A Guide On How To Make A Racking Or Shelving Accident Claim

By Lewis Hendrix. last Updated 27th July 2023. Welcome to our warehouse racking accidents claims guide. In this detailed online guide to claiming compensation for injuries that you sustained in a racking accident, we aim to cover everything you need to know about making a personal injury claim for a warehouse rack accident, and how a personal injury solicitor can help you to make your claim. We look at many of the common causes of these kinds of accidents, such as a shelving collapse, and we try and show how in similar circumstances, you yourself could be eligible to make a claim for a racking collapse.

"- Racking collapse- Warehouse racking accidents - Warehouse rack accident - Shelving collapse" - Racking collapse - Warehouse racking accidents - Warehouse rack accident - Shelving collapse" Racking/shelving accident claims guide

Racking/shelving accident claims guide

If you have any questions about the legal process of claiming for a storage accident, or you have questions related to your own claim, then please call our claims team on 0800 073 8801. They will be ready to get you the answers that you need, and also go over how we can organise a solicitor to process your claim for you.

Select A Section:

What Is A Shelving Accident Or Racking Accident?
Causes Of Shelving And Racking Accidents
Accidents Caused By Poor Shelving And Racking
Shelving And Racking Health And Safety Advice
Racking Or Shelving Accident Claim Compensation Amounts
Special Damages For Storage Accident Claims
No Win No Fee Racking Or Shelving Accident Claims
Essential References

What Is A Shelving Accident Or Racking Accident?

A shelving or racking accident could describe several possible scenarios. For example, a warehouse racking collapse or an accident in a shop whereby shelving injures a customer. Every valid claim will share two common facts, and these are:

A third party was at least partially to blame for the accident taking place.
The victim suffered physical (or psychological) harm as a result of the accident.

In some cases, it could be that the victim of the accident was partially responsible for it. In these kinds of circumstances, the defendant would agree on a reduced level of liability. This level of liability, expressed as a percentage, will be applied to calculate the amount of compensation the claimant receives if their claim is a success.

This might sound extremely complicated to you, but we are here to help. If you would like one of our claim advisors to evaluate your claim for you, and let you know a) whether it is valid and, b) who would be liable to pay you compensation, please call them today.

Causes Of Shelving And Racking Accidents

In the UK, there are health and safety guidelines laid down by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) related to racking safety and storage. The health and safety performance of every company in the UK is monitored by the HSE. Some of the more common causes of storage and racking accidents are:

Racking or storage that has not been well designed, is poorly constructed, or has not been maintained adequately.
The use of materials that don’t meet safety standards and are of inferior quality.
Using racking or shelving for a purpose that it is not suitable for. For example, stacking items that take the racking over its certified weight load.
Stacking items on shelving or racking too high, making the stored good unstable and prone to fall off the racking.
Continuing to use storage shelves or racking that are already damaged.

All storage shelves and racking systems are designed for a specific use, and to hold a certain weight load. When creating new storage space, the business owner must ensure that the racking installed is suitable for the use it is being put to, and that it is safe. If the business fails to follow all health and safety regulations related to warehouse and storage, and an accident harming a person is the result, then a compensation claim might be possible. If you think you might have a valid claim, then speak to a member of our claims.

Accidents Caused By Poor Shelving And Racking

When it comes to warehouse safety, every company has to meet its obligatory responsibility to comply with health and safety guidelines at all times. There are some kinds of accidents that are more common than others, and this could include:

Injuries that are caused by items falling from racking or shelving resulting in a person being injured by a falling object.
Injuries that are caused by damaged racking, where sharp edges are exposed, causing cuts or lacerations.
Badly designed racking collapsing onto a person, due to being loaded with a total weight that is not within its certified weight limit.

As you can see, there are are different ways that a racking or shelving accident can come about, causing injuries to the claimant. Why not speak to our claims team today, and explain how you have come to harm? They will let you know how to best go about making your claim.

Shelving And Racking Health And Safety Advice

Within this section, we are going to take a look at the legal obligations related to health and safety that pertain to racking and shelving, that each company in the UK must comply with. We will answer questions such as is racking inspection a legal requirement? And others. Racking and shelving safety is enforced by multiple bodies of legislation in the UK, and this includes:

The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992.
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

Employer requirements

Compliance with all of this legislation is obligatory, at all times. A failure in compliance can lead to sanctions against the offending company. As part of these regulations, a company is required to fulfil the following responsibilities.

Ensure only experienced employees are tasked with undertaking difficult, potentially dangerous tasks.
Try to limit the height that shelves are stacked to around the height of the shoulder.
Make sure that every employee is provided with adequate and effective safety clothing and equipment.
Ensure that every employee has received a level of training that means that they can fulfil their duties safely.
Make sure that there is plenty of operational space around storage racks. Then, they can be unloaded and loaded safely.
Any heavy items that have been placed onto racking, should have a clearly readable label warning that the item is heavy.

Whenever a company fails to comply with all of these regulatory requirements, and it results in an injury to an employee or a member of the public, then the company could possibly be liable to pay compensation to the injured party. If you were injured in a similar accident, our claims team can tell you how we may be able to assist you to make a claim.

Time Limit For Claiming Following A Racking Or Shelving Accident

The time limit for making a personal injury claim after a shelving or racking accident is set out in the Limitation Act 1980. Generally, you have three years from the date you were injured to start your case.

However, the three-year time limit may be frozen in some circumstances. For example:

The limitation period is frozen for those under the age of 18 until their 18th birthday. From this date, they will have three years to start their claim.
The time limit is frozen indefinitely for those who lack the mental capacity to make their own claim. Should they regain this mental capacity, the three-year limitation period will reinstate on the date of recovery.

