Leaving the cafe in the late afternoon to go to the ladies’ rest room, Mrs H noticed that the ground was still wet but she did not realise it had frozen. She slipped, injuring her ankle badly and was unable to stand up. No one was present to help so she used her mobile phone to call for assistance.

“Heeding the weather forecast could have prevented this accident,” said Lee Jones, a Personal Injury Specialist at Croftons. “As part of our investigations, we checked that day’s weather forecast and, indeed, icy conditions had been forecast. The garden centre had been negligent in allowing water to remain on the ground when icy conditions were forecast and in not spreading any grit, displaying signs or erecting barriers to avoid the type of accident which occurred.”

  Lee Jones, Partner

The statistics published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) show that in Britain between April 2010 and March 2011:

• 24,726 major injuries were reported, such as amputations, fractures and burns, to employees – a rate of 99 injuries per 100,000 workers – compared with 26,268 in 2009/10.
• 90,653 other injuries serious enough to keep people off work for four or more days were reported – a rate of 363.1 injuries per 100,000 workers – down from 96,427 the previous year.
• An estimated 1.2 million people said they were suffering from an illness caused or made worse by their work, down from 1.3 million in 2009/10. Of these, 500,000 were new illnesses occurring in-year.
• 171 workers fatally injured – up from 147 the previous year.

The new data confirms that Britain continues to have the lowest rate of fatal occupational injuries in Europe as well as one of the lowest levels of work-related ill health.

Judith Hackitt, HSE’s Chair, said:

“The fall in the number of people being injured by work is of course to be welcomed but we did also see an increase in the number of fatalities during the year. Britain can be proud that it has one of the best health and safety records in Europe but as the increase in the number of fatalities makes clear we can never let up in our commitment to addressing the serious risks which continue to cause death and injury in workplaces. HSE will continue to work with employers, employees and other organisations to maintain and, where necessary improve, health and safety standards. We all have a responsibility to make sure serious workplace risks are sensibly managed.”

Winter Sports Holidays – A Risk Worth Taking With Proper Insurance Cover

With skiing holidays increasing dramatically in recent years as holiday makers have dipped their toe onto the snowy slopes of Europe and North America and gone back for more, each autumn signals a peak time for winter holiday bookings.

“The exhilaration of skiing and snowboarding can’t be matched by any other holiday experience,” says ski enthusiast and personal injury partner Jeff Palmer.

Also an enthusiastic photographer, Jeff has captured some spectacular sights through his lens;

However, warns Jeff, “skiing accidents are on the increase as more people take to the slopes. Woe betide anyone who books a winter sports holiday without adequate insurance.”

“Congestion on the slopes, over enthusiastic beginners trying to ski runs beyond his/her experience together with a lack of effective piste patrols to “red card” the skiers who ski without any regard to the safety of other skiers, all play a part in causing accidents” says Jeff.

“Consider which sports you are going to participate in” advises Jeff, “and make sure your travel insurance covers those activities – as well as any other sports you think you might try. Check your existing travel insurance for winter sports cover and, if buying new insurance, read the small print carefully because a number of travel policies offer inadequate or limited winter sports cover”.

There are hundreds of websites which will offer you travel insurance. “Our advice is to shop around and buy the best possible cover you can. Skimping on insurance is a false economy” warns Jeff. You may find websites such as confused.com and compare the market.com useful in your search.

“Once you are on the slopes, just be aware that your insurance may not cover you if you have enjoyed the après ski “too much” the night before! And for that matter, if you have a few too many during your lunchtime breaks on the mountains – watch out for the slopes!”

Jeff Palmer, Partner

As the winter months descend upon us and with the clocks giving us one less hour of daylight by going backwards next weekend (29th October), it is most important that we take greater care when driving on the roads. Here are a few tips for night-time driving which can help you to be more careful and vigilant when travelling this winter:-

1. If you wear sunglasses in the day, your eyes can be more sensitive and alert at night
2. Make sure your headlights work, this helps for others to see you!
3. Make sure your wing mirrors are positioned correctly so that you see everything around you
4. Don’t drive for too long; ensure you take a break at a service station.

Also, it helps if you prepare your car well so that fewer problems occur in the future. Here are a few more tips to help:-

1. Service your car- if the problem isn’t fixed now, it could cost you in the long term!
2. Check your screen wash and wipers, a clean screen will help you to see everything. In addition, have de-icer handy for those frosty mornings
3. Drive safely, we all want to get home quickly for our dinner but rushing will put you and everyone else at risk.
4. Try and have a “winter survival kit”. This should include a torch, blanket, fuel can, snacks, water, spare change and your recovery details for the AA or RAC.

