A few past cases personally handled by Ken since 1975

Accidents and conditions caused at work and to public

 

Accidents and diseases caused at work occur where safe systems or places of work are not in place, or where the systems are in place but negligently or deliberately made unsafe by those operating them. Here are a few examples of Ken's 3,500  past cases of injuries to employees and to the public generally:-

  • A worker operating compressed air equipment deliberately placed
  • it against anothers trousers and operated it, causing an almost fatal internal injury. The man was charged with ABH and the employer liabile for not having a safer nozzle and better control over the operative.

 

  • A construction worker ignored a notice and cordon and climbed a
  • pole ladder suffering a fatal head injury when masonry fell on him.

 

  • Roofer fell through skylight and broke neck.

 

  • Fork lift truck driver killed when his mast struck a raised oven door and overturned. Also various FLT accidents resulting in injury.

 

  • A dumper driver drowned when his vehicle overturned into a river.

 

  • Various Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome cases caused through operating a variety of vibrating tools such as jack hammers, grinders, rock drills etc.

 

  • Serious leg injuries to a fitter repairing an escalator.

 

  • Various Noise Induced Deafness through exposure to noisy environments and tools. 

 

  • Young woman broke her back in a lift due to negligent actions by shopping centre staff causing lift to drop suddenly. Also various injuries connected with lift doors.

 

  • Elderly people falling down escalators.

 

  • Elderly lady fell from stair lift.

 

  • Various injuries due to cranes and hoists.

 

  • Man's hand chopped off by band saw.

 

  • Child's finger chopped off by door.

 

  • Various childrens' play equipment injuries.

 

  • Various injuries caused by electric and chain operated doors.

 

  • Electric shock threw man across factory floor.

 

  • Youg woman suffered electric power burns on fairground ride.

 

  • Young electrician scalded to death when heating engineers attempted to remove a 100 mm dia HTHW pump as he was walking past.

 

  • Child scalded in bath and young woman scalded in shower.

 

  • various burns from heating system pipes.

 

  • Man burned to death and wife severely burned in fire caused by gas leak.

 

  • Varius eye injuries.

 

  • Domestic solid fuel boiler exploded killing man's wife and son and blowing his leg off.

 

  • Ice skater broke arm when he fell. (yes - the ice rink owners were found liable)

 

  • Young doctor contracted occupational asthma due to inadequate fume cupboard extract ventilation. Painters and scientists also developed occupational asthma and many other inadequate ventilation matters.

 

  • Many slipping and tripping cases to the public on the highway and in supermarkets, factories, hotels, hospitals, offices, sports centres, etc..

 

  • Falls due to poor public and occupiers lighting.

 

  • Falls on stairs.

 

  • Young woman holidaymaker seriously scalded in apartment  by faulty shower  unit in Greek Islands.

 

  • Various amputations and lacerations when using woodworking and engineering machines.

 

  • Various manual handling cases involving construction, factory environments and nurses/care assistants.

 

  • Various ladder and step ladder injuries due to falls or collapse of ladders and step ladders.

 

  • Various inuries caused when chairs collapsed.

 

  • Various injuries to HGV ariculated and fixed body vehicles drivers - death when crushed - load falling - operation of FLT - falling from vehicles.

 

 

Prosecutions

 

  • Crown Court - Man attacked another with an axe but only wheelchair physically damaged.

 

  • Gas installer prosecuted for not isolating unsafe gas appliance.

 

  • Gas installer prosecuted for using unauthorised fitting.

 

  • Site owner prosecuted for wilful obstruction of planning officer.

 

  • Hotel owner prosecuted for abstracting electricity.

 

 

 

Asbestos diseases caused at work

Asbestos diseases are becoming more prevalent because of the very long period between exposure to asbestos and symptoms occurring. Ken has been inolved with asbestos since 1956 and as an expert witness in asbestos disease cases since 1989. Ken was the expert witness in the mesothelioma case of Sienkiewicz which went up to the Supreme Court. Some examples of past cases:-

 

  • Laggers, plumbers, heating fitters, welders, electricians, joiners, roofers, plasterers, boiler inspectors exposed to work carried on by laggers and in some cases such as joiners in fitting asbestolux/marinite asbestos boarding.

 

  • Boilermakers, fitters, laggers, plumbers, welders, joiners etc working on board ships under construction or repair.

 

  • Dockers loading and unloading asbestos products.

 

  • Office and shop workers developed mesothelioma due to old friable asbestos lagging and during refurbishment works.

 

  • Production workers manufacturing shielded welding rods coated with asbestos.

 

  • Wives contracting asbestos diseases after washing husbands' overalls.

 

Asbestos prosecutions

 

  • Asbestos removal firm prosecuted for failure to meet required standards.

 

 

Carbon monoxide poisoning

Carbon monxide (CO) gas is deadly and is not detectable by a person exposed to it unless symptoms such as headaches, nausea and dizziness are realised as caused by it. This failure has lead to many deaths and long term or permanent injury from cases that Ken has dealt with. Examples:-

 

  • Fatality due to faulty flue to a solid fuel boiler;

 

  • Fatality of two students when landlord attempted to service the gas boiler himself;

 

  • Long term symptoms resulting in death realised only after ten years exposure to a gas fire whose flue terminal had been fitted upside down. The fire had been serviced every year.

 

  • Many near fatal injuries due to negligent servicing and maintenance of gas apliances.

 

  • Fatal exposure to CO from sealed fan flue boilers negligently installed.

 

 

 

Contractual/negligence Claims

  • Failure of 20,000 boilers due to defective materials supplied to the boiler manufacturers.

 

  • £3,000,000 claim for damage to pipework in swimming pool due to negligent specification/construction methods.

 

  • Failure of air conditioning unit caused £300,000 consequential
  • damage.

 

  • Air conditioning to swimming pools inefective due to poor design. 

 

  • Flood from 12 inch (300 mm) water main burst in Liverpool.

 

  • Flood in London when 15 mm water pipe burst and flooded rooms below causing £300,000 damage.

 

  • Flood when ceiling collapsed and storage tank fell through ceiling due to inadequate support.

 

  • Disputes with respect to inadequate heating/hot water systems.

 

  • Dispute over transportable drilling rig design and manufacture.

 

  • Dispute between two manufacturers  over boiler design copywrite

 

  • Claims for negligent duct design

 

  • Claims for water damage from burst pipes