If a doctor has harmed you due to their substandard care, read our guide about doctor negligence claims to see if we can help.
When seeking medical treatment, you expect to receive the correct standard of care from your doctor. You would not expect to suffer avoidable harm and/or a worsening of a condition you already have.
We begin the guide with a look at who can make doctor negligence claims and will provide you with an explanation of the key factors in determining what could be included in your medical negligence claim should it be successful.
Throughout our guide, we will explain how the doctor negligence claims process works and how the average payouts for compensation claims are calculated.
At the end of our guide, you will see a comprehensive section examining the best ways to begin a compensation claim after your experience with a negligent doctor.
Key Takeaways For Doctor Negligence Claims
- Your doctor must provide a service that meets an acceptable standard.
- If they fail to do this they could be liable if you go on to suffer harm.
- Our No Win No Fee solicitors are experts in doctor negligence claims.
- Ensure that you start your medical negligence claim within the time limit.
Please call us to find out if your doctor negligence claim is valid.
- Phone us on 0800 073 8801
- Contact us via our online claim form
- Live chat feature
Select A Section From Our Guide
- What Are Doctor Negligence Claims?
- How Could Negligence By A Doctor Occur?
- What Is The Difference Between NHS And Private Healthcare Negligence Claims?
- Can You Make Doctor Negligence Claims On Behalf Of Someone Else?
- How Do You Prove A Claim For Negligence Caused By A Doctor?
- Doctor Negligence Compensation Amounts
- Making No Win No Fee Doctor Negligence Claims
- More Information On Claiming For Medical Negligence
What Are Doctor Negligence Claims?
Doctor negligence claims are compensation claims that could be made after receiving an unacceptable standard of care. Certain criteria must be met for a claim to be valid.
Medical professionals owe a duty of care to their patients, ensuring a reasonable standard of care. Failing to provide this could result in avoidable injury and/or harm to the patient.
In order to make a valid doctor negligence claim, we need to establish the following:
- The doctor owed a duty of care to their patient.
- The duty of care was breached – failing to provide a professional standard of care to their patients.
- The breach of duty resulted in the patient suffering avoidable harm.
If you feel you have received substandard care from a doctor you may be able to make a doctor negligence claim for compensation.
The Legal Definition Of Medical Negligence
Medical negligence is when a medical professional deviates from professional standards, resulting in injury/harm or a worsening of an existing condition.
If you would like to discuss your current situation, call our advisors today for a free consultation.
How Could Negligence By A Doctor Occur?
There are a number of ways negligence by a doctor could occur.
Examples:
- A doctor misunderstands a patient’s symptoms of a cough, assuming that the patient is suffering from a chest infection. In actual fact, they have early stages of lung cancer. The negligent misdiagnosis meant a poorer prognosis for the patient.
- A GP mixes up the test results of two patients. This has delayed a diagnosis of kidney failure, resulting in the kidney having to be removed.
- A patient receiving penicillin (antibiotics) that has been prescribed by a doctor who has failed to read the patient’s medical records correctly, not noticing the patient suffers from an allergic reaction to penicillin, resulting in anaphylaxis.
If you would like to speak with one of our advisors for a free, no-obligation consultation, call today.
What Is The Difference Between NHS And Private Healthcare Negligence Claims?
Any medical professional working for the NHS (National Health Service) or private healthcare owes a certain standard of care to their patients.
If you make a claim against the NHS, you will sue the NHS trust. However, for claims against private healthcare providers, you will either sue the individual medical professional or the practice itself.
Call for your free consultation with our advisors to determine whether you are eligible to make a doctor negligence claim.
Can You Make A Doctor Negligence Claim On Behalf Of Someone Else?
A litigation friend is someone who makes a claim on behalf of a party who can not make a claim for themselves. For example those who do not have the mental capacity to pursue a claim or those considered to be a minor.
To become a litigation friend, you must apply to the court.
If you are considering making a claim on behalf of someone else, it is advisable to seek legal advice. Our solicitors can help you with this process.
Can I Claim For Doctor Negligence For My Child?
If the injured party is a child or minor (under the age of 18), a parent, family member, or solicitor can usually be appointed as a litigation friend. The litigation friend will be responsible for making the claim on behalf of the child or minor and making decisions solely for their benefit.
If both the litigation friend and third party agree on a compensation settlement amount, the litigation friend can then seek approval of the settlement from the court, which takes place at an infant approval hearing.
Your legal representative can arrange the infant approval hearing for you. During the hearing, the judge will review the evidence and decide whether the agreement is fair and reasonable for the child.
To hear more about becoming a litigation friend for a child in a doctor’s negligence claim, call our advisors to see how we could help.
