When visiting a doctor, you should expect to receive a professional, high-quality service during the diagnosis and treatment of conditions. Therefore, if you’ve suffered harm as a result of substandard medical care, it can give rise to life-altering health complications and a mistrust of the healthcare system. As such, you may be giving some thought to the doctor negligence compensation claims process. The amount of compensation you may receive will ultimately depend on the nature and severity of the avoidable harm, the day-to-day impact, and related financial consequences. To be eligible to claim, you must be able to demonstrate that you suffered physical or mental avoidable harm due to a healthcare professional’s failure to provide you with the correct standard of care. Whether you experienced a misdiagnosis, a delayed diagnosis or a failure to refer, our expert solicitors can help guide you through the claims process.
At Legal Expert, we understand that starting a compensation claim against a doctor can be a daunting prospect. Due to this, our advisors are available 24 hours, 7 days a week to answer your questions, give helpful advice and offer initial case consultations. Following this, you could be connected with one of our specialist No Win No Fee solicitors to start your doctor negligence claim. From the outset, our medical negligence solicitors focus on building strong evidence, arranging assessments from independent medical experts, and fully assessing the long-term impact of the harm you suffered. Our dedicated team at Legal Expert can handle all communication with the defendant on your behalf, allowing you to focus on your recovery.
To discover more about the doctor negligence compensation claims process, please contact our team today.
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Doctor negligence occurs when a healthcare professional provides medical treatment that falls below the expected standard of care, resulting in avoidable harm or the worsening of a patient’s condition.
Inherently, all doctors owe a duty of care to all patients to meet the minimum expected standard when providing treatment. A failure to meet this standard, whether it be through a medication mistake, a delayed diagnosis, or a birth injury, can amount to medical negligence if patient harm is inflicted. By starting the doctor negligence compensation claims process, you could seek redress for pain, suffering and financial losses you experienced.
To discuss your personal experience with a member of our team, please feel free to get in touch with our advisors today.
Can I Claim For Negligent Treatment From A Doctor?
Yes, you could claim for negligent treatment from a doctor if you can demonstrate that you suffered harm due to substandard care. To be eligible to make a medical negligence claim, you must therefore be able to meet the following criteria:
You Were Owed a Duty of Care: Regardless of their role and area of expertise, all doctors owe you an automatic duty of care once they agree to treat you. Under this duty, doctors must ensure that the treatment they provide meets an acceptable professional standard and ensures the safety of patients. For instance, doctors should conduct thorough patient assessments, provide reasonable advice and work within the limits of their own competence.
That Duty of Care Was Breached: A breach of duty may occur when a doctor makes a mistake that falls below the expected standard of care For example, they may have prescribed the wrong drug, misdiagnosed your condition, or failed to assess your medical history before providing treatment.
You Suffered Harm Due To The Breach: You must be able to demonstrate that you suffered avoidable physical or mental harm, rather than a known side effect. This can include serious side effects, allergic reactions, hospitalisations, sepsis or the worsening of a pre-existing condition.
To discuss your eligibility to make doctor negligence compensation claims, please contact our advisory team today.
Examples Of Doctor Negligence Compensation Claims
There are many different scenarios where doctor negligence can arise, such as during the diagnosis, treatment and the management of conditions. Please see the following examples and how doctor negligence compensation claims could arise as a result:
A GP could fail to refer a patient for further testing, despite them presenting with a breast lump. Due to this, the patient could suffer a delayed diagnosis of stage 3 breast cancer, resulting in aggressive treatments and invasive surgeries.
A hospital doctor could prescribe antibiotics to a patient without checking their medical history. The patient could be highly allergic to penicillin, causing them to suffer an anaphylactic shock after taking the medication.
Whilst on a home visit, a doctor could fail to recognise the signs of a patient developing sepsis, such as infrequent urination, a high temperature and sudden fainting. Instead, the doctor could misdiagnose the patient with a virus, resulting in severe organ damage and psychological effects.
A surgeon could make an error during an operation, accidentally leaving a medical instrument inside a patient’s arm.
Please be aware that the above list is not exhaustive, and doctor negligence can occur in many different settings.
To discuss your own negligent experience, please feel free to talk to one of our advisors today.
What Are Some Injuries Resulting From Doctor Negligence?
Injuries resulting from doctor negligence can lead to long-lasting organ damage, the avoidable worsening of an existing condition, and birth-related trauma. Below are some specific examples of harm:
Surgical-related: Including lacerations of nearby organs, internal bleeding and infections. Patients may also experience neurological damage or paralysis.
