Rowlands Pharmacy Prescription Error Claims Guide
Pharmacists are medical professionals who must ensure that their care meets the correct standard. If pharmacists fail to provide a service of skill and care equal to that of a competent professional, mistakes or errors could be made that could lead to patients suffering harm that was otherwise avoidable. In our guide, we discuss the steps that could potentially be taken should a Rowlands Pharmacy prescription error occur that you believe has led to you suffering unnecessary harm.
We begin this guide by looking at the medical negligence claims eligibility criteria to make a prescription error claim against a pharmacy; we provide some examples of how substandard care from pharmacy employees could lead to unnecessary medical complications for customers.
Continuing through the guide, you can learn what evidence can help your claim against a pharmacy. We additionally discuss how a compensation payout can, in certain cases, allow you to receive damages for financial harm as well as physical or emotional pain.
Lastly, our guide outlines the benefits of making a No Win No Fee claim with the professional guidance of one of our experienced solicitors.
Further to this guide, we offer free and readily available support through multiple routes. Check out our contact details below and pick an option to reach a helpful advisor today:
- Phone our 24/7 helpline on 0800 073 8804.
- Make a query about your claim online so we can call you.
- Chat with an advisor through our live support feature below.
Select A Section
- Rowlands Pharmacy Prescription Error Claims Guide
- When Could You Be Eligible To Claim For Negligence By A Pharmacy?
- Proving Negligence Claims Against A Pharmacist
- What Is The Average Payout For Pharmacy Negligence?
- Could I Make A No Win No Fee Claim For A Rowlands Pharmacy Prescription Error?
- Discover More About Claiming Against Negligent Pharmacies
Rowlands Pharmacy Prescription Error Claims Guide
A pharmacist has many duties, including:
- Preparing, labelling and storing medications.
- Dispensing prescribed medicine to patients.
- Being available to provide advice on medicine use where needed.
- Ensuring patients have access to repeat prescriptions or an emergency prescription.
Pharmacists should meet the professional standards set out by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GMC), a regulatory body for pharmacy professionals, while providing their services.
If you are thinking of making a compensation claim because the pharmacist made an error with your prescription and you believe this has led to you suffering harm, you need to be able to satisfy the medical negligence claim eligibility criteria as follows:
- A pharmacy professional owed you a duty of care.
- They failed to meet this duty as the correct standard of care was not maintained.
- This led to you suffering harm that could have otherwise been avoided.
Should a Rowlands Pharmacy prescription error occur, and you believe that it has caused you harm or illness, our advisors can assess your potential case.
When Could You Be Eligible To Claim For Negligence By A Pharmacy?
You may be wondering how negligent pharmacy errors could occur, or whether the harm you suffered after a medication error was avoidable. These illustrative examples may help give you an idea of what could lead to a medical negligence claim against a pharmacy:
- Because of a failure to correctly store medication, a pharmacist gave the patient an out of date drug, which was unable to work as intended. This dispensing error allowed the patient’s condition to worsen.
- A pharmacist gave a patient a repeat prescription without approval from a doctor. The patient was meant to come off the medication and taking more had adverse effects on them.
- The pharmacist labelled the medication incorrectly. The labelling told the patient to take 10 times more than the recommended dosage. Because of this, the patient overdosed on their medicine.
- A pharmacist gave a patient the wrong prescription. Instead of taking their regular medication, the patient unwittingly took a drug they were allergic to, causing a severe reaction.
You may be unsure if you’ve suffered as a result of pharmacy negligence or if you can claim compensation for it. The best way to find out quickly and without paying a fee is to call our free helpline on the number listed above.
Proving Negligence Claims Against A Pharmacist
The onus will always be on you, the claimant, to prove that you meet the medical negligence claim eligibility criteria in order to seek compensation. This will mean you will need to gather evidence that proves not only that the pharmacist or pharmacy was negligent but that you suffered avoidable harm as a result.
Helping with this effort is one service our expert solicitors can provide when their clients seek out their support. Some forms of evidence that could help you prove medical negligence include:
- The medication you received. This can include the medicine itself, or at least the bottle and packaging it came in.
- Medical records. You can request a copy of your health records from your GP or healthcare provider. They can outline your original prescription, as well as the effects of the prescription error, and the treatment you had to receive.
