Kevin’s quality of life.

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How We Helped Kevin

Kevin spoke to one of our Accident at Work Lawyers, who submitted a claim to his employer, with the latter then acceptingresponsibility for his injuries.

Because of the accident, Kevin couldn’t work for four months  and also had to give up cycling because it made him feel nervous and reminded him of his accident.

One of our Accident at Work Lawyers managed to secure interim payments from the employer’s insurance company to pay for Kevin’s recovery aids. These included Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy to help with Kevin’s PTSD and depression, along with dental work on his damaged teeth.

After the accident, Kevin couldn’t drive so he relied on his father to drive him to and from his medical and therapy appointments. The Solicitor was able to include this as part of Kevin’s claim.

Not only did the Solicitor get agreement from Kevin’s employer’s insurance company to pay for CBT and EDMR, they secured agreement from them to pay for 20 initial sessions and also 20 more sessions throughout his lifetime.

Our team sent Kevin for a medical examination and in his report, Kevin was told that his jaw pain would last 3 years post-accident. Unfortunately, the numbness in his lower lip and chin and the scarring is a permanent, lifelong injury.

The Outcome for Kevin

The solicitor dealing with Kevin’s case highlighted the physical and emotional impact of Kevin’s injuries as well as his financial losses from the time he wasn’t working between 25th of July and the 3rd December 2018.

As a result, Kevin was awarded £32,800 for his injuries, along with payment for his continuing EMDR therapy. We hope that Kevin can start to rebuild his life again with the money that was awarded, and we wish him all the best for the future.

How Simpson Millar Can Help 

It is part of your employer’s duty of care to you to provide a safe way t in which to conduct your work. If they fail in their responsibility, you may be entitled to compensation for the injuries that you have sustained.

Contact our Personal Injury Solicitors for a free, no obligation consultation, and we can discuss what happened and let you know if we think your claim is likely to succeed, just call us on 0808 239 3227. Let us, help you.

References:

Ellis, E., & Moos, K. F. (2008). Elastomeric Impression Materials: Clinical Techniques. In B. G. Dale, P. N. T. Gale, & K. F. Moos (Eds.), Principles of Dental Imaging (pp. 229-244). Elsevier Health Sciences. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1042369908001143

Health and Safety Executive (HSE). (n.d.). Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/

Cleveland Clinic. (n.d.). Teeth. Retrieved from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/24655-teeth

NHS. (n.d.). Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - Overview. Retrieved from https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/overview/

British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). (n.d.). Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR). Retrieved from https://www.bacp.co.uk/about-therapy/types-of-therapy/eye-movement-desensitisation-and-reprocessing-emdr/

Amy Baker

Graduate Solicitor Apprentice

Amy is a Graduate Solicitor Apprentice within our Personal injury department, based in our Manchester office.

She helps clients who have sustained injuries resulting from accidents at work and accidents in public places to recover compensation for the injuries they have sustained.

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