Crush injury claims

Yes. Mark Reynolds Solicitors can assess crush injury claims where you have been injured at work and believe that your employer or another party failed to take reasonable care. Our solicitors investigate how the accident happened, examine the available evidence and advise whether you may be entitled to compensation.

Crush injuries can occur in factories, warehouses, construction sites, agricultural workplaces and other environments where workers encounter heavy equipment or moving materials.

An employer has a duty to take reasonable steps to protect employees from foreseeable workplace risks. The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 also set requirements for the safe condition, maintenance and operation of workplace equipment.

Relevant failures might include defective machinery, inadequate guarding, insufficient training, unsafe working procedures or a failure to address an identified hazard.

However, suffering an injury at work does not automatically establish a right to compensation.

Our solicitors must consider whether someone owed you a duty of care, whether that duty was breached and whether the breach caused or contributed to your injury.

We can examine the circumstances and explain the evidence required to support a claim.

Crush injury claims can arise when a person is trapped, compressed or struck by machinery, vehicles, equipment or heavy materials. Mark Reynolds Solicitors can investigate workplace accidents involving unsafe machinery, moving vehicles, falling loads and other hazards where another party’s negligence may have caused or contributed to the injury.

Examples include a worker’s hand becoming trapped in a conveyor, a forklift reversing into someone, materials falling from storage racks or a person becoming trapped between moving equipment and a fixed structure.

Construction workers may suffer crush injuries involving excavators, lifting equipment, unstable materials or collapsing structures. Similar risks exist in manufacturing, logistics and agricultural work.

The Health and Safety Executive identifies moving workplace vehicles as a source of serious injury, including incidents where people are crushed against fixed objects.

The Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 also require relevant lifting operations to be properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out safely.

Our solicitors consider how these duties apply to the particular accident rather than assuming that every incident involving machinery establishes negligence.

If your accident involved a forklift, falling stock or unsafe storage arrangements, our warehouse accident claims team can assess the circumstances and potential responsibility.

Evidence for a crush injury claim may include accident reports, medical records, photographs, CCTV footage, witness details and information about workplace safety procedures. Mark Reynolds Solicitors can help identify relevant evidence, investigate the cause of your accident and assess the financial and personal consequences of your injuries.

Your immediate priority should be medical attention. Crush injuries can cause significant internal damage, even where the full extent of the injury is not immediately apparent.

If possible, make sure your employer is informed about the accident and that an accurate workplace record is created.

Photographs of the accident location, machinery or defective equipment may help establish what happened. Witness accounts and records of earlier complaints about unsafe conditions can also be relevant.

Depending on the circumstances, our solicitors may seek information about equipment inspections, maintenance, risk assessments, training and safety procedures.

Some serious workplace accidents must be reported under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013, known as RIDDOR. The reporting duty normally falls on the employer or another responsible person, rather than the injured employee. A missing RIDDOR report does not, by itself, prevent a civil compensation claim.

You should also retain payslips, receipts and information about additional expenses.

Do not worry if you cannot access the employer’s records yourself. We can advise what evidence may be needed and how it could be obtained.

Yes, potentially. Being an agency worker, temporary employee or subcontractor does not automatically prevent you from making a crush injury claim. Similarly, believing that you contributed to the accident does not necessarily remove your entitlement to compensation. Mark Reynolds Solicitors can investigate responsibility and advise how these circumstances may affect your case.

Modern workplaces frequently involve multiple employers, contractors and equipment suppliers. For example, a warehouse worker might be employed by an agency while working under another company’s supervision.

Responsibility may depend on who controlled the workplace, provided the equipment, organised the task or was responsible for the relevant safety arrangements.

A construction accident may involve several businesses with separate obligations. Our construction accident claims solicitors can consider these responsibilities.

If you believe you made a mistake, the circumstances still require investigation.

An employer may have failed to provide adequate training, appropriate safeguards or a reasonably safe working procedure. Your own actions must be considered alongside these factors.

Where contributory negligence is established, compensation may be reduced to reflect your share of responsibility, but this does not necessarily prevent a successful claim.

Employers’ Liability insurance may respond to a successful claim against an insured employer.

Our solicitors can assess these issues before advising who may be responsible and how the claim should proceed.

There is no fixed compensation amount for crush injury claims. Mark Reynolds Solicitors assesses each case according to the severity of the injury, medical prognosis, financial losses and impact on everyday life. Compensation may account for pain and suffering, rehabilitation, lost income, care requirements and other reasonable expenses arising from the injury.

