Nursing homes are meant to provide residents with a safe and dignified space in their later years. Unfortunately, staff do not always deliver the appropriate level of care expected of them. If your loved one has suffered harm due to nursing home negligence, you may be asking yourself whether you can start a claim on their behalf.
This guide will examine how nursing home neglect can occur and explore some of the warning signs that might suggest a loved one is suffering from poor care. We will also explain the eligibility criteria for starting a medical negligence claim and discuss the topic of compensation, including how it is calculated.
Next, we detail other aspects of the legal process, including how to claim on behalf of a loved one and what evidence might be needed. Finally, we look at how our No Win No Fee solicitors can help your family claim clinical negligence compensation.
To speak to our advisors regarding a potential nursing home claim, please get in touch with them for free by:
- Visiting our contact page
- Calling them on 0800 073 8804
- Messaging them on our live chat
Jump To A Section
- What Would Count As Neglect In Nursing Homes?
- What Are Signs Of Nursing Home Negligence I Can Look Out For?
- How Do I Report Negligence In A Nursing Home?
- When Can Someone Make A Claim For Nursing Home Negligence?
- Compensation Amounts For Negligent Nursing Home Claims
- How To Prove Nursing Home Negligence
- What Is The Time Limit For Making A Claim?
- Can Legal Expert Help With A No Win No Fee Claim?
- More Information
What Would Count As Neglect In Nursing Homes?
Neglect in nursing homes happens when healthcare providers fail to deliver the correct standard of care for residents. Below are some examples of how neglect by nursing home staff members could occur:
- Inadequate monitoring: A care worker fails to regularly move or reposition your bed-bound loved one. Consequently, they develop pressure sores that become infected and lead to sepsis.
- Ignoring medical conditions: Staff ignore symptoms known to be associated with pneumonia and do not refer your loved one to a doctor. Due to this substandard care, there are delays in making a diagnosis and providing treatment, allowing the pneumonia to worsen.
- Medication errors: Your loved one needs regular blood thinning medication. However, a nurse fails to follow the schedule for administering the medication, resulting in a blood clot and stroke.
These scenarios represent only a snapshot of what potentially constitutes neglect within a nursing home. You can contact our advisors anytime to discuss how your loved one suffered harm to see if they could be entitled to compensation.
What Are Signs Of Nursing Home Negligence I Can Look Out For?
If your loved one is a resident of a nursing home, there are some common signs of neglect that you can look out for. These include:
- Cuts, bruises, and other unexplained injuries.
- Poor personal hygiene.
- Unhygienic living conditions, such as dirty bedsheets.
- Unexplained weight loss or dehydration.
- Medication that is left unopened or is easily accessible.
- Untreated injuries or health issues, including pressure sores.
- Limited mobility aids, such as walking frames, ramps, and wheelchairs.
- Inconsistent or infrequent communication from the nursing home.
- Psychological changes or mental distress caused by emotional neglect.
If you suspect that your loved one is suffering from nursing home negligence, you may need to report your concerns. We discuss your options in the next section. You can also contact our advisors to discuss whether you can claim compensation for nursing home negligence on behalf of a loved one.
How Do I Report Negligence In A Nursing Home?
How you report nursing home negligence or make a complaint may depend on the specific circumstances of your loved one’s suffering. Your options include the following:
- If you or your loved one is funding nursing home costs, you can make a formal report through the facility’s complaints procedure.
- If the council funds the facility, you can make a complaint or report nursing home neglect to the relevant local authority.
- You could also use the Local Government or Social Care Ombudsman, an independent body that investigates complaints about various organisations such as care providers.
- You can file a complaint with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which is the independent regulator for health and social care in England. However, they will not provide a full investigation.
Alongside making a formal complaint regarding negligence, you can also get in touch with our advisors to discuss your loved one’s situation.
When Can Someone Make A Claim For Nursing Home Negligence?
