White Finger and You – Why You Should Make a Compensation Claim

Posted on December 30, 2010 by Alex

White Finger starts off as a fairly innocuous condition that many people may simply choose to ignore, believing it will go away with time. However, the cause of white finger is often long periods of exposure to intense vibrations, such as those generated by a pneumatic drill or a chainsaw, so if a person ignores the problem but does not stop using these industrial tools then the condition will get worse and worse. This could end up resulting in them making a white finger claim.

The reason they might need to seek out accident compensation as a result of their white finger is that the condition can develop into much more serious conditions. What begins as a tingling in the fingers can evolve into them turning completely pale, the reason the condition is known as white finger, accompanied by intense pain as the paleness begins to fade. This is all caused by the blood vessels to the fingers constricting too much and completely cutting off the blood supply. Without their supply of oxygen, the cells in the finger become damaged and die, which results in the sensation of pain as the blood flows back.

The cells dying means that there is an excellent opportunity for necrosis or gangrene to set into the flesh. These almost always have serious consequences as the infected flesh must be removed before it spreads to other regions or poisons the blood. In extreme cases this can involve amputation of the fingers, hand, or even parts of the arm.

Getting Pins and Needles in Your Fingers This Winter? Watch Out for White Finger

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Alex

White Finger’s medical name is Raynaud’s phenomenon, but it gets the name White Finger due to the effect it has on a person’s fingers. The blood vessels constrict so that blood can no longer reach the muscles and nerves in the fingers. When the blood returns to the affected area it creates a pins and needles sensation, just as if you were sat in an odd position and restricted the blood flow to your foot, then stood up.

The title of this post mentioned winter and that’s because attacks of white finger are normally brought on by one of two things: cold or stress. In cold weather, your blood vessels constrict anyway so as to preserve body heat. With white finger they close far too much. Once the attack has passed and blood flows back to your fingers you will likely feel a tingling sensation, just as you would with pins and needles.

White finger is a condition that most people get as an industrial disease. Too much time spent using vibrating tools damages the fingers so that white finger develops. It can heal with time as long as the exposure to vibrations is cut off, but if allowed to develop it can lead to gangrene and necrosis.

There are measures put in place by the Health and Safety Executive that employers should follow, but if they don’t and you do develop white finger you should look into white finger claims. As with all accident claims your best bet is to go straight to an accident solicitor.

The Facts About Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome

Posted on October 2, 2010 by Alex

After a road traffic accident, when you’re thinking about whether to make a claim for traffic accident compensation, you should be aware of all of the things that you may be paying for and thus need to be covered by any compensation you receive.

The most obvious cost will be any damage that has been done to your vehicle. Repairs can be costly and if the worst comes to the worst you may end up having to buy a replacement. The cost of this to you is easy to work out as quotes can be attained from garages or mechanics on how much it’ll cost you to repair, and finding out how much an equivalent car will cost should also be a cinch.

However, any profits, work or wages you’ve lost out on due to not having transport also need to be taken into account. If you can’t make it to work without your vehicle then whoever was responsible for wrecking it should also have to make up the financial loss you’ve suffered as a result of their actions.

Finally, you’ll need to consider any injuries that you’ve sustained and the long term implications of them. Making a road traffic accident claim will mean that you can get the compensation necessary to cover any ongoing costs that you might have to bear as a result of you injury. You can also receive compensation that will try to make up for any pain or suffering that you’ve been through as a result of your accident.

4K Mattress Crash

Posted on December 10, 2009 by Geoffrey

There are many hazards out there on the roads and much of what happens we are not ready for. So imagine the surprise when an OAP was hit by a mattress when driving on the motorway.

The elderly gentleman who was 71 years old at the time of the incident was hit by a mattress when driving on the M8 near Glasgow. He was struck with the item when a car in front was transporting the mattress and had come loose from the load.

Mr. Thomas Aitchieson was ordered to pay the elderly gentleman, Mr. McKenna, £3770 in damages.

Mr. Aitchieson has admitted liability for causing the road traffic accident. It was decided that compensation for the accident was due to Mr. McKenna for the injuries that he has sustained due to the actions of Mr. Aitchieson.

In a process that failed to see Mr. Aitchiesons load being secured properly meant that through no fault of his own Mr. McKenna was caught up in what unfolded and was consequently suffered from injury.

An incident like this flags up the sometime overlooked safety concerns that is often associated with the transportation of goods. It’s not uncommon to see a poorly loaded vehicle or trailer that looks suspiciously unstable or overloaded.

