Welcome to Industrial Deafness Claims
Freephone: 0800 834 870
A former worker at Cowley
Deafness Compensation
Industrial deafness is usually caused by the repeated exposure to excessive noise at work. Noise can cause permanent hearing damage and may also cause tinnitus (a ringing or whistling in the ears). Tinnitus is an injury for which compensation can also be paid. Exposure to harmful sounds causes damage to the sensitive hair cells of the inner ear as well as the hearing nerve.
Many former employees of the Swindon & Cowley car plants were exposed to excessive noise levels on a daily basis and were not provided with appropriate hearing protection (e.g. ear plugs/headphones) by their employers.
The law generally accepts that since 1963 employers should have been aware of the danger of exposing their employees to excessive noise and taken steps to reduce the noise levels at source or provided hearing protection. Later in 1989 the Noise at Work Act was introduced which put in place rules to prevent noise induced hearing loss occurring in the workplace.
Levels of noise which cause damage
At the Cowley & Swindon car plants many thousands of employees have been affected by noise induced hearing loss.
The higher the level of noise and the longer the period of exposure, the more likely damage is to be caused and the more severe the damage is likely to be. Each time you are exposed to excessive noise, the damage is added to the previous damage caused by noise to make you deafer. Exposure to 85 decibels (dB) can be hazardous even if it only lasts for a short period.
Some types of tools and equipment producing noise levels in excess of 85 dB include:
- Impact wrench 104 – 107 dB
- Impact gun 91 – 107 dB
- Grinder 87 – 110 dB
- Guillotine 94 – 103 dB
- Welding machine 99 – 100 dB
- Brake riveter 97 – 99 dB
- Blower/pump 95 – 96 dB
- Bandsaw 94 – 95 dB
- Belt sander 82 – 92 dB
- Diesel generator 107 – 111 dB
- Metal saw 105 – 108 dB
- Cross cut saw 98 – 101db
The symptoms of noise induced hearing loss
Sounds become distorted or muffled and it may be difficult for the person to understand speech particularly if there is background noise. You may need to have the volume on your TV or radio turned up loud which may be commented upon by other family members.
If you think that you have been exposed to excessive amounts of noise at work, please contact us, we are specialists in industrial deafness cases. We will arrange for a free screening check by an audiologist who will be able to tell us if your hearing loss has been caused by exposure to excessive noise levels. Industrial deafness and tinnitus are complex and may involve complicated legal arguments about time limits. Generally speaking, a claim for personal injury must be brought within 3 years from the date the injury was first suffered i.e. within 3 years of when the employee first knew or should have known that the condition was caused by exposure to excessive noise levels at work. If you think you may be outside these time limits it is important you contact us straightaway as in certain cases we can apply to extend the time limit.
Organisations which may be able to help if you have occupational deafness:
- RNID (Royal National Institute for Deaf People) - a charity working for the UK’s 9 million deaf and hard of hearing people.
- Deafness Research UK – is a medical charity for deaf and hard of hearing people.
- JobCentrePlus – Information about benefits you can claim if you have developed Industrial Deafness or any other industrial illness
- HSE (Health & Safety Executive) – their mission is to protect people`s health and safety by ensuring risks in the changing workplace are properly controlled.