Last updated 28th November 2024. Unnecessary surgery compensation could be warranted if you’ve undergone a procedure that wasn’t needed. This could happen because doctors make an error at the diagnosis stage of your treatment, or they simply operate on the wrong person. As an example, when a doctor diagnoses a patient with a medical condition that does not really need surgery.
The outcome can be devastating when a cancer patient’s condition is misdiagnosed. Patients may have organs removed in error, and even simple procedures can leave them with permanent scars. They may have to undergo further surgery to correct the problem.
Patients who undergo unnecessary surgery can suffer life-changing disabilities – or they could even die.
A patient may suffer severe disability and utter devastation following incorrect limb amputation, for instance.
Call today on 0800 073 8801 if you would like a free claim evaluation. In addition, you can write to us about your case through our contact page and an adviser will call you back without delay.
Select A Section
- What Is Considered Unnecessary Surgery?
- Can I Make An Unnecessary Surgery Compensation Claim?
- Unnecessary Surgery Caused By Medical Misdiagnosis
- Unnecessary Surgery Caused By Inappropriate Procedures
- Duty Of Candor And Not Getting Informed Consent
- Valuing Unnecessary Surgery Compensation Payouts
- How Are Special Damages Valued?
- Claim Unnecessary Surgery Compensation With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- Talk To A Claims Expert
- Related Medical Claim Guides
What Is Considered Unnecessary Surgery?
Unnecessary surgery is “a surgical intervention that is:
- Not required
- Is ineffective
- Is not beneficial when compared to other treatment options
The sort of injuries that could result from undergoing unnecessary surgery includes:
- Pain, suffering, and discomfort
- Infection
- Limb amputation
- Losing an internal organ
- Permanent disability
- Nerve damage
- Spinal injury
- Eye injuries
- Scarring
We can provide you with all the advice you need. All you have to do is contact one of our experts today. We will provide free legal advice and can connect you with our specialist solicitors who can provide assistance.
A No Win No Fee service may be available to you if you have a valid claim too. It allows you to obtain unnecessary surgery compensation without having to pay the solicitor up front.
Can I Make An Unnecessary Surgery Compensation Claim?
You may be able to make an unnecessary surgery compensation claim if you can prove that you have suffered medical negligence. Negligence is when you sustain harm that could have been avoided (avoidable harm) because a healthcare professional breached their duty of care.
Every medical professional, including surgeons, owes a duty of care to all patients they treat. This means that the correct standard of care must always be delivered.
If the standard of care delivered falls below the minimum expectation, this would be a breach of duty of care.
As such, here are the eligibility criteria to make an unnecessary surgery claim:
- A medical professional owed a duty of care to you.
- This duty of care was breached because substandard care was delivered.
- You sustained avoidable harm as a result.
Please contact us today and discuss your circumstances to confirm your unnecessary surgery claim eligibility.
Unnecessary Surgery Caused By Medical Misdiagnosis
As a rule of thumb, most patients receive a diagnosis and appropriate treatment for their symptoms. That said, you may have grounds to seek compensation for harm you have suffered because of a misdiagnosis.
Here are the more common types of medical misdiagnosis:
- The misdiagnosis of a less serious condition that caused a delay in your treatment
- A wrong diagnosis leading to unnecessary treatment, such as surgery
- Told you’re terminally ill which results in serious psychological damage
- No diagnosis is made at all, meaning you receive no treatment and your condition deteriorates
In the event you have been injured as a result of a misdiagnosis, a No Win No Fee agreement may provide you with the means to seek medical negligence compensation.
Get in touch with one of our experienced advisers today and they will be able to provide you with all the advice you need. Furthermore, they will connect you with a solicitor who specialises in recovering unnecessary surgery compensation.
Unnecessary Surgery Caused By Inappropriate Procedures
A lot goes into providing correct treatment to patients. It begins with triage, or screening. This information needs to be accurately fed back to other healthcare professionals who may be involved in your treatment. It may involve a half-dozen or more people. And these individuals may be caring for a large number of people as well as you.
With so many people involved in providing you with care, it’s vitally important that the correct procedures are in place and are followed. A failure to do so could lead to a breakdown in communication. The wrong information could be given and that could lead to an incidence of unnecessary surgery.
If you believe you underwent an inappropriate surgical intervention, please get in touch. One of our advisers can review your case and connect you to our No Win No Fee lawyers if you have good cause to sue.
Duty Of Candor And Not Getting Informed Consent
Whenever something goes wrong with a patient’s treatment or care, or it has the potential to cause harm or distress, a healthcare professional must be open and honest (Duty of Candour) with the patient. Therefore, healthcare professionals must:
- When something goes wrong, inform the patient (or, if appropriate, the patient’s advocate, carer, or family)
- Give an apology to the patient (or, if appropriate, the patient’s advocate, carer, or family)
- Provide a suitable remedy or support to put things right (if possible)
- Offer the patient with a full explanation of what happened and the short and long affects
Additionally, healthcare professionals must maintain open, honest communications with their colleagues, employers, and other organisations. They should participate in reviews and investigations when requested.
