Work accident claims made by police officers injured in the line of duty have resulted in more than £12 million in personal injury compensation awards, according to a recent freedom of information request.
A total of £12,109,426 has been paid out since 2006 by forty three Welsh and English police forces, including the Civil Nuclear Constabulary and the British Transport Police, accident claim experts say. However, the freedom of information figures are not inclusive of the lion’s share of claims made last year, as these cases have yet to be settled, and as four police forces did not respond to the freedom of information request in a timely manner, the likelihood that the true figure may be substantially more is high.
Hertfordshire Police paid the highest single payment, as a civilian police employee received £550,000 after slipping on an icy car park and breaking their elbow. Other cases include that of a Humberside Police sergeant who received £14,000 in damages after claiming that their tinnitus was caused by an overly loud cell door buzzer and £2,000 that was awarded by another officer who had been rushing to respond to an emergency call and put his hand through a glass pane, injuring it.
Nearly £2.6 million alone was paid out by the Greater Manchester Police due to work related injury compensation, which was the highest sum reported. The Hertfordshire Police Force and West Midlands Police rounded out the top three most expensive, with payouts of £1.2 million and £1.1 million respectively, according to the freedom of information request.