PPE Claims – Get Compensation For Missing Or Inadequate PPE

By Ian Morris | Updated June 22nd, 2023

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

You can claim compensation if you have been injured due to missing or inadequate personal protective equipment (PPE), if it can be proven that those responsible for your safety failed to comply with their statutory duties. In this article we look at how to make a successful PPE injury claim.

When can you claim for an injury caused by missing or inadequate PPE?
The benefits of claiming compensation
How Direct2Compensation can help
Comments – your questions answered

When can you claim for an injury caused by missing or inadequate PPE?

In the majority of cases, inadequate protective equipment claims will relate to an injury suffered at work. In such cases, a claim will succeed if employer negligence can be proved. This would include a lack of enforcement, or provision of protective equipment, or allowing use of the wrong equipment. It could be that an employer has failed to provide gloves, hard hats or re-enforced footwear, for example. All workers, whether temporary or permanent, have the same right to a safe working environment and legal entitlements following an injury at work.

Employers must ensure:

That staff are provided with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) or made aware they need to provide their own PPE.
That any protective equipment provided is of sound working order and fit for purpose, by way of regular servicing and repair of the same.
That any tools or machinery that are faulty are removed from use and only returned to active service once fully repaired.

Commonly associated with inadequate protective equipment are crushing injuries, lacerations and burns. In more severe claims we see permanent consequences from the injuries, such as limited mobility, scarring and psychological trauma. Common scenarios of inadequate protective equipment claims include:

Workers suffering head injuries due to a lack of hard hat provision
Lacerations to the hands and fingers because of a lack of gloves
Crushing injuries to the feet and toes due to a lack of protective footwear
Chemical burn injuries
Respiratory damage or skin irritations such as industrial dermatitis through a lack of protective equipment for the safe handling of dangerous chemicals

The benefits of claiming PPE compensation

If you have been injured as a result of inadequate protective equipment, claiming personal injury compensation can help ease some of the problems you’ll experience and help in a number of ways:

It’s your legal right, and if successful will fairly compensate you for injuries that were not your fault.
A successful claim could fund private medical treatment and rehabilitation therapies to speed your recovery.
It can help you recover any lost income now and in the future if you are prevented from working again.
In the case of a fatal accident, loved ones can claim compensation for their loss.

As all claims are made on a No Win No Fee basis, you will never be charged if your claim does not succeed. A successful claim will lead to a compensation settlement being made to you, with the value of the claim including any lost income and incurred costs as well as a settlement for the injuries and medical treatment that you have sustained.

How Direct2Compensation can help with your PPE claim

As with all work accident claims, it is important to make sure that the details of your accident have been recorded properly within an accident book, and that medical attention is sought for any injuries that you have sustained. If you haven’t done this already, we can help you to do so.

At Direct2Compensation we can evaluate whether you were injured because of inadequate protective equipment. We know your rights, and can help you to understand whether the specifics of your accident mean you can successfully claim injury compensation.

Direct2Compensation work with some of the best expert injury compensation solicitors in the UK. With our easy to understand claims process and ability to handle your claim quickly, simply and transparently, there are many reasons that make us the right choice when it comes to starting your claim.

To find out a little bit more about the claims process and how we can help, start your claim online or , and one of our expert team will be in touch to offer help. Alternatively, call us on 01225 430285.

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

Comments & Questions

Read on for questions and advice about claiming, plus missing ppe claim examples...

I had wrong ppe at work, after using it I was coughing up blue paint, my chest always hurts, was going on for months. I have a video of it as well. I can’t see a doctor at the moment and I’m not getting paid. Another job I had as a bin man 12 years my knees playing up more, I got bone problem called osgood scatterice worse now.

Employers are held to a strict liability to ensure that employees are provided with the correct PPE to minimise the risk of injury or illness. In this case, it is important therefore that you make some sort of written report to the employer regarding your health issue and the inadequate PPE. Of course, you should attempt to get medical attention at the earliest opportunity too – both for your own well-being, but also to support any claim in due course.

Our specialist Solicitors can pursue a claim for you on a No Win No Fee basis on the grounds of employer negligence. Please contact us on 01225430285 or use our website to start your claim.

Slipped with a tool while doing a job at work, suffered quite a nasty gash on my arm,all the ppe and sop was changed as soon as this happened(when I was outside in the ambulance so I’ve heard) lost quite a bit of feeling in my arm where I was injured and now thinking about some compensation,this happened roughly 3mths ago and I’m hearing rumours about how it was my fault and I won’t get a penny in compensation

Our specialist Solicitors can consider the level of PPE you were provided with at the time of your injury, the training that you had received and whether it was adequate and whether your employer had been negligent. Given the loss of sensation in your arm around the area of the injury, you have every right to make a claim for personal injury compensation and our Solicitors would certainly be very happy to advise you on this matter.

