Can I Claim For Travel Costs In A Personal Injury Claim?
By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 14th February 2024. You may be wondering whether you can claim travel costs in a personal injury claim. If so, this guide could help. It will provide information on what your settlement could comprise following a successful personal injury claim.
A personal injury claim can be made if you are able to prove that someone else’s negligence caused you to experience harm. This includes both physical and psychological harm.
Although it’s difficult to provide an average amount that you could receive, generally, your settlement can include the following heads of claim:
- General damages which compensate you for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity your injuries caused.
- Special damages which reimburse you for the necessary expenses associated with your injuries. This includes future expenses.
Your special damages could include your travel expenses if the expenses were necessary costs associated with your injuries.
Contact Us To Learn More About Special Damages In Personal Injury Claims
Please contact our advisors today to see if you can make a personal injury claim. They can advise you on how much compensation you may be eligible to claim. If it’s found that you have a valid basis to make a claim, they can provide a skilled accident at work solicitor to work on your case.
To get in touch, you can:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- You can send your query by filling out our online claim form
- Chat with an advisor now, using our live support feature.
Select A Section
- Can I Claim For Travel Costs In A Personal Injury Claim?
- Mobility Aids And Equipment
- Claiming For Travel Costs In A Claim Related To Medical Treatment
- What Other Costs Could You Be Reimbursed For?
- Personal Injury Claim Settlement Amounts – General Damages
- How To Claim For Travel Costs In A Personal Injury Claim
Can I Claim For Travel Costs In A Personal Injury Claim?
If you’ve been injured as a result of someone else breaching their duty of care, you may be able to make a personal injury claim. A duty of care is a responsibility for someone else’s health and safety. You are owed a duty of care in various scenarios, including:
- In the workplace, you are owed a duty of care by your employer under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. They must take reasonable steps to prevent you from coming to harm while working.
- All road users owe each other a duty of care while they are using the roads. They must navigate in a manner that prevents causing harm to others and themselves. They must also adhere to the relevant rules within the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act 1988.
- Those in control of public spaces, otherwise known as occupiers, owe you a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. They must take the necessary steps to ensure your reasonable safety while you are visiting that public space.
In order to make a personal injury claim, you must be able to establish that:
- You were owed a duty of care.
- This duty was breached.
- You suffered physical injuries or a psychological injury as a result.
As part of your claim, you may be able to recoup loss of earnings and travel expenses. For example, if you broke your leg in the accident, you may need to take a taxi to work every day. Or a head injury could require various medical appointments at a specialist centre that you need to take the train to reach.
In both of these cases, you would have had to pay for these travel costs from your own pocket. However, a successful injury claim could help you recoup these losses, along with other out-of-pocket expenses such as medication expenses.
To find out how our specialist personal injury team could help you, get in touch today. Or, read on to learn about how to claim reasonable travel expenses following a personal injury.
Mobility Aids And Equipment
We have established that you can sometimes claim travel costs in a personal injury claim. Other expenses you can claim after an accident include mobility equipment expenses.
This may be applicable if you experienced life-changing injuries and became disabled because of the accident. For example, you may have been involved in a car accident that caused you to sustain a paralysis injury due to another road users negligence.
Below are some examples of types of mobility equipment you may have required:
- Wheelchair
- Crutches
- Hearing aid
Additionally, you may have required adaptations to your car or other vehicle. The cost of this and mobility equipment could be claimed back as part of your compensation.
In order to claim the costs back, you should keep proof, such as receipts.
Claiming For Travel Costs In A Claim Related To Medical Treatment
You can also claim compensation for the costs of any necessary medical treatment you had for your injuries. As such, the special damages head of claim could include travel costs in a personal injury claim related to your medical treatment.
For example, if you attended hospital appointments, you may be eligible to claim compensation for the cost of petrol or car park charges.
Here are some other medical treatment related travel costs that could be part of your injury claim:
- Mileage
- Public transport costs
- Hospital parking charges
What Other Costs Could You Be Reimbursed For?
