We were contacted by the claimant, a man from Dumbarton, via his union, UNISON, in relation to the occupational injury he attributed to conditions in his workplace over many years of employment for the Scottish Ambulance Service.

The background

The claimant was employed by the Scottish Ambulance Service for more than three decades and at the time of his claim was employed as an ambulance care assistant.

He told us that that his repetitive strain injury could be traced back to 2007 when the bulkhead in the ambulance driver's cabin was moved forward in order to make more room for patients in the rear section. However, as a result of these changes, the space behind the driver's seat became much smaller and resulted in the claimant being unable to sufficiently retract his seat.

The consequences

Over the following years, the claimant developed problems with his knees, back, shoulders and neck, which he believed were attributable to conditions inside the ambulance.

After being instructed, the personal injury solicitors at Thompsons intimated a strain injury claim on the ambulance worker's behalf. In order to support the claim we obtained an expert report from a consultant orthopaedic surgeon, which outlined how occupational conditions had exacerbated the claimant's existing musculoskeletal problems. We also obtained a report from a consultant psychiatrist, which confirmed a recurrent depressive disorder suffered by our client of moderate severity.

The settlement

Thompsons Solicitors in Scotland put forward medical evidence to the solicitors acting for the Ambulance Service. They responded by offering the claimant £5,500 in compensation.

After discussions with our client the offer was rejected. We submitted a counter-proposal, but received no response. We therefore raised court proceedings in the All-Scotland Personal Injury Court. Shortly after, we received a formal offer of £10,000.

The claimant advised that he wanted to accept this offer and settlement was finalised on 26 November 2019.