I had an injury at work on Monday. A knife went straight through my wrist to the bone, cut my nerves, cut all the muscle round my hand. I had a operation Thursday as a result surgeon said I will loose 20 percent of feeling in that hand. When I was sat on chair waiting for ambulance manager walked past and said I’ve got wrong gloves on. I was not told by any managers you need different gloves. Only been on this machine few times and have always had same gloves on.

The fact that your employer seems to have failed to ensure that you were provided with the correct safety gloves or given the appropriate training indicates that you have valid grounds to pursue a claim on the basis of employer negligence. Please call us on 01225430285 or use the ‘start your claim‘ page of our website to make further contact with us.

I’m a self employed sub contractor valeter for ford and I pay money out of wages for chemicals protective gear clothing, etc. and haven’t been given gloves for past 2 years, and now my hands are destroyed from chemicals. Can I get any sort of compensation?

You may well have a valid claim and we’d like to help you to seek compensation for the chemical burn injuries you have sustained to your hands.

Hi I was 3 hours into my first shift at my new job labourer in an engineering firm. I was cleaning out the bottom of a machine when I sliced my finger almost down to the bone I needed 4 stitches and although they provided me a pair of gloves they clearly wasn’t rip proof like they should be because It cut straight through. I then returned from hospital the same day and finished my shift and had not time to recover.

Please call us on 01225430285 so that we can help you to claim compensation after your accident at work. Although this was your first shift, the employer should have provided the correct training and appropriate PPE to prevent you from sustaining such an injury.

I am an NHS worker and was made to wear out of date PPE which I have photographic evidence of.

During the past year we have been forced to wear masks for up to 13 hours even if we have underlying conditions such as asthma.

During the past year my health as deteriorated and I have now been diagnosed with a long term lung condition (Bronchiectasis and induced laryngeal obstruction).

My stats levels dropped to 85 and after an emergency chest CT it showed scaring on the lungs, at the age of 33 I can no longer walk long distances or have a normal life.

No one would listen to me when I raised concerns of prolonged Mask wearing or the date issue, it wasn’t until I received my diagnoses that People tried to help by which point it was to late.

Do I have a case here as this is a subject that people seem to want to avoid.

I wouldn’t say people want to avoid this subject, it is just that it is extremely difficult to establish negligence and a causal link between the PPE you had and the health condition you developed. With this in mind, it is likely to be too risky for a Solicitor to be able to offer to help you with this on a No Win No Fee basis.

Given the rapid growth of the pandemic and sudden onset of the same, employers would not be expected to have been able to prepare fully or even obtain sufficient new PPE and the courts are likely to be sympathetic to employers in such circumstances. Further, although most right minded people would concur that there is a very strong likelihood that your health condition was developed at work, establishing a legal link between your work, the PPE and your health condition is far from certain.

I fell while working outside for work. I am provided work boots but they are unsuitable for the weather conditions so majority of team wear footwear of our own selection, including manager who verbally approved this.
My fall was not due to footwear but the conditions on site. Wet, muddy weather and wooden edging on paths which led me to slip.
If I claimed to pay for physio (shoulder, knee and back) would I be blamed for footwear?

In some circumstances a claimant may be forced to accept an element of ‘contributory negligence’. This is where a defendant admits that they have been negligent and caused or partially caused an injury, but the claimant could have done more to prevent an injury too. In this case, that is a possibility, but it should not stop you from pursuing a claim for compensation.

Sorry should stop me or shouldn’t?

Following a specialist medical expert appointment, a Solicitor will usually receive the experts report and prognosis of injury within 10 – 15 days.

It should not stop you from taking action.

Hi, i work in a skip yard/waste transfer station.
A customer was in the yard tipping his rubbish in a mini hydraulic tipping truck, some of the load was still stuck in, some wood an glass, anyway i pulled the glass out and i didn’t realise for a min or two but it not cut but sliced/skinned some skin of my knuckle, i had to go to hospital an this is currently my forth day of work as i cant use my hand, i rang a few days ago they said they would ring back, heard nothing.
Is this worthy of a small claim? Is it my employers fault? Never had manual handling training, and the gloves were just cotton/rubber ones, it sliced straight through my glove.
Thanks in advance.

The injury you have suffered at work as a result of inadequate training and personal protective equipment indicates that you have valid grounds to pursue a claim for compensation. Our specialist Solicitors can recover compensation for the injury and scarring as well as recovering any loss of income or other costs you may incur as a result of this accident.

