£7,000 Damages for Hand-Arm Vibration

A production worker from Doncaster has won £7,000 in compensation from two former employers after developing both Vibration White Finger and Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. John Coggon, 52, was exposed to vibrating machinery in two jobs, firstly while working for National Power and then latterly at Newells. Neither company supplied him with satisfactory protective equipment nor did they carry out sufficient medical checks to ensure that his health was unaffected by the exposure.

 

The nature of Mr Coggon's work meant hand-arm vibration injuries were foreseeable. The Health and Safety Executive advise that the use of machinery such as powered mowers, chipping hammers, sanders, chainsaws and needle guns exposes employees to risk of injury. Two types of workers particularly at risk are those who use hammer-action tools for more than 15 minutes a day and those who use rotary and other vibrating tools for more than one hour a day.

 

Symptoms that might indicate a vibration injury are a loss of strength in the hands, numbness or tingling in the fingers and a change of colour in the tips of the fingers. If the hands continue to be exposed to vibration without protection, symptoms may then include a permanent numbness and difficulty in picking up small objects.

 

Employers have a duty to ensure that the correct health and safety measures are in place to protect their employees against damage caused by vibrating machinery. The preventative action that employers need to take depends on the level of the risk involved. For high risk situations employers are required to use an action plan to check and control levels of exposure. This might include effective training, ensuring the regular maintenance of equipment and the continuous monitoring of health levels.