Injured at client’s home - who pays?
Workplace accidents can and do happen. But what if an employee slips over and is hurt whilst visiting a client’s premises? Will it be you as the company director, your member of staff, or the client who is responsible for their injury?
Who is liable?
“Occupiers’ liability” has been in the news after it was reported that a supermarket delivery driver was suing a householder because he slipped on a leaf in her driveway, fracturing his elbow. Whilst this particular claim has been heavily criticised (after all, who wants to shop online if there’s a risk of being sued by the delivery driver?), what would happen if an employee of yours was injured at a client’s premises, or home? Who would be liable; you as a director; the employee, for not taking care, or the client as the occupier of their premises?
Legal position
When you send an employee to attend a client’s premises, responsibility for their health and safety rests between you and the client. Under s.2 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act1974 (HSWA), employers are responsible for safeguarding the health, safety and welfare of employees “so far as is reasonably practicable” whilst they are at work; that they’re off-site doesn’t matter. As a director, you also have specific duties under s.37 of the HSWA to ensure this happens.
Their part to play
Your client has similar duties under s.3 of the HSWA, as this extends legal protection to those individuals who aren’t their employees. In addition, they also have duties under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 to ensure that visitors to their premises, e.g. members of the public are safe during their time there.
Tip. Your client can’t attempt to shirk these duties by trying to exclude them, or pass them on to you, under the terms of the contract.
Getting some perspective
So your client must safeguard against obvious risks, e.g. torn carpets, poor lighting etc. Less is expected of them with naturally occurring hazards like falling leaves - it would not be practicable for them to continually sweep them up!
Two-way communication
As there are overlapping duties between both parties, you should communicate with clients over health and safety issues. In practice, what’s required will be determined by the nature of the work to be done and the risks involved.
Tip 1. If staff regularly have to visit clients’ homes, consider asking them to complete a home visit checklist themselves (see The next step). This will identify if there are any risks, which you can then raise with the client, if necessary.
Tip 2. Not only will this identify if there are any problems, it’s an accurate record that the system of work has been considered. Ensure a copy is retained so you can refer to it if there are any injuries.
Risky business
If an employee is injured at a client’s premises, notify your insurers immediately. Whatever you do, don’t admit liability for their accident, or offer to deal with it in the first instance. Not only could this invalidate your cover, it’s likely that your insurers will want to hear what your client has to say first.
For a free sample home visit checklist, visithttp://companydirector.indicator.co.uk (CD 11.08.07).
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