I wasn’t provided with protective ear defenders, even though I had asked for them as my other team members had been given them. I was strimming for 5 days in a row 9-6 with a 45 min lunch break and ended up having to seek medical advise from my local hospital who diagnosed with me with a ruptured ear drum and advised that my other ear had possibly been damaged and could also rupture. I gave the paperwork into work, on this it stated that I could not continue to strim unless I was provided with ear protection. I was told to strim again and still not offered ear protective so did not do it. Nothing was mentioned about me not having been offered ear protection yet again. I am currently doing something else but could face being in this position again, what can I do pls?

You have a valid right to make a claim against your employer for the damage caused to your ear. The employers failure to provide you with the correct PPE is negligence and should see you succeed with a claim against them.

I am currently working on a temporary contract for Tesco. I was not provided with any PPE or full training. On Friday the 24th of April 2020 I was beginning my night shift when a cage with a broken wheel crushed my toe. I reported the incident to a manager and he filled an accident report I was then sent home. I had 4 days off but felt I needed to go back to work as I wasn’t getting paid! Company policy apparently?

I had to sign a return to work form but was not asked if my foot was any better. It wasn’t in fact it’s still very painful and hard to walk on! My first night return still with my injury I was placed on the beer and alcohol aisle where I was expected to stand on a stool to reach crates of beer and wine bottles from a height and place them on the floor earring in mind I couldn’t balance on my right leg due to my foot and the pain. Can you help?

Please call us on 01225430285. You have a right to make a claim as it was caused by a broken cage wheel, which is likely to be established as negligence against the employer. Further, there is also a potential 2nd area of negligence in their failure to provide you with PPE or full training.

Despite the fact that you are on a temporary contract, you are afforded the same protection under the health and safety at work act and safe working regulations as a full-time permanent employee, so you are entitled to pursue a claim for compensation for the injury to your foot and for any lost income or other costs.

Both of my ears were infected (June 2018) and ear drums damaged due to an infection caused when I had inspecting a waste management facility (on behalf of my employers). I was sent there without adequate ear protection. I had a surgery last year to patch one ear drum to stop continuous infection and I am now expecting similar one for the other ear in coming months. This also had been reduced my hearing levels on both ears.

Do you think I have a case?

Employers have a duty of care to ensure that they correctly assess the risks to health of any worker acting for them in the work that they task them with doing. In this case, the employer would appear to have failed to minimise the risk of injury to you through their failure to provide you with the correct PPE equipment.

We therefore feel that your situation is one that could well lead to a valid claim against the employer and that this matter should be considered in more detail by our specialist Solicitors.

Last year i walked into work , a light shop, and my boss was tearing down mouldy damp plaster walks. It triggered a mould and dust allergy , i had an asthma attack, went to hospital was off for weeks coughing up black stuff and on inhalers. I was outraged as he should have warned ne and provided masks if anyone was there. So a few weeks back there was a fire in the flat above our shop, the whole place needs renovating he promised me i wouldn’t be there during construction. Professionals were doing it but he walks in last tuesday and starts doing unsafe work alone, begins sawing without warning, i inhale dust, take an asthma attack and been coughing so much i have cracked a rib and he is telling me i cant take holidays while he works. I said i will get a sick line then and he is saying it’s an old building maybe i should consider a new job. I said the building’s age and condition is irrelevant it’s the health and safety while work is under way. Do i legally have to be in a building site with no masks, ventilation, ear defenders or risk assessment when i am a sales assistant and insurance will be paying loses anyway?

This is a matter that would warrant further investigation and consideration by our specialist Solicitors. Your employer should ensure safety to all staff and visitors during any building or renovation work and it would seem that they have failed to provide warning or relevant safety equipment.

I work outside and we have been issued with clothing that is inadequate for the weather. I complained and nothing has changed. I recently got a viral infection a which spread to chest infection and I’m been disciplined for absence, can i sue my employer for injury to my health for lack of correct clothing?

Notwithstanding the ill health you have suffered, it is likely to be very hard to pursue a claim against your employer on a personal injury basis for the scenario you describe. There is likely to be an issue of establishing a causal link between the clothing and the illness.

I work as a train maintenance for a cleaning company. Was entering a train to do my work when I tripped and fell hitting the left side of my face and bruises on my knee. I have been off work since June, only on ssp. Waiting for mri scan in December. Symptoms of pain dizziness and concussion continues to this day. The work shoe I had on was defective and had reported the defect previously and coincidentally on the very day of the accident. The manager did not reply to my request for new foot wear until several weeks later and he stated he will provide a new footwear at my terminal. To this day he has not done so to the best of my knowledge.