This plays a large warning to the consideration that is needed when it comes to loading up a trailer or car with goods that are not suited to that purpose.

Knee Injury Accidents

Posted on November 11, 2009 by Dave

There are many things that people take for granted. Their health is one of those things. It’s true what people say, you don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone. There is a lot of value in this statement. Once you have suffered from an injury it can be months or years until the full use of that part of the body becomes useful again, if ever.

There is one body part that once injured can prevent you living the life you currently enjoy. The knee is an essential element to everyday living and once damaged can cause you long term discomfort and restrict mobility.

Sporting injuries are usually the most common cause of long term knee damage yet road traffic accidents also have a massive impact on the long term health of the knee. A car accident can leave you disabled and the loss of the use of the knee can leave you severely disabled.

The knee allows you a vast amount of movement that over wise would make life very difficult indeed. Bending, lifting, kicking, walking and running would become a mammoth task whilst carrying out every day activities.

Damage to the bone, cartilage or ligament can leave you in substantial pain and suffering. These injuries can come in the forms of many different pains:

A sprain
this is usually caused when a ligament has been over stretched and can result in a twisting or wrenching.

Strain
an injury like this occurs when a tendon or a muscle is over stretched

A tear
this is a painful experience and will result in a torn ligament or meniscus

These then go on to cause swelling, joint pain and instability. One such example would be that of a slippery floor. How many times have you walked into a shopping centre and the floor has been wet due to rain, almost slipping up. If you had fallen then a knee injury would have more than likely followed. If there was no indication that the floor was wet you may be entitled to make a no win no fee claim.

Accidents can happen anywhere – part 1

Posted on October 29, 2009 by Dave

Accidents are going to happen, and no one is immune from this. You, me and the rich and famous are all prone to them. Yet there are several levels of accidents that occur. From the very minor to the fatal, each one is still considered an accident. For some people an accident can be through not fault of their own, and they become caught up in it all. But for some, they are the cause of accidents. People many years ago did not have the benefit of a no win no fee solicitor to make a compensation claim on their behalf, in those days it was just put to down to bad luck.

Many things can be a contributor to an accident but more often then not, it is usually down to a persons lack of consideration for someone else’s welfare.

This is a two part blog post that will look at some accidents that have been fatal to people and the reasoning behind them.

In 1814, 9 people were reported killed when 323,000 gallons of beer gushed onto the streets. ‘The London Beer Flood’ occurred when a local brewery burst their vats and the streets became engulfed with beer. This was probably caused by a build up of pressure or an improper storage container.

1912 saw the death of Franz Reichelt a local tailor, fall to his death from the Eiffel Tower. The tailor did not commit suicide but was trying to display the effectiveness of his invention, the coat parachute. It was it first ever attempt with the coat and he had previously told local authorities that he would use a dummy for the first run. Might have been a good idea to stick with the dummy.

This gives you an insight to the possible ways in which accidents can occur and not only change, but end some peoples lives. The Second part of this post will be available to read soon.

Bruce Lees Death – Accident or Not

Posted on October 28, 2009 by Dave

For many people, Bruce Lee was an icon. Actor, film star, martial artist, philosopher, film director, screen writer and founder of the Jeet Kune Do concept, he is, for many people, the most influential martial artist of the 20^th Century.

Lee was a great influence on film and martial arts and many people were in disarray at hearing of his passing. To make matters worse he was to die at the young age of 32. As with any untimely death of someone cut down in their prime, rumors began to surface about the star’s death.

Many stories surround his death. Some people say that an accident claimed his life when filming his latest movie. Others believe that he was injured on set whilst working and his body was then moved to another location to remove suspicion.

Some theories are a little more speculative. It is rumored that the star could have died in a multitude of ways. One theory was that Hong Kong Triads (gangsters) had killed him, as he had refused to pay them protection money like many other Chinese movie stars did at that time. An additional theory was that Bruce Lee was cursed as he had just bought a house that was haunted and this was all contributing towards his untimely death.

Other suggestions indicate that he had angered the Chinese Martial Arts industry by teaching foreigners his skills and he was then killed in a challenge match. One far fetched theory suggests that the star is not actually dead and instead has gone undercover working for the Chinese police trying to break into the Chinese Mafia and then when the time is right he will be reintroduced back in to society.

What ever the reason is for his death there are plenty of theories to fuel the fire of what might have happened to this star.

Slippery Floors at Work

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Dave

A slippery floor, as we all know, is a dangerous floor.

The typical British weather can be a contributor to hazards itself.

Whilst out and about shopping it is all too common that the floors in supermarkets and clothes shops, become engulfed with rain water making them as slippery as an ice rink.

