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Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Claims & Compensation Amounts

By Ian Morris | Updated June 12th, 2024

125 questions have been answered on this subject - ask us your question

Carpal tunnel syndrome is one of many repetitive strain injuries that affect workers today. It can be very painful and most commonly affects the hands and wrists. Employers have a responsibility to reduce the risk of workers suffering from the condition, and if they have been negligent in this duty of care, you are entitled to make a carpal tunnel syndrome compensation claim.

Is your job causing carpal tunnel syndrome?
Claiming against your employer for carpal tunnel syndrome
Compensation amounts for carpal tunnel claims
How to start your carpal tunnel claim
Useful resources
Comments – your questions answered

Is your job causing carpal tunnel syndrome?

The NHS website describes Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) as a pressure on a nerve in your wrist. It causes tingling, numbness and pain in your hand and fingers. The symptoms include:

An ache or pain in your fingers, hand or arm
Numb hands
Tingling or pins and needles
A weak thumb or difficulty gripping

You’re most at risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome if your job involves repeated pressure or bending of the wrist. Usually it is associated with office workers, typists and people who spend their working life sat at a computer keyboard. Whilst such activities can and do lead to carpal tunnel syndrome, many people who pursue such claims are from other workplaces. Construction workers using vibratory equipment, tools or machinery, for example, are at risk of CTS.

Some job roles are more likely to present a risk and the employer has extra responsibilities to reduce it. They should provide extra training, safe and regularly serviced equipment, the correct tools for the job and regular breaks from use of certain equipment.

CTS is commonly linked to certain types of working activity, including:

Repeated and regular use of vibratory equipment or tools
Constant and repeated lifting of heavy items
Heavy and repeated pressure over the carpal tunnel (at base of palm)
Repeated use of and bending of the wrist
Repeated forceful pinch grips
Regular heavy lifting

The condition is known to cause pain and weakness, restricted dexterity and reduced grip strength. All of which which can lead to lost independence, difficulty working as normal and maintaining your day-to-day lifestyle.

Claiming compensation for carpal tunnel syndrome can help ease some of the problems caused by the condition.

Claiming against your employer for carpal tunnel syndrome

Anyone diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome caused by their working life is entitled to seek compensation for their pain and suffering. Employers that fail to ensure proper training, guidance and risk assessments to avoid CTS may be liable should you suffer a carpal tunnel injury. You’re entitled to make an industrial injury claim as your employer has failed in their duty of care.

Compensation will be awarded if it can be shown that the employer has been negligent and failed in their responsibilities. With carpal tunnel, negligence is commonly found in at least one of these areas:

Bad working conditions.
Lack of protective equipment.
Insufficient breaks from vibrating tools
Lack of training.
Lack of, or inappropriate, risk assessments.

Understandably, it can be a sensitive issue but there are many good reasons to make a carpal tunnel claim:

Claiming is one of your rights after an injury at work, and will fairly compensate you for a health condition that was not your fault.
It can pay for private medical treatment and rehabilitation therapies to speed your recovery.
You can reclaim lost income if you have been off work.
You pay nothing if your claim fails because they are made on a No Win No Fee basis.

You can’t be sacked for claiming for a work injury that wasn’t your fault. You can also make a claim in the knowledge that you are not jeopardising any colleagues’ employment. If you’re unable to do your usual job, your employer should do their best to get you back to work on lighter duties if possible. It’s up to you who you tell or don’t tell about your claim, or if you want to discuss the claim with your employer.

Compensation amounts for carpal tunnel

A successful claim will lead to a compensation settlement being made to you. The value of the claim would cover the injuries you have suffered and medical treatment that you have required. Additionally, it may include any lost income and incurred costs, now and in the future.

The amount of compensation you can expect will depend on the severity and term of your injury, also your age and the treatment required to correct the condition. Some injuries are long-term and result in loss of employment, others are fairly mild and can be corrected relatively quickly. It’s impossible to know exactly how much you could receive but there are guidelines for solicitors to follow, and previously awarded amounts are also taken into consideration.

One case made the headlines in 2015, where a council-employed gardener successfully claimed £15,000 compensation after sustaining CTS through the use of vibrating equipment. This would be in the upper scale of what amount to expect, with more minor and recoverable cases of CTS commonly awarded between £5,000 and £10,000.

