[Faline]

A police officer was paid £8,000 compensation for a FLEA bite, it was revealed today.

Shocking figures show the flea bite was among £900,000 worth of payouts made by one cash-strapped police force to settle claims over the last three years.

West Midlands Police was sued by 51 serving officers and 16 civilian staff for a range of bizarre workplace injuries.

Another worker received £1,000 for insect bites while a third picked up £14,000 after a fall from a pushbike.

A data protection breach cost the force £50,000 while one employee was given £600 after being exposed to a loud noise and another was paid £7,000 for injuries sustained falling off a chair.

The policeman who lodged the flea bite claim had been working in an infested police station when he was bitten by the bug.

Former West Midlands police officer Ray Egan, who retired from the force in 1993, said: “I was a policeman for almost 30 years and you never heard of anything like that in my day - there was never talk about it.

“If I’d gone to my bosses and said ‘I’ve been bitten by a flea’ or moaned about falling off a pavement they would have told me to brush myself off and get on with it.

“You’d get a boot up your bum and told to get back out on the streets.

“To claim for a flea bite is just too embarrassing for words.

“All that money would have paid for a few bobbies on the beat, there never seems to be any cash to pay for frontline services but when someone wants compensation they seem to find it.”

Birmingham City Council’s community safety chairman Cllr Wazeem Zaffar said: “At a time of such austerity we have to ensure the taxpayer is getting value for money.

“I think on the back of these figures the force has to look very carefully at the health safety measures that have been adopted.

“Unfortunately, we are living in a compensation culture and it is likely that the compensation culture has crept into the police force too.”

Ian Edwards, Chairman of the West Midlands branch of the Police Federation, said: “Policing is a risky job where injuries can affect your ability earn a living.

“We negotiate deals for insurance policy schemes, but it is up to the individuals and the firms involved to lodge any kind of claims.

“We play no part in the claims, but I suspect that the majority of them are reasonable and wholly appropriate.”

Norfolk WPC Kelly Jones,33, sparked outrage earlier this month when it was revealed she was suing a garage owner after she tripped over a kerb on a 999 call to his business.

Assistant Chief Constable Marcus Beale, from West Midlands Police, said: “Police officers have to enter into situations and locations on a daily basis which can often put them in danger of harm.

“This is a fundamental nature of the job and it is a reality that is accepted by the vast majority of West Midlands Police officers and staff, in order to keep the public they serve safe.

“Like any other employer West Midlands Police take health and safety responsibilities very seriously.

“Where we fall short, our officers and staff are entitled to lodge claims where they feel appropriate.

“We have robust liability insurance in place, which operates in respect of compensation claims made as a result of injury.

“Details of injuries and compensation payments are often more complex than statistics or brief detail suggest.

“For example, although an injury might initially be interpreted as minor it may transpire to cause more severe pain and suffering and even long-term or permanent damage.

“Police systems record a brief initial assessment of injury but a full claim file will contain detailed medical reports documenting the period of recovery and future prognosis for the injury sustained.

“Compensation payouts are only made following the assessment of appropriate medical evidence by the in-house legal team, insurers and solicitors who then make a recommendation to the force as to what payment should be made, based on expert knowledge and published case law.”

[pbaj12]

I can see this happening in the US but they can sue and win for the stupidest stuff in the UK too?

[kellyhound]

maybe he got a severe allergic reaction from the bite ?
or else it's ridiculous.

[pbaj12]

Originally Posted by kellyhound ↗

maybe he got a severe allergic reaction from the bite ?
or else it's ridiculous.

I still think it's a job hazard. If the dept forced him to get bit by a flea and he had a reaction then that's different.

[Iliketurtles]

[Rednose]

Tough cop

[candymosh]

Sounds like a whole department needs to put on their big girl/boy panties and get back to work.

[banana dick]

while one employee was given £600 after being exposed to a loud noise

[icheerthebull]

No wonder they all ran away during the riots. Fine to beat the fuck out of a few 6 stone students though, cunts

[skumbfuck420]

I hope this cunt gets bedbugs