Birth injuries and maternal trauma: Such as permanent scarring or brain damage that leads to a newborn developing cerebral palsy. Mothers may also suffer psychological damage, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety.
Allergic reactions: Resulting in anaphylaxis or organ toxicity.
Diagnostic delays: A doctor’s failure to investigate clear symptoms or refer a patient for urgent testing may lead to the avoidable exacerbation of conditions like cancer or heart disease.
Hospital-acquired infections: A doctor’s failure to follow hygiene standards or adequately monitor a patient may lead to the development of life-threatening sepsis.
To discuss the harm you endured with one of our friendly advisors, please get in touch today.
How Much Doctor Negligence Compensation Can I Claim?
If your claim goes in your favour, how much doctor negligence compensation you can claim will take into account the extent of your physical pain, suffering and financial losses resulting from the avoidable harm you endured. The starting point for any payout is general damages, as this head of claim covers your physical and mental pain and suffering. General damages are typically assessed by our expert solicitors using the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), which contain suggested brackets of compensation for many types of harm.
All entries in the table below, apart from the first figure, have been taken from the JCG. Please be aware that they are merely guidelines and do not guarantee how much compensation you might receive for doctor negligence.
Harm
Severity
Compensation
Multiple Severe Forms of Harm With Financial Losses
Severe - with special damages such as home modifications, lost earnings and medical expenses
Up to £1,000,000+
Paraplegia
Very serious - considering the degree of independence and depression.
£267,340 to £346,890
Brain Damage
Moderate (i) - with a personality change, effect on sight and significant epilepsy.
£183,190 to £267,340
Male Reproductive Harm
b) the level of award will depend on pain, scarring and psychological reaction.
£140,220 to £181,020
Female Reproductive Harm
(d) infertility with no aggravating features or sexual dysfunction.
£21,920 to £44,840
Bladder Damage
c) with a serious impairment of bladder control.
£78,080 to £97,540
Bowel Damage
c) with faecal urgency and persistant passive incontinence.
In Region of £97,530
Non-Traumatic Harm To The Digestive System
(i) with acute pain, fever, vomiting and a hospital admission in certain instances.
£46,900 to £64,070
Chest injuries
(d) with some permanent tissue damage and no significant long term effects.
£15,370 to £21,920
Our advisors are available now if you have any questions about medical negligence compensation.
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Can Compensation For Doctor Negligence Cover Financial Loss?
Yes, compensation for doctor negligence can cover financial losses resulting from the harm you suffered through the award of special damages. Examples can include the following costs:
Current or future losses in income, including any impact on bonuses and pension schemes.
Medical expenses, such as private consultations, surgery and prescriptions required to manage the initial impact of the doctor’s negligence.
Physiotherapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, and counselling sessions.
Professional help or care provided by family members if you are unable to look after yourself. This may include help with dressing, cooking, cleaning and nursing.
Home and car adaptations if the doctor’s negligent care led to a long-term disability, including hoists, chairlifts, ramps, wheelchairs, and swivel seats.
Travelling to and from medical appointments, covering expenses related to fuel, public transport, and parking.
Special damages must be supported with evidence. This typically includes:
Invoices
Receipts
Payslips
Bank statements
To discover more about claiming for your financial losses, please don’t hesitate to get in touch today.
What Factors Will Determine A Payout Amount For Doctor Negligence?
In successful claims, factors that will determine the payout amount for doctor negligence can include the severity of the physical and emotional harm suffered, the extent of related financial losses, and the long-term prognosis. Other considerations may include:
The permanence of the harm, such as a loss of sight or other life-changing disability.
An evaluation of whether the care provided by your doctor accelerated or worsened a pre-existing condition.
Your age and life expectancy, accounting for any long-term care needs.
The overall impact on your mental health and quality of life, including a loss of enjoyment in specific hobbies.
To discuss the impact of the harm you suffered because of a negligent doctor, please contact us today.
How Can I Bring A Doctor Negligence Compensation Claim?
To bring a doctor negligence claim, you will need to take several steps to support your health, gather evidence, and build a strong legal position. These include:
Prioritise Your Health: If you’ve received substandard care from a doctor, your health is the top priority. You should seek treatment from another GP, specialist, or A&E. This will aid your recovery and allow other healthcare providers to formally document the harm you have suffered.