It is also important for them to be open and honest with their regulators, and raise any concerns they may have. They must not be stopped from raising any concerns they have.
The Principle of Consent
The principle of consent is fundamental when it comes to providing treatment. Every patient has the right to participate in decisions about their treatment and care. If patients are capable of doing so, they must be allowed to make informed decisions. To make good decisions, doctors and patients need to exchange information.
Treatment or care cannot be provided until a doctor believes they have the patient’s consent. If consent is not provided, no treatment or care should be provided unless it is an immediate life-threatening medical emergency.
Valuing Unnecessary Surgery Compensation Payouts
If your unnecessary surgery claim is successful, there are two heads of loss which could potentially make up the compensation – general and special damages.
General damages relate to the physical and psychiatric effects you are suffering from the incident in which you were harmed. The below factors are some that are considered when this head of loss is valued:
- Loss of amenity.
- How painful the avoidable harm is.
- If recovery is possible.
Legal professionals can use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help them value general damages.
The JCG contains guideline compensation figures for different types of psychological and physical harm.
Compensation Table
In the table below, you will find some types of harm that could potentially be sustained after unnecessary surgery. We have taken their guideline compensation values from the JCG (apart from the top figure, which is not from the JCG)
Please note that no figures from the JCG can be guaranteed for your potential unnecessary surgery compensation because every claim is unique.
| Type of injury | Severity | Guideline compensation figures | Further notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple serious types of harm plus special damages | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ | Compensation for sustaining more than one serious type of harm plus financial losses like loss of earnings. |
| Leg | Amputations (a) (iii) | £127,930 to £167,760 | Above-knee amputation of one leg |
| Amputations (a) (iv) | £119,570 to £162,290 | Below-knee amputation of one leg | |
| Amputation of arms | Loss of one arm (b) (i) | Not Less Than £167,380 | Shoulder amputation |
| Loss of one arm (b) (ii) | £133,810 to £159,770 | Above-elbow amputation | |
| Loss of one arm (b) (iii) | £117,360 to £133,810 | Below-album amputation | |
| Kidney | Loss of a kidney (c) | £37,550 to £54,760 | Where there is no damage to the remaining kidney |
| Spleen | Loss of spleen (a) | £25,380 to £32,090 | With a continuing risk of infection and damage to immune system |
| Scarring | A number of noticeable scars, or a single disfiguring scar | £9,560 to £27,740 | To the leg(s), chest, arm(s), back, or hand(s) |
How Are Special Damages Valued?
Special damages relate to the financial losses that stem from the incident in which you were harmed. In a successful unnecessary surgery compensation claim, you could potentially recover costs such as:
- Care costs if someone had to look after you while you recovered
- Travel expenses relating to healthcare or legal appointments
- Medical costs, such as painkillers and prescriptions
- Lost earnings if you had to take time off work to recover
- Loss of future income if you’re unable to work again in the future, particularly relevant in amputation cases.
You must provide proof of your expenditure and evidence of your losses, because special damages are not awarded in every successful medical negligence claim. This could be in the form of receipts, bank statements and other relevant documentation.
One of our expert advisers can offer you free advice if you would like to find out how you can proceed. Moreover, they are also capable of answering your questions regarding unnecessary surgery compensation.
Claim Unnecessary Surgery Compensation With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
If you are still recovering from an unnecessary surgery procedure and want to see if you can claim compensation, we recommend speaking with a medical negligence solicitor who could help you through the process of making a claim.
Moreover, if you have a valid claim, a solicitor who works on a No Fee No Win basis could represent you. This means signing a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) which sets out the terms of the contract. Essentially, you only pay your solicitor a fee on the condition that they achieve a successful outcome. This fee represents a small percentage of your compensation award. It’s capped by law.
You would not have to pay the fee if your lawyer was unable to successfully settle your claim.
If you’d like to find out how to proceed, one of our expert advisers can offer you free advice. Furthermore, they are able to answer your questions regarding unnecessary surgery compensation.
Talk To A Claims Expert
Would you like more information on filing an unnecessary surgery claim? Please feel free to contact us. We can offer you a free assessment of your case.
Call 0800 073 8801 today or contact us in writing.
An adviser will provide free advice on how best to proceed. All calls are free of charge and you can reach a member of the team 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Related Medical Claim Guides
Below, you can read more about medical negligence claims:
- Go here to learn more about medical negligence claims
- Here’s a guide on hospital infection claims
- Here’s a guide on negligent cosmetic surgery
If you have any more questions about seeking unnecessary surgery compensation, please get in touch.
