Are you at risk of hearing damage at work?

If you are having difficulty hearing and your place of work is excessively noisy, seek medical and legal advice as you could be entitled to compensation.

The 1974 Health and Safety Laws were passed to protect employees from suffering injury at work. If your employer has failed to follow Health and Safety guidelines and you now are experiencing difficulty in hearing, call a solicitor on 0800 633 5730 to find out about making a claim.

Work related hearing loss risks include:

Exposure to loud repetitive noise 

If you work in a noisy environment and you have to raise your voice just to be heard by the person next to you, then you are at increased risk of suffering hearing damage if you have not been issued with ear protectors.

Exposure to invasive background noise

The types of environment where you could be exposed to invasive noise include:

• working in a nightclub where loud music is played.
• working outside on a constantly busy street with loud traffic noise.
• working in a noisy factory environment.
• working around noisy cleaning equipment.
• working operating noisy power tools such as concrete vibrating plates.

Exposure to noise as a machine operator

Workers operating machinery in excess of 30 minutes a day should be issued with ear defenders as they are at high risk of hearing damage.

Exposure to loud industry noise

Some industries such as mining, engineering and construction are noisy working environments and workers should be provided with protective equipment and warned of the risks of deafness.

Claiming compensation from your employer

If you work in a noisy environment you may be at risk of hearing loss if your employer has failed to take measures to protect your hearing.

According to HSE figures there around 1 million people working in noisy environments in the UK, and unless employers take measure to protect workers hearing, industrial deafness is a real risk for many employees.

If you are at risk of hearing loss you should be provided with ear protection while you work, if you have not been issued with such equipment your employer is failing in their duty of care to you.

If you have noticed that your ability to hear has been significantly reduced, and either now or in the past you have worked in a noisy environment, contact your GP and arrange to see a medical expert to have your hearing tested.

If tests reveal your hearing has been damaged and it can be proved the damage was caused by exposure to loud noise at work, you can make a claim for compensation against your employer.

To find out if you have grounds to make a claim, call an injury lawyer at Imperium Law on 0800 633 5730.