Dangerous Weather Claims

Weather conditions are arguably the one thing that can affect nearly everyone.

High winds can prevent construction workers operating at height, make simple tasks incredibly difficult or dangerous. Heavy rain, surface water and flooding can impact driving and numerous working environments. Snow and ice can affect the roads, public and private land and can make normal, everyday situations extremely hazardous.

Blaming an accident on simply bad weather is not in itself the reason why someone was injured or in the worst case, fatal. It is the actions which led to the situation where bad weather played its part, that need to be examined. Why did it happen and was this the result of someone’s negligence or an organisations failure to assess the risk properly?

Employers often argue that the primary cause of a work accident is something beyond anyone’s control, for example severe weather conditions, for which they cannot be held responsible. However that is not always the case. Employers have a general duty to take reasonable care for the safety of employees. Employers are obliged to carry out a suitable and sufficient assessment of risks to employees in their undertaking. 

The law is clear – if you’ve been hurt because someone else was negligent then you are entitled to damages and recover your losses. This is the key point, if it snows and you immediately slip on the pavement and hurt your arm, no one could possibly be held responsible for not ensuring the pavement was cleared immediately. No Council has the resources to do this and therefore can’t be held liable. 

However, Example 1, if you are at work and they know bad weather is coming, then you should be given the appropriate safety equipment to go about your work tasks safely or not do them until the bad weather has passed. 

Example 2, if someone was driving without due care for the surroundings and the weather conditions, then they are responsible, if they crash to either their passengers or anyone else hurt as a result. In both these scenarios, they failed in their duty of care - they are negligent and the injured parties are entitled to make a compensation claim.

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What are the rules for working in poor weather?

The Health and Safety Executive confirms risk assessments take weather conditions into account.

Depending on your role, these risk assessments might consider the following:

Working in hot or cold temperatures – you may be entitled to have access to specialist PPE.

Working in high winds – working at height, at sea or offshore may be impacted and subject to different operating procedures.

Working in heavy rain – some occupations might see tasks postponed until the rain has stopped.

Working in snow, sleet or hail – pedestrianised areas may need cleared and treated to prevent falls and professional drivers should drive to the conditions and have winter tyres on vehicles.

Working in poor visibility (such as in the dark or during fog) – employers may either curtail operations, provide reflective or bright PPE or additional lights.

More often than not, it’s not the weather that causes accidents - but the failure to respond to it correctly.

What does a bad weather compensation claim involve?

Having an injury linked to bad weather is essentially the same as other personal injury claims. Your solicitor will fully investigate the circumstances of your accident to find out what happened and why.

They will contact experts in their chosen fields whether in industry, car accident investigators, employment advisers or medical consultants to fully understand the accident and the short and long-term effects of the injuries it has caused. We must evaluate the different circumstances in which bad weather may have contributed to an accident:

A road traffic collision - we will liaise with the relevant authorities to establish all facts.

A workplace accident – we will investigate your employer to ensure all risk assessments, training and equipment were in place.

A public accident – such as, for example, being struck by falling signage in high winds, we will investigate all aspects of the owner, fitter, maker and maintainer of the sign to establish negligence.

In essence, it is our job to build a complete picture of what happened, what the injuries mean to you and how much this has cost you today and for the future.

Digby Brown proves bad weather can’t be blamed

Some employers or insurers might suggest they cannot be held accountable for adverse weather. They might claim it is too unpredictable and beyond their control.

But this is not the case.

In October 2020, solicitors from our Glasgow office won a landmark legal case that proved blaming bad weather was not an acceptable defence. Our client, AW, was the passenger in a Lochs & Glens coach tour near Loch Lomond. The coach was being driven in bad weather and the high winds forced the coach off the round and down an embankment. This resulted in dozens of passengers being injured.

Lochs & Glens argued their driver was not at fault because they couldn’t anticipate bad weather and at the first trial they were successful. But three judges overturned this ruling after we appealed and confirmed: “Buses which are driven in a safe and proper manner and at a reasonable speed do not leave carriageways of major trunk roads in winds of the relatively common velocity present at the time of this accident. Speed may have contributed to the accident, but it was the driver’s loss of control of the bus which was the ultimate operative cause.”

This success was also highlighted in the BBC and Daily Record.

We also changed the legal landscape in a famous case called Kennedy v Cordia. Our client, Ms Kennedy, was a home carer who slipped on an icy sloped path while visiting an elderly patient. After taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court we successfully argued that Ms Kennedy’s employers should have provided her with appropriate PPE footwear for wintery conditions that would have minimised the risk of her falling.

These two victories do not just show our legal expertise – it proves the law supports your right to seek recognition and recompense for your injuries and losses, even when bad weather is involved.

If you have been injured as a result of an incident in which bad weather has been a factor, please contact our Legal enquiry team to see if we can help. After all we can’t escape bad weather in Scotland - we have to deal with it as best as we can!