The table below is a guide to compensation amounts for carpal tunnel based on its severity. These amounts are for the injury itself, but you can also claim for special damages, which can include your lost earnings, expenses and rehabilitation therapies, for example. Once your specialist solicitor has obtained your medical report they will be able to give you an idea of how much compensation to expect.

Severity of injury	Compensation amount
Most serious - continuing bilateral disability with surgery and loss of employment	£21k - £23k
Continuing, but fluctuating and unilateral symptoms	£14k - £15k
Symptoms resolving within three years	£8k - £10k
Complete recovery within a few months	£2k - £3k

How to start your carpal tunnel claim

We can help you to understand your rights after a work-related injury and can tell you whether you are likely to succeed with your claim.

As with all injuries or health problems caused through work, it is important to make sure that your carpal tunnel syndrome has been recorded properly with your employer. It may be that details are recorded in an employer’s accident book, but more likely that your line manager and HR department should be made aware of the diagnosis you have received from your doctor. If this hasn’t been done, don’t worry, we can help you to do so.

Direct2Compensation are experts in managing work-related health claims. Some of the best accident at work solicitors in the UK handle our cases. With our easy to understand claims process and ability to complete your claim quickly, simply and transparently, there are many reasons that make us a great choice.

To find out if you can claim, call us on 01225 430285 or if you prefer, . In just a few minutes on the telephone with you, we’ll obtain the initial information needed for our solicitors to commence a claim.

Useful resources

125 questions have been answered on this subject - ask us your question

Comments & Questions

Read on for questions and advice about claiming, plus carpal tunnel claim examples...

Hello I have been diagnosed with CTS and have to wear a splint I also might have to have an operation. I have also had problems with my elbow on the same arm. I am currently off work suffering from depression since September last year. I don’t feel I can return to my current employer and will be sending them my notice this week. Can I still make a claim if no longer working for them?

Leaving the employer will have no bearing on whether or not you can make a claim. The key issue will be whether the claim is made within 3 years of the date at which you started to notice that the symptoms could be work related and how the employer managed your workload and safety at work.

I have been in my job now for about 2 years. I make wooden staircases and use a lot of hand tools, the main one being orbital sanders – sometimes long periods of time. I have not been diagnosed yet, but I have been to the Doctor and have been referred for tests to be done at the hospital.

I feel it in both hands. My fingers/hands feel as if they are swollen a lot of the times but visually look fine. Thumbs feel tight and tingly pretty much 24/7 Sometimes causes trouble sleeping and making a tight fist. Would this be something you could work with?

It would appear that you are suffering with some form of repetitive strain injury. Whether that be carpal tunnel syndrome or some other form of RSI, you may well have grounds to pursue a claim against your employer for personal injury compensation. Our specialist Solicitors can certainly assist with such matters on a No Win No Fee basis. It is worth noting that we have some real expert Solicitors working within this area of industrial or work related injury compensation claims.

Our Solicitors will look at the nature of the work you perform, the kind of equipment you use, what training you have received, what PPE you are provided with and whether you are given adequate job rotation and rest periods from vibratory equipment in order to identify where your employer may have failed in their duty of care towards your health and safety at work.

If you would like to further discuss a potential claim or seek further advice from our specialist Solicitors, please call us on 01225430285.

Hi I have been diagnosed with carpal tunnel , tennis elbow. I’m waiting for more test on my body as I’m in extreme pain. I work in retail on the tills . I blame the conditions I had to work in and short staffed . I was put under a lot of pressure now I’m suffering I’m unable to work I’m off sick

Employers are obliged to ensure that job roles and working environments are risk assessed and that those roles that present a risk of repetitive strain injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome are managed in such a way that the risk of a worker developing carpal tunnel syndrome are minimised.

In your case it would appear that there are questions to be asked of the employer and that claim may well be viable as a result.

I am a full time scaffolder. I have had to take time off on the sick as have CTS and awaiting an operation date. I have been in contact with my employer to see if they can help or accommodate me as I have been advised to not go back on the tools. Do I have a right to a claim?

We would like to speak with you regarding your carpal tunnel syndrome in order to find out a little more about the symptoms you’ve had, when they started and what your working environment was like prior to you needing to be signed off. There is certainly a likelihood that you can pursue a claim and we have specialist Solicitors who are experts within the field of repetitive strain injuries/industrial injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome.