One false move or the lack of a ‘caution sign’ could send you free-falling to the ground and injury is only seconds away. All these events can then result in medical assistance, time off work and even long term disability.

In a short space of time, you have gone from healthy-happy-go-lucky to broken-bruised-victim. Through no fault of your own you could find that regular trips to the hospital become part of your routine and you are forced to take time off from work, making that promotion a little harder to achieve.

So what can you do now?

Well, like many people that have suffered from accidents that were not their fault they have gone on to seek accident compensation. ‘Quite rightly so’, some might say, as you might feel that being without a regular income or restricted body movement would leave you entitled to compensation.

There are some experienced compensation claim companies that offer no win no fee compensation and 100% of your compensation paid out.

Making a claim is a way of making companies look at how they handle possible accident situations, and what steps that they would take to avoid them. After all ‘prevention is better than cure’. It is important that these accidents are avoided and the staff become aware of the reasons behind it, as to ensure that no one else is victim to these dangerous hazards.

Health and Safety Awareness

Posted on September 1, 2009 by Dave

Health and safety at work has always been an important part of the job. So much so that today sees seminars, lessons and assessments about the workers and the environment in which they work. Health and safety is more prominent in the work place today then ever before. Many consider this a good thing, as these steps help to reduce the amount of injuries, accident and deaths in the work place.

Many large organizations have specific health and safety officers in place to minimize the risk of accidents at work.

Charlies cat

There is always an ongoing awareness of health and safety being promoted through various forms of advertising through TV, radio and printed media. The television campaigns have promoted all aspects of health and safety and not just those in the work place. Such television commercials have seen the introduction of the ‘Charlie’s Cat’ adverts in which a short animated film was used to promote the dangers of playing with matches. But it wasn’t only new faces that it brought to the screen. The adverts also saw the likes of Jimmy Hill, Ken Dodd, Jimmy Savile, and of Rolf Harris raising awareness of such things like the dangers of not being able to swim.

Rolf Harris

It seems that this celebrity endorsement is an ongoing trend and this year sees the Simpsons partake in raising health and safety issues. The creator of the Simpsons, Matt Groening, has allowed his popular cartoon characters to be used in promoting health and safety awareness. Characters like Homer Simpson, Mr. Burns, Maggie, Bart and the local police all appear the adverts highlighting the dangers and seriousness of not using the proper procedure and adhering to health and safety regulations.

A lack of consideration and concentration can cause dangerous or fatal accidents to happen. It is important that care is taken when working. If you have not been fortunate enough to avoid personal injury then you need to consider making a injury claim and there are a vast amount of affordable no win no fee solicitors that can help you get your claim in action.

Top Tips for Avoiding Cycle Accidents (For the Driver)

Posted on June 10, 2009 by Dave

So many people become injured each year on the highways and result in road traffic accident claims which in turn make life harder for those involved. If you are a regular road user it becomes quite common to let standards slip after you passed your test. Perhaps it’s down to the fact that we believe that we have become more experienced and know of a better way to drive or that we just become a little lazy behind the wheel.

This article will highlight a few things we should continually be aware of in order to avoid having an accident with a cyclist whilst making us safer drivers.

1. Become More Observant
You have to remember that you need to watch where you are going but also what is around all areas of the car. If you are an experienced driver you would have most likely seen cyclists weaving in and out of cars whilst you have been sitting at the traffic lights. It becomes important that you check all surrounding areas of the car before pulling away.

2. Take The Time to Look
At junctions it becomes all too easy to take a quick glance to check for traffic. Most people do this so they don’t have to stop the car at the junction. It seems that people don’t always register what they see, and more often than not people approach a junction looking only for other cars. This is when a cyclist or motorcyclists are overlooked and then the car driving pulls out on to their path and a collision is only moments away.

3. Give Cyclists More Room
It can be difficult (especially on some of the country roads in Britain) to give cyclists a wide birth when overtaking. Not allowing the cyclists enough room could intimidate them and cause them to become unstable and in seconds be under your car. Try and give them as much room as possible, but make sure that you are not pulling far enough out to collide with on coming traffic.

4. Give Them Some Respect
A good example of this would be if you are waiting to overtake but can’t. If it isn’t safe to overtake just be patient. Driving close to the cyclist and trying to get them to move over closer to the hedge won’t encourage them to take you in to consideration, but instead push them to make unsafe decisions that could lead to an accident.

Just by following these simple steps you might find that you develop a great appreciation for the cyclist. You need to consider their position and what behavior you would appreciate if you were on the bike.

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