A nursing home negligence claim can be made if your loved one suffered avoidable harm from negligent conduct or omissions. For a claim to be valid, it must meet the following eligibility criteria:
- Your loved one must have been owed a duty of care.
- Nursing home staff members must have breached this duty.
- This must result in your loved one suffering unnecessary or avoidable harm.
Medical professionals have a duty to meet the correct (or minimum expected) standard of care whilst treating patients, including nursing home residents. When those standards aren’t met, it may mean your loved one has a valid claim for compensation.
Can I Claim On Behalf Of My Loved One?
If your loved one is unable to start a nursing home negligence claim, you could be appointed as a litigation friend to claim on their behalf. Here, your role is to act in their best interests throughout the claims process.
As a litigation friend, you may need to perform the following duties:
- Make legal decisions on your loved one’s behalf.
- Sign legal documents.
- Communicate with solicitors and give instructions.
- Keep your loved one informed throughout the process.
Our advisors and solicitors can support you throughout the different stages of the claims process, give you advice, and answer any important questions you have.
Can I Still Pursue A Claim If My Loved One Has Passed Away?
If your loved one passed away, it may still be possible to claim compensation for nursing home negligence on their behalf. However, the eligibility criteria mentioned earlier must be met.
What If My Loved One Has Now Moved To A Different Home?
Moving to a different nursing home following negligent treatment won’t have any bearing on a potential claim. So long as the eligibility criteria are met, a claim can still be made for nursing home negligence.
If you have any questions about the nursing home negligence compensation claim process, please do not hesitate to contact our team of helpful advisors.
Compensation Amounts For Negligent Nursing Home Claims
Compensation amounts for negligent nursing home claims differ by case, reflecting the unique circumstances of a loved one’s physical and mental suffering. For instance, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) indicate that the compensation award for severe back injuries may range from £111,150 to £196,450.
Compensation in medical negligence claims is split into two heads of claim, known as general damages and special damages. Under general damages, your loved one may be compensated for the physical and psychological injuries they sustained in the nursing home.
Typically, legal professionals calculate general damages by referring to an independent medical assessor’s report and the JCG. This document provides solicitors with suggestive figures for many forms of harm but does not guarantee how much compensation someone might receive.
The table below provides some more examples of suggestive compensation brackets from the JCG (excluding the top figure). Please note that this table is for guidance only.
| Harm | Severity | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Forms of Harm and Significant Financial Losses | Severe | Up to £500,000 plus |
| Brain Damage | Very Severe | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Brain Damage | Less Severe | £18,700 to £52,550 |
| Back | Severe (i) | £111,150 to £196,450 |
| Back | Moderate (i) | £33,880 to £47,320 |
| Neck | Severe (i) | In the region of £181,020 |
| Arm | Injuries Resulting in Permanent and Substantial Disablement | £47,810 to £73,050 |
| Pelvis and Hip | Moderate (i) | £32,450 to £47,810 |
| Shoulder | Severe | £23,430 to £58,610 |
| Leg | Less Serious (i) Fractures From Which an Incomplete Recovery is Made or Serious Soft Tissue Injuries | £21,920 to £33,880 |
Special Damages
If a claim is made for special damages, your loved one may be reimbursed for any financial losses incurred as a result of the harm caused by nursing home negligence. Moreover, you may also be compensated if you are responsible for funding the care and were financially impacted by their harm.
Some examples of financial losses that special damages cover include:
- Medical procedures or medication.
- Costs towards a new nursing home.
- Lost wages if you needed time off work to care for your loved one.
- Special equipment such as walking frames.
- Costs towards carers.
- Transportation expenses, such as bus tickets or parking fees.
When claiming special damages, it’s important to obtain evidence of the losses you or your loved one incurred, such as:
- Bank or credit card statements.
- Medical or travel bills.
- Wage slips.
- Receipts.
If you would like to know more about compensation amounts for nursing home negligence, please contact our advisors today for tailored advice.
