Groom awarded £20,000 compensation after kicked at work
A teenage part-time groom has been awarded more than £20,000 in compensation after being kicked while at work.
The groom was 16 when she was kicked by a horse on 1 April 2014.
She was working as a part-time groom at a livert yard in West Yorkshire when she was asked to turn out one of the horses.
The horse spun round kicked her in the face, breaking her jaw in two places and causing her briefly to lose consciousness.
She said she was not aware that one of the horses had a history of temperament issues.
A letter of claim was sent to the third party insurer alleging fault on the basis that the employer had failed to warn the groom of the horse’s known characteristics and failed to take positive steps to safeguard her health, safety and wellbeing while at work. An early admission of liability was obtained.
She was awarded £20,750 compensation via an out-of-court settlement on 15 July this year.
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She is expected to make a “good functional recovery” from her injuries, although she was likely to suffer from altered sensation and mild paraesthesia of her lip indefinitely, in addition to suffering from mild permanent swelling of the left side of her jaw.
“We understand that people are often hesitant to bring a claim against their employer through fear of causing difficulties in the work place, but if you sustain injury as a result of your employer’s negligence you really shouldn’t be put off,” said a spokesman for HorseSolictor, who represented the groom.
“Employers are required to have insurance and have a legal responsibility to ensure that they have done all they can to protect their employees. Appropriate training, a safe work place and suitable safety equipment must be provided.
“In failing to either alert her to the known characteristics of the horse, or put appropriate measures in place to minimise the risk, her employer failed in its duty of care.”
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A graduate of Exeter University, Amy joined our news team from Redpin Publishing in 2008 as news writer. She was promoted to deputy news editor in May 2013 and became news editor in April 2015. She left Horse & Hound in March 2016 to take up an editorial position in Dubai.