Anger at £12,000 for police officer bitten by a flea

A POLICE officer bitten by a flea while at work has won £12,127 in compensation, it emerged yesterday.

The unnamed employee successfully sued West Midlands Police, which also had to pay £4,185 in legal fees.

The case was just one of a number of claims which cost the force £61,131 in compensation between April 1 last year and March 31.

A Freedom of Information request revealed West Midlands was sued by 14 serving officers and various other staff members.

One officer who tripped at work was given payments in excess of £5,000, while two officers who were injured due to “manual handling”, a reference to moving heavy objects, were given £6,000 and £8,573.

Ludicrous

Another was handed £7,274 compensation over defective equipment he was given to use while on the job.

Yesterday the flea payout was branded “ludicrous” by former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron.

“Our cops do an amazing job keeping us safe. Compensation should be paid for injuries at work – but some of these claims seem to take the biscuit,” he said.

“It’s frankly ludicrous that taxpayers are footing the bill for when someone gets fleas on them.

“It’s utterly barmy and will harm public confidence in the police.” Chloe Westley, campaign manager for the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “At a time when taxpayers are feeling the pinch these payments will certainly sting.

“Of course compensation payouts will sometimes be necessary because accidents can ruin lives but it still falls on public sector organisations to make sure they are rooting out anyone making spurious claims with taxpayers’ cash.”

Former West Midlands police officer Ray Egan, who served on the force from 1967 to 1993, said the payouts “beggar belief”.

He said: “It’s absolutely baffling. I was a policeman for more than 25 years and I can’t even imagine what would have happened if I’d gone to my senior officer and started moaning because I’d been bitten by a flea.

“I would have been kicked out the office with a clipping round the ear, I’d have thought.

“I’d have been told to get back to doing my job. There’s no way they would have allowed that.

“Times are a bit hard still and to have the audacity to make a claim like that on taxpayers’ money is extraordinary.”

West Midlands Police said the flea bite at work led to the officer involved having emergency surgery.

It added that injury payments were made after proper medical tests and were covered by insurance.