How Do You Prove A Claim For Negligence Caused By A Doctor?
Examples of evidence that you could collect be:
- Medical records, including any surgeries, X-rays, scans even visits to the GP.
- A medical report.
- Opinion of a specialist medical opinion.
- Photographs of an injury (if possible)
- Timeline of your appointments.
- Witness details – If you had a family member or a friend with you during the appointment.
- Keep any prescriptions you have received.
It is important to collect as much evidence as possible, as this will support your claim.
If you would like to discuss evidence and see how we could help, call our advisors today for your free no-obligation chat.
Doctor Negligence Compensation Amounts
As each doctor’s negligence claim is unique, it is impossible to put an exact figure on compensation that you could receive.
Compensation is divided into general damages and special damages. General damages are related to the pain and suffering, including any psychological damage you may have. The severity of this is determined by an independent medical expert who will provide us with a medical report following an assessment that you have.
Once we receive your medical report, we will use it and a resource such as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to assist in valuing your claim.
Below is a table with examples of amounts that could be awarded for your injuries and/or harm. Please note that the first insert on the table has not been taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Severity | Notes | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple injuries | Most severe | Including extensive financial loss | Upto £500.000 plus |
| Kidney | Severe | Serious/permanent damage or loss of both kidneys. | £206,730 to £256,780 |
| Severe | Significant risk of future urinary tract infection or other total loss of natural kidney function. | Up to £78,080 | |
| Severe | Loss of one kidney with no damage to the other. | £37,550 to £54,760 | |
| Lung disease | Severe | A young person with a serious disability with the probability of progressive worsening, leading to premature death. | £122,850 to £165,860 |
| Severe | Lung cancer (typically in an older person) causes severe pain and impairment both of function and of quality of life. | £85,460 to £118,790 | |
| Severe | Diseases such as emphysema cause significant worsening lung function, impairment of breathing, and prolonged frequent coughing. | £66,890 to £85,460 | |
| Post-traumatic stress disorder | Severe | Cases involve permanent effects preventing the injured person from working at all or at least from functioning at anything approaching the pre-trauma level. | £73,050 to £122,850 |
| Moderately Severe | Likely to cause significant disability for the foreseeable future. | £28,250 to £73,050 | |
| Moderate | Largely recovered, and any continuing effects will not be grossly disabling. | £9,980 to £28,250 |
If you have any questions at this time, please feel free to call our advisors today for a free, no-obligation consultation.
I Suffered Lost Earnings As A Result Of Doctor Negligence, What Can I Do?
As mentioned above, there are special damages, including loss of earnings.
Examples of special damages:
- Loss of earnings – due to your injury and/or injuries, you might not have been able to go back to work, resulting in a financial loss.
- Care and assistance—If you have suffered a significant injury, you may need help from a professional caregiver or a family member. This can be considered special damage.
- Travel costs – to and from medical appointments.
- Medical expenses – i.e. prescriptions.
Special damages are not always recoverable. However, we would recommend putting forward a claim for special damages.
To assist in recovering special damages, we require evidence that we can provide to the defendant. The evidence that we have will support our claim for special damages.
If you would like to discuss the matter further, contact our team today.
Making No Win No Fee Doctor Negligence Claims
Our expert medical negligence solicitors deal with these types of claims every day. Not only will they help you in the collection of supporting evidence, take witness statements, and arrange an independent medical assessment in your area, but they will also ensure that your claim is filed in full and on time.
All of our doctor negligence solicitors work on a No Win No Fee basis via a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means you do not have to pay for their services:
- At the beginning of the claim
- While the claim is in progress
- Or, should the claim fail
If your claim is successful, a small success fee will be deducted from your compensation. This fee is a legally capped percentage.
How Accident Claims Can Help
Having suffered from a doctor’s negligence, you might find it difficult to live your life if you have not been able to return to work. Having loss of earnings, extra medical costs, and no money coming in, compensation can help.
A claim for compensation can help provide crucial financial support during the recovery process.
If you feel you would benefit from making a claim for compensation due to a doctor’s negligence, don’t hesitate to contact our advisors today to see if the case is viable.
More Information On Claiming For Medical Negligence
Resources below regarding medical negligence.
- How to claim for clinical negligence in health and social care causing avoidable harm.
- Detailed information about GP negligence and making GP negligence claims.
- Medical negligence leads to death compensation claims.
Additional resources that could be useful:
- The NHS explains how to make a complaint for negligent care.
- Learn how to complain about a GP to the Care Quality Commission.
- Information on statutory sick pay from GOV.UK.
Thank you for reading our guide on doctor negligence claims.