In both instances, while the time limit is frozen, a court-appointed litigation friend could make a claim on the injured party’s behalf. A litigation friend is someone who will act in the claimant’s best interest, such as a parent or solicitor, for example.

To see whether you are still within the time limit to start a personal injury claim, you can contact our team of advisors.

Racking Or Shelving Accident Claim Compensation Amounts

You might be able to use a personal injury claims calculator. This could help you get a rough estimate of the amount of compensation you could claim. You could also look up your injury in the table below, and then find out the level of compensation that the injury might attract.

Edit
Injury	Amount	Severity	Comment on Severity
Head Injury	£2,210 to £12,770	Minor	These types of injuries will include very minor brain damage and will be based on how long symptoms persist for, if the person is having headaches, and how long it may take the person to fully recover. The bottom of this bracket may be awarded to cases that recover within a few weeks.
Nose Fracture	£10,640 to £23,130	Serious	This bracket covers injuries that include multiple fractures that impair the airways and require surgery to correct. Injuries in this bracket also include cases of severe deformity, and those with damaged nerves, damaged tear ducts and difficulty breathing.
Shoulder Injury	£7,890 to £12,770	Moderate	This award bracket includes cases of frozen shoulder that causes persisting symptoms, discomfort and loss of mobility. This can also include soft tissue injuries to the shoulder that have symptoms lasting longer than two years.
Arm Injury	£19,200 to £39,170	Less Severe Injuries	This bracket includes injuries that recovered to substantial degree over time, but that still experienced significant disabilities.
Elbow Injury	Up to £12,590	Moderate to Minor	This bracket can include simple fractures, tennis elbow, and lacerations. It covers injuries that do not result in permanent symptoms or permanent loss of mobility.
Wrist Injury	£47,620 to £59,860	Severe	Injuries resulting in complete loss of function in the wrist for example, where an arthrodesis has been performed
Hip Injury	£39,170 to £52,500	Severe	In this bracket, injury to the hip will involve a fracture to the acetabulum, or socket of the hip, resulting in the need for hip replacement surgery. This bracket also covers cases where such a hip replacement was not successful or is deemed to need to further surgery to revise it.
Leg Injury	£27,760 to £39,200	Moderate	This bracket generally covers injury to one leg resulting in complicated or multiple fractures or crushing injuries that were severe in nature. It can vary depending on impact on quality of life, potential to need corrective surgery in the future, and the extent of treatment needed for recovery.
Knee Injury	£52,120 to £69,730	Severe	This bracket covers leg bone fractures that extend into and interfere with the knee joint. This will generally include symptoms of persisting pain, permanent impairment of mobility and which puts the person at risk of future osteoarthritis or arthroplasty.
Ankle Injury	£13,740 to £26,590	Moderate	This type of ankle injury will involve ligament damage and fractures that lead to difficulty walking on stairs, walking or standing for long periods, and difficulty walking on uneven ground. This could also include the risk of future osteoarthritis.

If you want a more accurate estimate of the level of compensation you may be able to claim, a personal injury lawyer will need to value your claim for you. We can arrange this if you speak to a member of our claims team.

Special Damages For Storage Accident Claims

When a lawyer processes personal injury claims, if the claim is a success the claimant will receive a settlement that is made up of possibly several kinds of damages, for example:

General damages – to compensate you for actual harm:

Pain and suffering – that the claimant went through at the point the accident occurred.
Shock and trauma – that the claimant went through at the point the accident occurred.
Psychological problems – this would include conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression or anxiety.
Painful recovery – if the claimant will go through a long and painful period of recuperation.
Permanent disability – if the claimant will be left with a permanent disability or some other infliction for the rest of their life.
Loss of life quality – The claimant’s life will be negatively impacted by their injuries for the rest of their life.

Special damages – to compensate you for financial and other ad-hoc losses:

Travel costs – to pay you back for out of pocket travel expenses to deal with your claim. Or to have your injuries dealt with.
The cost of care – if you had to hire a nurse to take care of you at home.
Private medical fees – if you paid for private treatment that the NHS couldn’t provide.
Lost income – if you missed out on your salary/wages taking time off work.
Lowered future prospects – if your injuries will leave you with a reduced ability. Or, the inability to work in the future.

To find out the kinds of damages you may receive if your own claim is successful, then please speak to a claim advisor today, they can help you with this.

No Win No Fee Racking Or Shelving Accident Claims

If you’re aiming to claim compensation for a warehouse rack accident, you might be looking for a solicitor to assist you. Whether you’ve been injured in a racking collapse accident, or your injuries were caused by falling objects, hiring a legal professional could benefit you. What’s more, if you choose to work with Accident Claims UK, you could obtain the services of one of our solicitors for your shelving collapse accident claim under No Win No Fee terms.

There are different types of No Win No Fee services, including a Conditional Fee Agreement. Under this agreement, claimants don’t usually need to pay any upfront fees to their solicitor for their services. They also wouldn’t need to pay for their services if the claim fails.

Instead, they would pay a success fee from their compensation. This is deducted as a legally capped percentage.

Should you wish to check your eligibility to claim for warehouse racking accidents on a No Win No Fee basis, or you have questions about making such claims, please call our team.

Have you been injured by pallet racking, shelving, or any other kind of structure storage? Did you know you might be able to claim if you are not to blame for the accident? Contact our claims team on 0800 073 8801 to find out if you have a valid claim or not.