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Court of Appeal Decides how to Split Blame Between Negligent Employer and Land Owner
13th June 2006
Injured at Work
The claimant, employed by the first defendant, was delivering radiators to a building site owned by the second defendant.
A plank of wood on the second defendant’s walkway gave way and he tripped and injured his back.
Employer Liability
It was held by the Court of Appeal that the claimant’s employer had breached its statutory duty under the Manual Handling Regulations in failing to train the claimant to be aware of the risks of walking on uneven surfaces. The object of the 1992 Regulations was for the employer to make sure that the employees were aware of the risks of carrying things over uneven ground by training him and the claimant was unaware of the risks as he received no such training.
This was more than just a technical breach but, as this lack of training was in an area that requires little more than common sense, it was not fair for the employer to bear the greater share of the blame in this case. Accordingly they were held one third liable.
Occupier Mainly to Blame
The lion’s share of the blame lay with the occupier of the land. They were two thirds liable for breaches of the Construction (Health Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 regulation 5 as the walkway was not safe and did not provide suitable access.
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