If successful, you can recover compensation for any lost income and incurred costs as well as a compensation settlement that accounts for the pain & discomfort of the carpal tunnel syndrome symptoms and the impact that such a condition will have had on you.

I’m self employed and a tattoo artist. I’ve got carpal tunel and cubital tunel damage. I’m having operations in the next few days, but can I claim anything, if so from where?

As you are self-employed, you would only be able to claim if you could attribute negligence to another party or for a company that had contracted your services. However, it is unlikely to be possible to succeed with a claim in the scenario you describe.

I am an employee of my own company and have calpul tunnel in both hands one has been operated on and I am waiting for the second to be done would I be able to claim against my employer which is my limited company?

If you are a director of the company for which you work, you would have a responsibility to have ensure appropriate training and risk assessment of the work that you and the company undertakes. As such, a conflict of interest is likely to prevent you from being able to make a claim.

I have recently been diagnosed with bilateral carpol tunnel syndrome, It’s never been recorded on an accident book, but has been going on for years undiagnosed since around 2012, not sure exactly, can I still do anything.

Claimants must make their claim within the 3 year limitation period. In most cases, it is quite straightforward to work out when the 3 year period starts and ends. However, in situations involving an industrial injury such as carpal tunnel syndrome or an injury that isn’t caused in a ‘one off’ accident but due to repetitive strain or a negligent approach to safety at work, evaluating whether a claimant is acting within limitation or not is less simple.

In your case, your 3 year period will start at the date at which you were aware, or should have been aware that the symptoms you were suffering with were related to your employment. You mention that symptoms have been present since 2012 and clearly the time that has lapsed since then is way more than 3 years. However, if your symptoms were mild or if you had initially been advised that the situation was something other than carpal tunnel syndrome, your limitation period would not have started at that point. Essentially, if you were suffering symptoms prior to 2019, you are likely to now be out of limitation.

Good morning,

I have recently been diagnosed with CTS. I have veen struggling with the shift to home working. My employer has yearly DSE refresher training and yearly DSE assessments and has always been willing to to provide relevant equipment where necessary. Everything seemed to be comfortable up until the issues started (4 months ago) and in my assessments I did not raise concerns.

Do i still have reason to claim?

Your employer appears to have acted correctly in respect of the refresher training and assessments. However, there could still be a viable route to succeeding with a claim for personal injury compensation. Our specialist industrial injury/repetitive strain Solicitors can advise you in detail so that you know your rights. If you would like us to get a considered opinion for you, please provide some further information (as much as possible about the work you do, the workload you face and when you developed symptoms) via the start your claim page of our website. We’ll then have one of our specialist Solicitors advise you.

I have just found out that I have got Carpal Tunnel syndrome as a Doctor has just told me. I was working as a sewing machine operator. Can I claim? I am 69 now.

You can make a claim if you do so within 3 years of the onset of your symptoms.

I spent 30 years working for local government in IT. I left 3 years ago. Since leaving I have been diagnosed with bilateral CTS and bilateral Cubital Tunnel Syndrome. Is there anything I can do?

When it comes to industrial injury claims, we need to look at the limitation issue closely. This is the legal time limit that a claimant has to pursue a claim. Adults over the age of 18 have a claim limitation period of 3 years from the date of an accident or the date at which they became aware of (or should have been aware of) symptoms being work related. So we need to look at when your symptoms first presented and when you first sought medical attention from your GP. If symptoms developed within the past 2 years or so and not before, you could be able to make a claim so make further contact with us and we’ll have our specialist carpal tunnel syndrome Solicitors advise you about a potential No Win No Fee claim.

I have been diagnosed with Carpal Tunnel syndrome in both hands & now on the waiting list for the op, ive had the steroid injection & it’s now worn off. I’m a self employed Hairdresser so wasn’t sure if I can claim as I have no employer?

Unfortunately, as you don’t have an employer, there is no party against whom you can attribute negligence and as such, no party against whom you can pursue a claim.

I work in a bakery, was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome February 2020 and have since gone on to have surgery. I believe it was caused by constant repetitive actions packing in bakery. Had symptoms before the date diagnosed but did not know it was carpal tunnel, can I make a claim against my employer?