As you had already reported a fault with your footwear, the employer may well be liable in this matter. Please call us on 01225430285 so that we can talk further with you regarding your accident and a possible claim for personal injury compensation. Our initial view is that you have a valid claim and we would be happy to investigate this further for you.

I started work at new work place that builds powder coat ovens, it was like working in the 80’s no Ppe was given or training etc, job included using rock wool insulation building panels, answered using power coating machine/oven, not at any point was I offered training or a mask etc, now i’ve been off ill with chest infection/pleurisy, pressured to go back to work or I have no job. Then took a turn at work, struggled to breathe. I went to go told to rest and recover and in this time was let go. Do I have a case as I think the environment contributed to my illness which left me with no job?

To make a claim for ill health caused as a result of the negligence of an employer, an employee must demonstrate a causal link between their workplace and the health condition or injury that they have sustained.

In your case, much would depend on the length of time that you had been working at the workplace without the PPE, your previous health and what your medical records state on that issue.

After I told my manager I was having headaches from the spray cans we use to paint the wheels he’s been giving me a hard time. Last friday I was breaking down some boxes, i’m bent forward, he comes from behind with the cherry picker and kicks the boxes and they hit my back. I turn around, he stares at me, turns around and leaves. I ask him for a mask to paint he said we don’t have any. I told him a month ago and he said they will get here in a couple of days, now he says they haven’t arrived, they want me to quit.

You should put the issues you have described here to your employer in writing. As you use spray paints, the employer has an obligation to ensure that you are provided with respiratory protection and that the workplace is well ventilated.

My employer did not gave me the PPE and I was working as a cleaner on heights with some dangerous chemicals and I ended up hospitalised affected by inhaling the smell of the chemical. I worked 3 months without any PPE for the heights including the fall arrest system, safety boots or even a hard hat or even uniform. I was working under a very cold roof in the cold storage food plant for 8 months without the freezer jackets, will I get compensated or not?

Was your accident at work recorded in an accident book or reported to any other Health and Safety bodies? The story you have provided indicates an employer who is negligent towards the Health and Safety of employees and as such, you would appear to have the right to make a claim for compensation.

Hi, I was injured at work recently and ended up with a broken toe. I have been encouraged to seek a claim but i didn’t wear my steel toe capped boots as they’re really uncomfortable.
Do I have a case at all? The cage which run over my foot was being pushed by a delivery driver as I was pulling it along, I had no idea he was there and thought I had sole control of the cage. As I attempted to negotiate a turn it carried on at full speed and ran over my foot.

Does your employer inform you and require that you wear steel-toe capped shoes? If so, as you have chosen not to wear them, you would have to accept some contributory negligence if you were to claim. If the employer has not provided such footwear and does not mandate that you wear them, you should pursue a foot injury claim and be able to hold the employer 100% liable.

I had an accident whereby I fell from an LGV onto my back. I was off work for about 6 weeks. I was paid and to a certain extent it was my fault because of the incorrect footwear I had on.

Is there grounds for a claim?

Potentially there is a valid claim, but we really need to know more about the accident to be able to advise you properly. You mention wearing incorrect footwear. Whilst this could force you to have to accept a level of contributory negligence, your employer could still face some liability if they have not enforced the wearing of prescribed footwear and bear some responsibility for the fact that you fell from the wagon.

Thanks for your answer. With regards to contributory negligence I understand but I think I add to the problem because I was the manager of the department at the time. So in terms of whether I policed the footwear…….I didn’t! I no longer work there and felt in hindsight I was in pain and discomfort and this might have some bearing on whether I should proceed. My only out of pocket expence was about £30 for a 6 month prepaid prescription card. I’m not sure I have a case. But thank you for your time. BTW the company was ASDA, in case you were curious. Thanks again.

I was working casual work, cash in hand. The vehicle tail lift isn’t 100% working correctly and I was sent down to load a van without the correct PPE and as I was fixing one of the flaps on the tail lift, it fell on my foot. I needed hospital treatment and now the owner of company says he doesn’t pay people who have been injured at work. I had 3 weeks of lost earnings at my own work and now I won’t receive a penny.

Can you tell me the way forward?

Whether you were doing casual work or working on a more official basis, the same health and safety laws apply to all employees. In this case, as long as you can prove that you were injured whilst working for this employer (accident book entry or other evidence), you can pursue a claim against them for compensation for the foot injury as well as to recover any lost income.