Ray's story

The service I have had through Unite Legal Services has been great. My finger is now so much better than it was, and I am back at work on normal duties.

Ray Kane secured more than £3,000 in compensation after breaking his finger in an accident at work.

He was delivering fuel to Aggreko in Washington, Tyne and Wear, on behalf of his employer DCC Group (UK), when a defective fuel tank lid snapped shut, trapping his right hand.

Ray had opened the lid of the tank in order to start unloading fuel into it, unaware that the mechanism for holding the lid open was broken. When he inserted his hand to unscrew the inner cap, the outer lid snapped shut, breaking his ring finger and cutting his hand.

At first, Ray did not realise that his finger was broken and so he continued to go to work as normal. It was only about a week after the accident, when he accidently knocked his hand, that he realised something more serious was wrong. He went to hospital, where he was told that his finger was broken and needed strapping up in order to heal. He had to take five weeks off work to recover from his injury.

Following treatment, Ray sought help from Unite Legal Services, who won compensation on his behalf.

Ray’s employer admitted liability for his accident and paid him more than £3,000 in damages.

Ray said:

“The service I have had through Unite Legal Services has been great. My finger is now so much better than it was, and I am back at work on normal duties.

“I’m really pleased it’s all sorted now, and I’m very grateful to the support I received through Unite Legal Services.”