by Kathryn Boast
21 October 2010
A man who was injured in an accident at work has criticised his employers for their stubbornness in fighting a compensation claim that he brought against them.
Refuse collector Steven Threlfall, 45, was clearing bags of rubbish from the garden of a council house in May 2006 when his finger was sliced by a protruding shard of metal that had cut through the bin liner.
The cut sliced through blood vessels and tendons in his left-hand little finger and has resulted in permanent disfigurement to the digit. He made a work accident claim from his employers, Hull City Council, on the basis that his ‘glorified gardening gloves’ were inadequate for the job, a complaint that was upheld.
However, the council refused to settle the claim and it went to the Court of Appeal in London, resulting in a legal bill of over £100,000, to which Mr Threlfall, who was awarded £3000 for his injury, says: “If the council had just admitted negligence this would have been over after about six months.
“I can’t believe the costs are so high over a finger.”