What is a Office Claim?
Office accident claims cover injuries sustained in office environments, including those working from home as part of their employment. Common claims include slips on wet floors, trips over trailing cables, falls from faulty chairs, display screen equipment injuries, and repetitive strain injuries. Employers must conduct ergonomic risk assessments for all display screen users.
Am I Entitled to Claim?
You can claim if your employer failed to maintain a safe office environment or a safe workstation. Specific obligations include workstation ergonomic assessments under the Display Screen Equipment Regulations, regular equipment maintenance, safe walkways, effective cleaning with warning signage, and appropriate training in safe office practices.
Step-by-Step Process
Report Immediately
Record in accident book. For home-working injuries, email your employer and HR.
Medical Care
Attend your GP or A&E. Repetitive strain and soft tissue injuries often worsen over time.
Photograph Scene
The hazard, the office layout, and your workstation setup.
Contact Keans
We review risk assessments, ergonomic reports, and maintenance records.
Occupational Report
For RSI or chronic pain, we may commission an occupational health expert.
Claim Resolution
Office claims typically resolve through the IRB without court proceedings.
Evidence That Strengthens Your Claim
The stronger the evidence, the more straightforward the claim. Where possible, gather the following:
- Your employer’s accident report book entry
- Names of colleagues who witnessed the accident
- Photos of the unsafe equipment, surface, or condition
- Copies of relevant risk assessments and safe systems of work
- Your training records and any inductions received
- Medical records and certificates from GP, A&E, or consultants
- Payslips showing lost earnings during your recovery
- Display Screen Equipment assessment records
- Office maintenance logs
- Workstation photos from the date of injury
Compensation Ranges
Based on the Judicial Council’s Personal Injury Guidelines 2021. Awards may also include special damages for lost earnings, medical costs, and future care needs. Exact value depends on your specific injury.
Frequently Asked Questions
The employer or occupier. Even where cleaning is done by a contracted service, the duty to warn about wet floors and to programme cleaning outside working hours remains. We review cleaning contracts and schedules.
Possibly. Display Screen Equipment (DSE) regulations require employers to assess workstations and correct ergonomic issues. If your employer never conducted an assessment or ignored symptoms you reported, an RSI claim can succeed. Medical evidence from an occupational health expert is key.
Possibly. If your employer required or enabled home working, they still owe a duty of care for the work-related aspects of your home office. The responsibility is more divided than in an office, so each case turns on its facts.
Yes, if the chair was provided by the employer and was not maintained to a safe standard. Office chairs have a service life and should be inspected. A sudden collapse is almost always due to wear or damage the employer should have identified.
Two years from the date of the accident or the date you first became aware of the injury. Miss it and your claim is statute barred, so contact a solicitor early.
No. The initial consultation at Keans is free. For personal injury cases we discuss all fees in writing before work begins. In contentious business, Irish law prevents solicitors from calculating fees as a percentage of your award or settlement.