As long as you make your claim within 3 years of the date at which you became aware that the injury symptoms were linked to your employment, you can pursue action for compensation for the condition you have developed and needed treatment for.

We have expert Solicitors with a proven track record in pursuit of claims for industrial injuries and repetitive strain conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and we can help you to do the same.

Can i still claim for carpal tunnel if the company has shut down?

As long as it is less than 3 years since you became aware of the symptoms of carpal tunnel, you can still pursue a claim against a company that has shut down.

Hi I fell got tangled in a plastic tie from around a box, it took me to the ground, fractured my thumb. I am a nurse and haven’t been in work since February 2021. I had to have surgery on friday 16 july for carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the fall. I spoke to a personal injury solicitor, he said the problem is they don’t know whose shop the cable tie came from.

Where did the accident happen? Were there any witnesses? Please provide further details to explain the incident and we can advise you further.

Good day. I have had Carpal tunnel for many years now and it’s getting to the point we’re I’m finding it hard to stay in my current job as a driver. I believe I got these symptoms due to driving buses for around 13 years. I don’t know if there are any other bus drivers making claims, but I believe that the constant gripping of the stearing wheel upto 10 hours a day has had an effect on me.

The main obstacle that could prevent you from pursuing a claim will be the 3 year limitation period within which any person must pursue a claim. In your case, your 3 years would have start at the date at which you were aware of symptoms of carpal tunnel.

I started suffering from CTS in 2008 and was repetitively sewing Heart Valves using needle holders to make the stitch. Numerous symptoms which finally got diagnosed in 2017 which led to an operation on my Medial Nerve, am I too late to claim?

Unfortunately, you are out of limitation as more than 3 years has passed since your diagnosis.

I have carpal tunnel for which I first had steriod injections 4 years ago. Recently I have had more. I relate this to my employment 30 years ago when we used to use needle guns offshore (oil and gas) for two weeks at a time during 12 hour shifts.

I used to work for Sedco-Forex/Transocean and I relate my condition to this. I can still use my hands but after using my own power tools it doesn’t take long for me to suffer with pins and needles and sore fingers. I just wondered if I could claim for my injury with it being caused so long ago?

The fact that the injury was caused so long ago is not an issue, but the fact that you have been aware of having carpal tunnel syndrome for more than 3 years does prevent you from being able to make a claim for compensation.

In cases such as yours, the date of diagnosis or the date at which you ought to have been aware that the condition was linked to your working history would be seen as the start of your 3 year claim limitation period and you would have had to commence your claim within that 3 year period.

I have just been diagnosed with carpel tunnel in my right hand. I used to work for a bank which meant long periods typing numbers on a key board I believe I got it through this. Would I be able to claim even though I left the company around ten years ago?

You can make a claim so long as you are doing so within 3 years of the date at which you became aware that the symptoms you were suffering were work related or may have been related to the work you were doing.

I obtained carpal tunnel repetitive strain injury due to wrong work from home equipment and increased workload due to a shift of shopping to online during lockdown.

The injury has affected my entire right arm from the fingers to the top of my spine affecting normal functionality. I work for Amazon Transport Services, as a Transport specialist, and been working from home since lockdown.

I was out of work for over two months on medication and physiotherapy, but now back to work with limited duties, while I wait for more specialised treatment, since the injury is still ongoing.

I would like to make a claim against my employer for the injury. Please let me know if you’re able to pursue this on my behalf?

We have Solicitors who are experts and in pursuit of repetitive strain injury compensation, including industrial related injuries such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

If you would like our Solicitors to help you, we can do so via a No Win No Fee service.

I am still working for my employer. Can I still make a claim? I have seen my Doctor and had the test for carpal tunnel synrome.

Can I still work for them if I make a claim and how do I make a claim?

Whether you continue to work for the employer, or if you have left, you can still pursue a claim for carpal tunnel syndrome and we can help you to do this.

The fact that you are still employed is not a problem and you can continue to work for the employer even if you do make a claim, so you don’t need to worry about losing your job if you do make a claim.

Please call us on 01225430285 to make your claim for carpal tunnel syndrome compensation. We can help you with this on a No Win No Fee basis, so you don’t need to worry about legal costs either.