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Step Legal Solicitors Polish translation service proves invaluable for a non-English speaking forestry worker seeking compensation following an accident at work

Making a personal injury compensation claim is a relatively straightforward process where you consult a specialist solicitor, but can be a daunting prospect where you are visiting the UK from another country and speak little or no English.

Fortunately, for Polish nationals injured in the UK while on holiday or in the country for work, Step Legal Solicitors offer a translation service which makes pursuing a personal injury claim easy and which avoids any problems you might otherwise encounter due to language barriers.

It is a service that we offer free of charge and which recently helped a non-English speaking Polish worker recover £125,000 following a nasty accident at work.

The claim was dealt with by serious injury lawyer, Anna Rushton, with Polish legal assistant Agnieszka Kulas acting as interpreter.

Background to the Claim

The client was employed as a farm labourer and at the time of the accident was travelling on an open-sided flatbed trailer, being pulled by a tractor, in order to collect small trees that were being handed to him by a colleague and which he was expected to box up ‘on the move’.

Suddenly, and without warning, the tractor did a sharp U-turn and the trailer tilted heavily, sending our client crashing to the ground.  He landed hard on his back and was then struck on his head by one of the boxes he had been waiting to pack.

He sustained a number of serious injuries, including torn ligaments in his neck, severe bruising to his lower back, moderate brain damage and subsequently diagnosed psychological trauma.

As a result of his injuries he began to experience back pain, hearing loss and tinnitus, headaches, dizziness, forgetfulness, irritability, anxiety and depression.  He also had difficulty in sleeping and saw a sharp increase in his blood pressure levels.

He came to see us for advice when it became obvious that he would be unable to return to work, at least for the foreseeable future, and on the recommendation of Crewe-based accountancy firm Biurokrat who knew that we offered a Polish translation service.

How the Case was Settled

The first step in getting the client the compensation he deserved was to contact his employer and get them to admit responsibility for what had happened.  To do this we needed to take a detailed statement from the client explaining how the accident had occurred and providing details of any witnesses.

Obtaining this was simple with Agnieszka’s help and within a matter of weeks we had secured a full admission of liability and an offer by the employer’s insurer to pay for any rehabilitative treatment that the client required to maximise his chances of making a recovery.

The next step was to commission a medical report to catalogue the injuries he had suffered and the impact these had had on him and were likely to continue to have going forward.

Again, with Agnieszka’s help this was a straightforward process in which the client was fully involved and where the difficulties he was facing were recognised and given due regard.

The final step was to present the evidence we had gathered to the insurer and to ask them to come up with a settlement figure that fairly reflected the harm that had been caused and which the client was likely to continue being affected by for months or even years to come.

The sum initially proposed was £40,000, which we advised the client to reject. This was then increased to £100,000 when we made it clear that we were looking for a six figure sum and that the client was prepared to go to court to get the compensation he deserved if a deal could not be done.

The claim was ultimately settled for £125,000, plus ongoing rehabilitation costs and without the need for the client to step a foot inside a court or even to issue a formal claim.

What the Client Thought about the Service He Received

Speaking to us shortly after the case was concluded, the client said:

“I am very happy with the service I have received from Step Legal Solicitors and with the settlement sum they have helped me to obtain.”

“Anna has been brilliant and taken the time to explain every step of the claims process to me so that I always understood what was going on.”

“And as for Agnieszka, she has been wonderful.  In fact, I really do not think I could have brought my claim without her.”

“She has made me feel so at ease and helped with everything from explaining to Anna what I wanted to achieve, to filling out documents and making herself free to see me whenever I had a worry or concern that I wanted to discuss.”

“I am so pleased with the way my case was handled and would not hesitate to recommend Step Legal Solicitors to anyone else in need of personal injury advice, and particularly members of the Polish community who might otherwise struggle to get the compensation they are owed.”

Need our Help?

If you need help to make a personal injury claim, why not contact Anna on 0800 1956412 to see if she can assist?  Alternatively, you can pop into our offices in Crewe for a face to face chat with Anna or one of our other personal injury specialists.

We offer a free first interview and in most cases we can act for you on a no win, no fee basis, which means there will be no financial risk to you in the event your claim is unsuccessful