It is compulsory for a car user to have motor insurance and in the event they cause an accident, their insurance pays for the damage and compensates any injury and it is also compulsory for an employer to have liability insurance for an accident at the workplace, however companies do not have to in law insure against someone getting injured on their premises even if it is proven it was the companies fault.

There are sanctions and penalties for not having insurance in these instances. You may get banned from driving in the future if you drive without insurance and a company can be prosecuted and face big fines for not having valid employers liability insurance. The employer’s liability insurance certificate must also be displayed where your employees can access it. A company can be fined up to £1,000 for not displaying the certificate or failing to make it available to an HSE inspector.

In public places maintained by the Council, the Council usually self insures an area, such as pavements, parks and other public places. We have pursued numerous successful claims against the Council and have won in Court numerous times despite denials of liability by a Council who used a defence to say they had inspected the area previously and found no defects, we have been able to prove in instances those inspections either didn’t actually happen or were not adequate.

However if you go into a pub, restaurant, shop or other public or retail place there is no guarantee that premises is insured for an accident which may occur. In the event of an accident, a company will not only be prosecuted for having no public liability insurance, it will remain liable to the injured party and have to pay all the compensation, its own legal costs and the claimant’s costs out of its own funds however in many cases this would result in the company ceasing to trade and no money being paid to the injured person.

Bizarrely it is not mandatory for an unregulated cosmetic surgery to have any insurance. Treatments can be done by unqualified people and it is common for these people to use harmful chemicals, yet still it is not compulsory to have insurance. If someone sustains harm from negligent treatment then a beauty clinic can simply cease trading avoiding the need to pay the injured person. It is our view that it should be mandatory for salons and therapists to have appropriate public liability insurance because of the potential for damage that can be caused treatment and by the techniques they use. We have acted successfully for clients who have suffered injuries as a result of negligent cosmetic procedures against both insured and uninsured clinics.

We call for the government to make it compulsory for all companies , especially cosmetic surgeries to have adequate insurance in order to compensate any victims of negligence.

McHale and Co are an APIL accredited Practice (Association of Personal Injury Solicitors) which means we are recognised for excellence.  It’s really important that the lawyer you choose is the right lawyer for you – so look out for the APIL quality mark logo. We are highly experienced with dealing with all types of claims.

APIL members are accredited individually and by firm. To be accredited, they must satisfy specific and extensive criteria providing evidence of their competency and experience in handling personal injury claims.

We have offices in various locations – Altrincham and Heywood ensuring we are accessible to most. We are not a factory firm, and your claim will be handled by or with the supervision of a highly qualified solicitor. If you have been involved in an accident within the last three years and it wasn’t your fault, simply call us on 0161 928 3848 or email mch@mchaleandco.co.uk