Home Safety Tips for the Elderly to Avoid Injuries
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Accidents in the home account for 2.7 million A&E visits each year, according to safety charity, RoSPA. Having an awareness of home safety is important to try to reduce the risk of injuries, but this is perhaps especially so for the elderly, who can be particularly vulnerable.
Our home safety tips for seniors have been researched from a series of trusted resources, with the objective to help make yours or your loved one’s home as safe as possible, and to hopefully avoid some of the common hazards that lead to injury.
Identifying home safety hazards
According to the RoSPA, the majority of accidents affecting older people involve falls. These might be caused by safety hazards such as worn rugs, loose footwear, or poor lighting. RoSPA explain that other injuries suffered by the elderly include “bruising or crushing, cuts, wounds resulting from piercing and straining or twisting a part of the body.” It’s important to identify these common household hazards so that they can be addressed to reduce the chance of injury.
Safety measures to take
There are several steps you can take to help reduce the chance of falls at home. Safety precautions for the elderly at home include:
- Wear the right footwear. Ensuring you have shoes that are in good condition and fit correctly can reduce your chances of a fall.
- Clean up spills immediately. Spills can cause of slips in the home. Making sure any spillages are cleaned up straight away can help prevent these types of accidents.
- Be aware of hazards. Common risks include worn rugs, trailing cables, and uneven floors.
- Keep on top of clutter. Clutter can cause trip accidents in the home. Try to keep your floor clear to avoid trip hazards.
Assistive devices and home modifications
Another safety precaution for the elderly at home is the use of assistive devices and home modifications. This might involve installing grab bars or stair lifts, which can make moving around your home easier. Age UK share some useful tips on adapting your home to improve safety. These include:
- Lighting: Consider installing motion sensor lights which come on automatically.
- Stairs: Installing an extra banister or a stairlift can help getting up and down the stairs more safely.
- Getting up: Some people have raisers fitted, which can make it easier to get in or out of a bed or chair. There are also specialist beds and riser-recliner chairs available which can help you get into a better position for standing.
- In the Bathroom: There are lots of options available, including walk-in baths, bath lifts or swapping a bath for a wetroom – these changes can help prevent some of the common accidents in the home.
- In the Kitchen: Simple things such as a perching stool can support you in a near-standing position while in the kitchen. Other handy tools include a kettle tipper, a spike board for peeling vegetables with one hand, or a trolley so that you can move food and drink around.
If you have any assistive devices installed, or any modifications to your home, it’s important that the work is carried out safely and to the right standards. If you have an accident at home due to work carried out by someone else, you could be eligible to make a personal injury claim.
Home safety in rented accommodation
If you live in rented accommodation, your landlord has a duty under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. to ensure that your home is safe for you to live in. If you’ve become ill or injured due to a defect in your rented home, you could be eligible to make a landlord negligence claim. It could be that you’ve become ill due to a mould problem that wasn’t rectified, or you could have been injured from a trip due to damaged carpet or flooring. If you’ve been injured and you think your landlord was at fault, call us on 0800 182 2190 or you can request a call back.
Preparing for an emergency
It’s important to prepare for emergency situations in your home; being prepared can help reduce the impact of an emergency and keep you safe. Age UK share their advice for preparing for an emergency, which includes ensuring you have contact numbers to hand for friends or neighbours, as well as numbers for an out of hours GP, pharmacy or walk-in centre.
Age UK share further guidance on how to prepare for a flood, including how to check if your home is at risk and what you should put in your flood kit.
Making an at-home accident claim with The Compensation Experts
If you’ve had an accident at home due to someone else’s negligence, there are certain steps you could take:
Seek medical attention: The first thing you should do is to seek medical attention as soon as possible. Remember, the severity of some injuries isn’t immediately obvious so it’s best to get checked over if you’ve had an accident.
Gather evidence: Keep a record of the incident, including photos of your injuries and the scene of the accident. You should also keep records of any treatment you’ve received and receipts for any out-of-pocket expenses relating to your injury. This evidence will help should you decide to make a claim for compensation.
Seek legal advice: Getting legal advice from a trusted professional is crucial if you want to make a successful personal injury claim. We work with a network of specialist personal injury solicitors who can help you recover the compensation you deserve. To start your claim for an accident at home, simply call our UK-based advisors on 0800 182 2190. Our friendly team will listen to what happened and let you know if you have a potential claim.
How we research our articles:
We work closely with law firms who specialise in various areas of personal injury law. As part of our relationship with our partner law firms, we have direct access to their legal expertise, and use this to help inform our articles and online resources. All legal information is validated by experts in their field, and any additional information is backed up by reputable resources; such as gov.uk, Citizens Advice and the NHS website.
