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This fact sheet will give you some basic information about manual handling injuries. You can also listen to it online or download it onto an MP3 player.

Please be aware that this is not legal advice and if you are concerned about any of the issues mentioned you should speak to a lawyer.

You can contact Russell Jones & Walker's solicitors at enquiries@rjw.co.uk or call our freephone number 0800 916 9065.

• What is manual handling?
• Does this apply to any weight I might be lifting or moving?
• Surely my employer has to make sure it's safe for me to do any manual handling?
• What's a risk assessment?
• Is there anything else my employer would need to consider before asking me to do any manual handling?
• So if they don't make a proper risk assessment, will my employer be liable for any injury I get?
• So what sort of things might employers have to do in practice?
• What do I do if I think I have a claim?

What is manual handling?

For legal purposes, manual handling means transporting or supporting a load by hand or other bodily force. This includes lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying and moving.

Examples of people being injured by manual handling include a worker who tripped on a piece of wood on the back of a lorry while moving some fencing; a midwife who suffered an injury when lifting a patient; and a refuse collector who slipped when moving a wheelie bin.

Does this apply to any weight I might be lifting or moving?

Yes, there isn't any minimum. This means you could have a claim if you are injured no matter how heavy or light the weight involved.

Surely my employer has to make sure it's safe for me to do any manual handling?

Yes they do. It's their responsibility to assess whether or not it's necessary for you to do the manual handling in the first place. If it is necessary, they will have to make a risk assessment of the task.

What�??s a risk assessment?

If it�??s essential for a load to be moved, then your employer is legally obliged to carry out a proper risk assessment. They will have to look at a number of things, including:

• The weight, size, shape and so on of the load
• Your size, age, health and fitness
• The posture you should use to move the load
• Where the load has to be moved from and to
• Any environmental factors such as lighting and heating

Is there anything else my employer would need to consider before asking me to do any manual handling?

If it's essential for a load to be moved, then your employer is legally obliged to carry out a proper risk assessment.

Yes. They also need to look at:

• Your size, physical build and so on
• The clothes and footwear you're wearing to do the task
• Your knowledge and training in manual handling
• Whether youve been identified as being especially at risk

Once they've considered all this, your employer then needs to work out the best way to carry out the task. This might mean getting other workers to assist or ensuring items are stored so that you don't have to bend down or stretch up to reach them. Even just giving you simple information, like the weight of the load, can help prevent accidents.

So if they don't make a proper risk assessment, will my employer be liable for any injury I get?

Not necessarily, but if there isn't a risk assessment it may help to prove your employer was negligent.

So what sort of things might employers have to do in practice?

In one case the court said an employer should have more than one man to move a door up a set of stairs in a block of council flats.

In another, the court said a man who had his finger crushed when taking apart a roller should have been given more information about the roller and how it was put together so he wouldn�??t have put his finger where it could be trapped.

The court also said a nurse with an existing back problem should have been risk assessed as then her employer would have realised she should not be doing work that would make her back worse.

What do I do if I think I have a claim?

These sorts of Injuries are at the very least inconvenient but can be much more serious, leading to long-term problems affecting every aspect of your daily life. Whether your injury is serious or only seems trivial, you should get expert advice on whether you might be able to get compensation. Please contact us to speak in confidence about what's happened to you and your concerns.