A Scottish butcher has received a £150,000 pay out after he was accidentally skewered with a knife by a colleague at work.
Ian Harrower, 65, was rushed to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary after a colleague accidentally stabbed him with the blade that severed an artery in his arm just minutes after starting his shift.
Suffering a massive puncture wound on his right forearm, the blade had cut through his protective clothing, with the pain 'unlike anything he'd ever felt before', Edinburgh Live writes.
Almost two years on from the horrific ordeal, Ian has been left with limited use of his right hand, with the injury having lasting effects.
However, a claim for compensation from Ian hit difficulty after the meat company AK Stoddart tried to blame Ian for his own injuries, and reported that he should have told the other employee to not be near him with a knife.
Starting work at 6.30am, Ian and his colleague were setting up their workspace for the day when a set of scales fell from a table.
They both attempted to catch the scales at the same time – but at that moment the other colleague was also holding a knife and the sudden lunge resulted in Ian being stabbed just below the elbow.
Ian, who has two children and three grandchildren, said: “The pain was unlike anything I’ve felt before.
“It wasn’t like the movies where the person is unaware of what’s happened until a few seconds later - this was immediate, agonising and felt like an electric shock.
“I literally shouted in pain and as I pulled away I felt the inside of my overalls become warm and wet – I knew straight away it was my blood.
“That’s when other people around me started to react and they got me ready for hospital.”
Taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary by ambulance, Ian underwent urgent surgery and to replace four pints of blood lost during the incident.
He later then underwent a procedure to remove a section of artery from his right thigh to repair the wound to his arm. Although the actual wound has now healed Ian was left with lifelong physical complications.
He now has little feeling or mobility in his right hand meaning he has had to re-learn tasks with his left-hand and he can no longer ride his motorbike, do gardening or care for his disabled wife.
In addition, the injury forced him into early retirement which he shared has resulted in a loss of earnings for him and his family.
Ian added: “My hand is now in constant agony and I can barely use it.
“I’m meant to be approaching the time of my life when I get to relax and focus on family so to now have to go through this and re-learn even basic tasks is devastating."
Due to the stance of AK Stoddart, Ian had hired legal solicitors Digby Brown, who went on to prove bosses failed to use the provide safe equipment and follow health and safety rules.
Ian from Uphall, said: “I was a dedicated employee so they should be utterly ashamed for trying to blame me when their failings literally changed the course of my life.”
Now receiving a £150,000 compensation claim, Digby Brown added that they had been able to show the accident was in fact linked to the faulty scales that fell off the table and if Stoddarts had the right scales in the first place then Ian wouldn’t have been injured.
Ian continued: “I’m not the kind of person to cause problems or complain but what happened to me is unacceptable.
“Too often businesses wait for fatal or serious accidents before taking action – or even simply listening to staff’s concerns - and it shouldn’t be like that.
“People should feel safe to flag known problems because at the end of the day we all just want to make a living and get home.”
Gordon Dalyell, Partner at Digby Brown in Edinburgh, has helped people with workplace accident claims for decades.
He agreed with Ian’s calls that workplace safety is your right, not just your luck.
Mr Dalyell said: “Ian’s case is one that illustrates that wearing PPE is not the be all and end all for workplace safety – equipment needs to be fit for purpose and processes need to be properly risk assessed.
“These are basic legal rights and if they’re not followed then people have legal options – so people should never assume they don’t have a case or be put off seeking legal advice.”
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