The starting point is establishing the nature and extent of the injuries through medical evidence.

A crushed finger that heals without lasting complications will generally be assessed differently from a serious hand injury resulting in permanent nerve damage, reduced grip or an inability to return to manual work.

The Judicial College Guidelines, including the 18th edition published in 2026, provide guidance on compensation for pain, suffering and loss of amenity. They do not determine the complete value of an individual claim.

Financial losses are considered separately.

For example, an injury may affect your ability to work, require additional treatment or create a need for practical assistance at home.

Where appropriate, compensation can include the reasonable value of care provided by family members as well as professional care. Future treatment, equipment, earnings and pension losses may also need assessment.

Our solicitors use the available evidence to consider the full consequences of your injury rather than relying on a generic compensation calculator.

Any settlement must reflect the individual circumstances and the losses that can properly be established.

Yes. Mark Reynolds Solicitors has a dedicated serious injury service that can assess claims involving limb loss, significant nerve damage and other lasting complications. Our solicitors consider the medical evidence, rehabilitation requirements, effects on employment and additional support needed to help you manage everyday life after a serious injury.

Crush injuries can affect bones, muscles, nerves, blood vessels and surrounding tissues.

Some people experience lasting pain, weakness, restricted movement or reduced sensation. Severe injuries may require reconstructive surgery or amputation.

One particularly serious complication is acute compartment syndrome, where pressure builds inside a muscle compartment and restricts blood flow. This requires urgent medical assessment and treatment.

The NHS guidance on compartment syndrome advises calling 999 or attending A&E for sudden, severe pain.

For those living with lasting injuries, rehabilitation needs can be substantial.

An injury affecting the hand may prevent someone from returning to skilled manual work. A severe leg injury may affect mobility, driving or independence.

Our serious injury team can consider specialist medical assessments, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, psychological support and suitable equipment where justified.

For eligible cases, we can explore rehabilitation funding and interim payments before settlement. Availability depends on the evidence and legal circumstances.

Our aim is to ensure that the claim takes proper account of your recovery, future support needs and long term financial position.

Mark Reynolds Solicitors offers eligible crush injury claims on a No Win No Fee basis. If your claim is unsuccessful, you will not pay us anything. If it succeeds, our fee is 20% plus VAT, equivalent to 24%, deducted from eligible compensation for pain and suffering and financial losses up to settlement.

We do not deduct a fee from compensation awarded for future losses, including future care or loss of earnings. Nothing else is deducted from your compensation.

We confirm these terms in writing before your claim starts so you understand the financial arrangements.

This distinction can be particularly important where a severe crush injury creates substantial future needs.

For example, a person who permanently loses the use of a hand may face ongoing treatment costs and reduced future earning capacity.

A person requiring an amputation may need replacement prosthetics, adaptations or care over many years.

Our fee arrangement protects the compensation awarded for those future losses from deductions under our stated terms.

The success of a claim still depends on establishing the necessary legal evidence and demonstrating the losses caused by the injury.

During your initial consultation, we can explain the claims process, discuss the potential issues in your case and answer questions about funding before you decide whether to proceed.

In England and Wales, most adult crush injury claims must be started through court proceedings within 3 years of the accident or a later date of knowledge where applicable. Exceptions can affect the deadline. Mark Reynolds Solicitors can review the relevant dates, explain the limitation rules and advise on the next steps.

The usual time limit comes from section 11 of the Limitation Act 1980.

Different rules may apply where the injured person was under 18 at the relevant time or lacks the mental capacity to conduct proceedings. Courts also have discretion to disapply certain limitation periods in appropriate circumstances.

It is important to understand that the usual deadline concerns commencing court proceedings, not simply contacting a solicitor.

Seeking advice promptly can make it easier to preserve evidence before machinery is repaired, workplaces change or CCTV footage is deleted.

When you contact Mark Reynolds Solicitors, we will ask about the accident, your injuries, any treatment received and how your circumstances have changed.

If there are grounds to proceed, the next steps may involve notifying the responsible party, investigating liability, obtaining medical evidence and assessing the compensation sought.

The duration of the claim will depend on matters such as disputed responsibility and the time needed to understand your medical prognosis.

We will explain the process and keep you informed as your claim develops.

To discuss your crush injury claim, call 0800 002 9577 for a free initial consultation with Mark Reynolds Solicitors.