Industry News: Woman wins £105,000 head injury compensation
A former AA call centre handler has won £105,000 compensation in a successful head injury claim after a faulty headset left her with a range of severe hearing problems.
Mother of one Beverly Thomson, 48, from Leyland, Lancashire, started working for the AA in 1978 but was forced out of her job in 2006 when doctors explained that continuing to use the headset could further damage her hearing.
Thomson, who worked as a home-based breakdown call handler, had developed mild frequency hearing loss, severe tinnitus and pain in her ears because of the headset, which had been provided by AA in 2005.
She said: ‘In December 2005 I reported the fact that the volume on the phone was too loud. There were people on motorway calls shouting down the phone and I could not turn it down.
‘I had to wear it round my neck with the loudspeaker on. I reported it to the AA and their answer was 'We know about it, there's a solution in place'.
‘The equipment was never changed. One day in April 2006 I started feeling quite dizzy and I said to my husband 'I think there's a hissing noise on this'.’
Thomson has now won £105,000 in compensation for her injuries, after claiming head injury compensation from her employers on the basis that the AA failed to provide her with safe equipment, failed to act upon reports made by her of the problems she was experiencing and that the equipment had caused hearing damage.
If you have been injured as a result of your work, and you feel that your employer was at fault and this led to your injury, you may be able to make a successful work accident claim for compensation.
Call the National Accident Helpline free today or claim online for further assistance and information.