Examples of other costs you could be reimbursed for when you make a personal injury claim include:
- Expenses for medical treatment
- Costs for adaptations made to your home
- Domestic care costs
- Childcare costs
- Loss of earnings, including future losses
- Pension contributions
- Attendance bonuses at work
- Damage to property
Personal Injury Claims Settlement Amounts – General Damages
While you may be able to claim for travel costs as special damages in a personal injury claim, it’s important to be aware that it’s only possible to claim for any special damages if you are eligible to claim general damages. General damages in a personal injury claim are meant to compensate for the pain and suffering your injuries have caused.
The amount of compensation you may be offered for general damages when you make a personal injury claim varies from case-to-case. However, when legal professionals are valuing this head of claim, they may refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) for guidance. This document provides a list of guideline compensation brackets for various injuries at different severity levels.
We have used some of the amounts listed in the 16th edition of this document for the table below. Please only refer to it as a guide. Please note that the first entry does not come from the JCG.
| Injuries | Compensation | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries And Special Damages | Up to £1,000,000+ | A combination of multiple severe injuries and financial losses, such as travel costs and lost earnings. |
| Hernia Injury (c) | £3.390 to £7,230 | The person suffered an inguinal hernia (indirect). This is not complicated and there are no other abdominal injuries. |
| Severe Shoulder Injury (a) | £19,200 to £48,030 | Shoulder injuries associated with a neck injury involving brachial plexus damage. |
| Moderately Severe Brain Damage (b) | £219,070 to £282,010 | This person is left severely disabled and is heavily dependent on other people. They may also have a reduced life expectancy. |
| Moderate Brain Damage (c) (i) | £150,110 to £219,070 | The person has been left with a moderate or considerable degree of mental deficit. There could also be changes to their personality. |
| Severe Back Injury (a) (i) | £91,090 to £160,980 | There may have been damage to the spinal cord as well as nerve roots. There could be extreme pain, disability and even paralysis. |
| Moderate Back Injury (b) (i) | £27,760 to £38,780 | Crush fracture or compression fractures affecting the lower back. There could be a prolapse of an intervertebral disc. |
| Moderate Psychological Damage (c) | £5,860 to £19,070 | Awarded damages depend on the person's prognosis for recovery in the future as well as future vulnerability. |
| Severe Neck Injury (a) (i) | In the region of £148,330 | Cases of incomplete paraplegia which causes quadriparesis or which necessitates a neck collar. |
| Moderate Neck Injury (b) (i) | £24,990 to £38,490 | Dislocation and fracture injuries. These cause immediate symptoms and may cause chronic conditions. |
For more information regarding claim general and special damages as part of a personal injury claim, you can contact our advisory team.
How To Claim For Travel Costs In A Personal Injury Claim
You can claim travel costs in a personal injury claim by hiring an experienced solicitor who offers No Win No Fee services. Our solicitors work under a Conditional Fee Agreement which means you won’t be expected to pay an upfront fee for their services.
Additionally, you won’t need to pay for your solicitors services if the claim fails. If the claim succeeds, you will need to pay a success fee from your compensation. This fee is outlined in the agreement you sign before your claim proceeds. However, it is subject to a legal cap.
To find out whether you can work with one of our solicitors on this basis, our advisors can help. They can assess your case, and if they find you have legitimate grounds to claim compensation, they can connect you with one of our experienced personal injury solicitors.
To get in touch, you can:
- Call on 0800 073 8804
- Send your query by filling out our online claim form
- Chat with an advisor now, using our live support feature.
Learn More About What You Could Claim
Below, we have provided some additional resources that you may find helpful. This includes some of our other guides on claiming compensation and external resources.
- How Much Compensation For A Death Caused By A Fatal Motorcycle Accident?
- Office Accident Claims
- How Much Compensation For A Slip Or Trip Claim
- NHS- First Aid
- HSE- Statistics
- GOV- Compensation After An Accident Or Injury
We hope our guide on making a claim for travel costs in your personal injury claim has helped. However, if you need any other information, get in touch on the number above.