Refresh your memory of our blogs from last winter and read : Tips for Preparing your Car for Winter and Advice for Winter Driving

By preparing for the darker days and winter weather, you are minimising your risk of an accident, so stay safe this winter…

Penny Stevenson
Injury Claims team

If you have been suffering from distressing symptoms for over a month after a traumatic event, you should visit your GP, who can refer you for specialist help. Effective treatment does exist, and you can recover from PTSD. However, treatments for PTSD are still being evaluated and researched.

As APIL Members, we have been invited to refer clients to a research trial to help children and teenagers with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

The study is called ASPECTS and is for 8-17 year olds who have suffered a recent trauma such as a road traffic accident or assault. They will be given cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and the benefits will be monitored against timeframes.

CBT is a psychological treatment that aims to change how people think; trying to adapt negative ways of thinking into more positive ones. It is recommended by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence for adults with PTSD, but it is unknown whether it is helpful for children and young people and this is the purpose of the ASPECT study. Researchers would like to know how well it works for children and teenagers soon after a frightening experience.

It is a joint project between Addenbrooke’s hospital, the Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, and the University of Cambridge. Participants are being recruited until at least 31 January 2013. Youngsters will be required to attend between 5 and 10 weekly CBT sessions with a clinical psychologist at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge.

Further information can be found on the Cambridge Clinical Research Centre for Affective Disorders website.

Yasmin Syed, RTA Team Manager

ILEX President, Susan Silver, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded a Royal Charter. This recognition affirms the quality and integrity of the Legal Executive qualification and the important role our members play in the provision of legal services.

“This also shows how ILEX continues to be a hard working organisation committed to supporting its members in their careers and ensuring the legal sector continues to become more diverse, providing high quality legal services consumers have come to expect.

Chief Executive at ILEX, Diane Burleigh, added: “ILEX is absolutely dedicated to ensuring that our members provide the best legal services possible. The public have been able to rely on us as a regulator for many years. This Charter will ensure future growth of public confidence in Legal Executives, and in all those who that join the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives.”

As a Graduate Member of the Institute of legal Executives, I echo the sentiments of Justice Minister Jonathan Djanogly: “This is an exciting step forward for ILEX and is important for increasing public recognition of their role in the legal services market”.

Chloe Shivraj, Graduate Member of ILEX

Called the “Car Compass”, users can use the GPS on their phone to store the location of their car in The Accident App, along with other notes and pictures (handy for those giant out of town car parks!). Also, you can put in a reminder to make sure you get back to your car in time before the meter runs out!

So if you want car parking tickets to be a thing of the past download The Accident App for free to your iPhone… Oh yes and did we mention if you download it now there is a chance to win a £50.00 Amazon Voucher?

For a chance to win all you have to do is download for free The Accident App to your iPhone and keep an eye on the in app announcements. Complete the form to enter the free prize draw. One lucky winner will be picked on Monday 3 October 2011 at 6pm.

So for your chance to win download The Accident App for free now.

This week, the public have been given “open access” to the Court room allowing us to see everyone and everything that is taking place in this trial. Whilst watching a snippet of the trial on Sky News yesterday, this had me wondering if I was actually watching a movie version of the trial rather than the real thing, with the witnesses giving perfectly formed answers, and the technical camera action which allows us to see each of the people involved in this case. What was even more shocking was to see an image released of Michael Jackson’s body on TV (and then in the papers) along with extracts of a “slurred” voice.

Even though we live in a society with a “need to know” culture, is this a step too far on the media’s behalf? Do we want to see more of these pictures? Or do we just want to give the people affected the privacy they need? These are all questions we consider when weighing up the pros and cons of allowing cameras in the Court room. (Read: Justice : To Be Seen To Be Done?)

However, we also have to consider that this trial is taking place in America currently, so does this mean that Britain will follow suit in the next big trial to consume our televisions and newspapers?

Penny Stevenson
Injury Claims team

Rob Cox
Petia Tzokova
Georgina Bean
Karen Dunstan
Emma Jenkins

The Accident App allows those in an incident that is not their fault to immediately contact Croftons Solicitors and initiate a claims process. The app is used to provide evidence of the incident such as witness statements, photographs and audio recordings. It also contains The Car Compass to help you find your way back to your car.

More information on The Accident App its features