How To Prove Nursing Home Negligence
To start a nursing home claim, it’s vital that there is evidence establishing how negligent conduct or omission resulted in your loved one suffering. This process is often referred to as proving third-party liability.
Some examples of evidence that may be useful for proving medical negligence:
- Medical reports that detail the harm your loved one suffered.
- Copies of medical scans or prescriptions.
- Photographs of injuries, living conditions (such as piles of dirty clothes), or the location where the harm occurred.
- Correspondence between yourself and the nursing home or other relevant bodies, including copies of complaints.
- CCTV footage if cameras recorded the substandard care taking place.
- The contact details of anyone who may have witnessed negligent care.
Establishing liability may be difficult at times, especially if you are currently caring for your loved one. However, we have an experienced team of solicitors who can use years of experience to help gather any evidence a claim needs. Please feel free to contact an advisor to discuss this in more detail.
Is There A Time Limit For Making Nursing Home Claims?
Generally, a medical negligence claim must be started within 3 years under the Limitation Act 1980. This time limit typically begins from either:
- The date your loved one suffered from medical negligence.
- The date of knowledge that medical negligence was responsible.
However, the claims time limit can be indefinitely paused if your loved one has reduced mental capacity and does not have the ability to start a claim independently. Under such circumstances, you could act as a litigation friend to start a nursing home negligence claim for them. If your loved one regains their capacity, the 3-year time limit will take effect from the date of their recovery.
How Long Will It Take For A Claim To Be Settled?
All medical negligence claims vary based on different circumstances, meaning there are no defined timescales for when they might be settled. Here are some factors that may determine how long it takes for a claim to resolve:
- If the nursing home or staff members have admitted liability.
- Whether your loved one is still receiving treatment for the harm they suffered.
- The time it takes to gather evidence and build a strong claim.
- If the parties have disagreements whilst negotiating potential settlements.
Regardless of how long the process takes, our solicitors will work hard using their experience and expertise to settle a claim within a reasonable timeframe.
If you have any questions about time limits, your role as a litigation friend, or the length of a claim, please do not hesitate to get in touch with our advisors.
Can Legal Expert Help With A No Win No Fee Claim?
At Legal Expert, our medical negligence solicitors may help you start a nursing home compensation claim on behalf of your loved one on a No Win No Fee basis using a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
Signing a CFA ensures someone doesn’t pay a fee for a solicitor’s services either:
- At the start of the claim.
- As the claim moves forward.
- If the claim has an unsuccessful outcome.
If the claim wins, a success fee will be taken as a percentage of the compensation received. It acts as payment for the solicitor’s work, and the percentage deducted is both small and legally capped.
How Our Solicitors Can Help
Our highly experienced and professional medical negligence solicitors will work hard to help get the outcome your loved one deserves. In doing so, they will utilise the skills they have acquired over the years to:
- Explain the claims process and legal terminology, such as the role of a litigation friend.
- Assist with obtaining evidence and building a strong claim.
- Walk through how compensation is calculated and awarded.
- Set your loved one up with specialist support, such as physiotherapy and rehabilitation.
- Help apply for interim payments to cover the cost of medical treatment or a nursing home relocation.
- Contact third parties and negotiate compensation settlements.
Our solicitors have many years of experience and will work to the best of their ability to ensure a claim is successful so that your family can move on from this difficult time.
Contact Our Solicitors
To speak to our advisors about making a nursing home negligence claim, get in touch with them for free by:
- Visiting our contact page
- Calling them on 0800 073 8804
- Messaging them on our live chat
More Information
If you would like more information on nursing homes or medical negligence claims, you can click on the links below to read through the following informative guides:
- Access our medical negligence claims calculator.
- Learn how to make a medical negligence complaint.
- Discover who might be responsible for medication errors.
References:
- Government information about nursing home registration.
- CQC guidance on nursing care.
- NHS overview of care and nursing homes.
We appreciate you taking the time to read this guide on nursing home negligence, and we hope that it was helpful.