Gather Evidence: You will need to begin collecting evidence to prove medical negligence occurred. This can include copies of consultation notes, test results, and correspondence that may detail failings by your doctor.
Report the Incident: You can make a formal complaint about the care your doctor gave by going through the GP surgery, private hospital, or trust. This is another form of official documentation that can help strengthen a compensation claim.
Track the Clinical Impact: Keep a daily diary detailing symptom progression, such as reduced mobility and increasing pain, resulting from the doctor’s negligent care. You should also record any treatments you receive and your financial losses, such as the cost of prescriptions, therapy and travelling to medical appointments.
Seek Legal Advice: Here at Legal Expert, we understand the nuances involved in navigating cases involving practitioner failings. Our medical negligence solicitors use their expertise to provide comprehensive support to claimants, and they will use their years of experience to help establish how the care your doctor provided fell below expected standards.
Be Aware of the Time Limit: A medical negligence claim must generally be started within 3 years of the doctor’s negligence, or the date you became aware of it.
To learn more about how Legal Expert can support you through the medical negligence claims process, feel free to get in touch with our advisory team.
Claiming For Negligent Care From A Doctor With Legal Expert
When you choose Legal Expert to handle your doctor negligence compensation claim, you’re choosing a team that puts your recovery first. In doing this, our dedicated team can handle all communication with the defendant, ensuring that you can focus on your recovery. Please see the following advantages of starting doctor negligence compensation claims with Legal Expert:
Why Choose Our Solicitors To Claim Doctor Negligence Compensation
You should choose our solicitors to claim doctor negligence compensation due to their decades of experience, resources and dedication to achieving a pay-out that reflects your suffering. Our solicitors understand the life-changing and long-term impacts that can be caused by doctor negligence. Therefore, your claim will be valued to fully reflect your future care and the wider impact the harm has had on your life. If you’re connected to one of our expert solicitors, you could also enjoy the following:
Specialist advice about doctor negligence claims, ensuring details are not missed such as a failure to refer or a delayed diagnosis
Ensuring that you receive the help you need by arranging physiotherapy and counselling sessions
Updating you in clear, straightforward language so you know where your doctor negligence claim stands
Help with gathering evidence so you can focus on your recovery, such as medical records and hospital notes
Helping you to apply for interim payments to cover emergency costs caused by medical negligence
Can I Claim For Negligent Treatment From A Doctor On A No Win No Fee Basis?
Yes, you could claim for negligent treatment from a doctor on a No Win No Fee basis if you’re connected with one of our specialist solicitors. By providing their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), you could experience:
No solicitor service fees at the start of your claim, as it progresses, or in the event that it’s unsuccessful.
In successful doctor negligence compensation claims, you’ll be required to pay a success fee to your solicitor. This fee will be capped by law and taken from your compensation.
Contact Legal Expert To Make A Claim
To start the doctor negligence compensation claims process, please contact our friendly team:
To learn more about doctor negligence compensation claims, please see some common questions and answers below. For further help and guidance, please contact a member of our team today:
Who Is Responsible If My Doctor Was Negligent?
If your doctor was negligent, who is responsible for the unnecessary harm you suffered will generally lie with the employer, such as a private healthcare provider or an NHS trust. However, in some cases, a claim may be directed against an individual private practitioner’s indemnity insurer.
Can I Claim If My Doctor Failed To Diagnose My Condition?
Yes, you could claim compensation if your doctor failed to diagnose your condition, provided that this amounted to medical negligence and you suffered mental or physical harm as a result. For instance, if a competent doctor in the same situation would have made a correct diagnosis, your doctor’s conduct will most likely amount to medical negligence.
Is It Hard To Prove Doctor Negligence?
Whilst proving doctor negligence can be complex, it’s not impossible with sufficient evidence. With your medical records, photographs of visible harm, strong witness statements and the help of a solicitor, doctor negligence could be successfully proven.
Will I Have To Go To Court For A Doctor Negligence Claim?
It’s highly unlikely that you will have to go to court for a doctor negligence claim, as most cases will settle prior to this. However, court proceedings may be necessary where liability or a settlement amount is being disputed by a defendant.
Can I Claim Loss Of Earnings After Doctor Negligence?
Yes, you can claim loss of earnings after doctor negligence if you can demonstrate that you suffered financial losses as a direct result of this. Lost earnings may include both past and future income, and must directly link to your inability to work.
More Information
For more information about medical negligence claims, please see some of our other guides:
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