- Detailed notes of who served you in your chosen pharmacy and the pharmacy’s address, plus the symptoms and recovery journey after you suffered the adverse effects of the prescription error.
- Witness statements from anyone who saw what happened in the pharmacy. You don’t have to take statements yourself, but it would be useful to collect contact information.
- Documents outlining any financial losses accrued because of the medical error. We explain how this and your medical evidence could be important to your potential payout in the next section.
If you do not have access to all of these forms of evidence, you may find it worthwhile to seek support from a legal expert. You can get detailed information on what a solicitor can do to help you claim for a medical drug error by getting in touch with us today. Our advisors are also available 24/7 should you want to know what steps to take if a Rowlands Pharmacy prescription error occurs.
What Is The Average Payout For Pharmacy Negligence?
Because all claims are different, and as your solicitor would push for the best possible resolution for you, there is no settled average prescription error compensation payout.
One certainty is that a payout will feature general damages compensation. This accounts for the avoidable physical pain or emotional suffering caused by a pharmacy error.
If you also experience financial loss, special damages compensation could be added to the payout. Such out-of-pocket expenses could include:
- A loss of earnings if you are unable to work while ill.
- Medical bills.
- Fees for travel to and from appointments.
- Domestic care costs.
The evidence of financial harm you provide—for example, payslips or receipts—can be used to calculate a special damages compensation amount.
Those responsible for calculating a general damages figure might take a look at the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document features guideline brackets for various injuries and illnesses, covering a range of severities. We have put together a table based on these figures. As we mentioned before, this is only a guide.
Guideline table
Please note that the top line is not taken from the JCG.
| INJURY | SEVERITY | COMPENSATION | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multiple Very Serious Illnesses And Significant Financial Losses And Costs | Very Severe | Up to £500,000+ | Compensation addressing multiple significant physical or mental injuries, plus financial losses such as missed earnings past, present and future, rehabilitation and home adaptations. |
| Brain Damage | Moderately Severe | £267,340 to £344,150 | The affected person is very seriously disabled, suffering either physical or cognitive disability. |
| Moderate (i) | £183,190 to £267,340 | Cases featuring a moderate to severe intellectual deficit and no employment prospects. | |
| Kidney | Both Kidneys | £206,730 to £256,780 | Both kidneys are lost, or at least permanently and seriously damaged. |
| Bladder | Double Incontinence | Up to £224,790 | A complete loss of urinary function and control, plus total loss of natural bowel function and other medical complications. |
| Bowels | Total Loss of Natural Function | Up to £183,190 | There may also be dependence on colostomy, depending on age. |
| Psychological Harm | Severe | £66,920 to £141,240 | Marked issues with various factors, including the ability to cope with education, work or life in general. |
| Digestive System | Non-Traumatic Injury (i) | £46,900 to £64,070 | Severe toxicosis that causes acute pain, vomiting, fever and diarrhoea. The affected person is hospitalised. |
| Injuries Affecting The Senses | Impairment of Taste and Smell (a) | In the region of £47,810 | The total loss of taste and smell. |
Could I Make A No Win No Fee Claim For A Rowlands Pharmacy Prescription Error
If a Rowlands Pharmacy prescription error were to occur our advisors are free 24/7 to provide free advice on the potential steps you could take. When a compensation claim is possible claimants can be connected to a specialist medical negligence claim solicitor who could provide legal representation on a No Win No Fee basis.
Their help throughout the claims process would be provided under a Conditional Fee Agreement, which is a form of No Win No Fee contract.
As such, you will not have to pay an upfront fee for their work, or any running solicitor costs. If the case fails, you aren’t out of pocket for the solicitor’s work at all.
Winning the case entitles you to a payout and the solicitor to a success fee, which is a small percentage of the compensation awarded to you. Because The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 puts a clear legal cap in place, the percentage set aside for a solicitor is guaranteed to be small.
Whether you have any questions, want to learn if you have reasonable grounds to claim or are looking for an expert solicitor to take on your valid medical negligence case, we have you covered. Contacting us is completely free and you will always have the final say on what action you take.
You can reach us:
- Over the telephone at 0800 073 8804.
- By submitting a ‘Claim online’ form with details of your potential case.
- Via our live support service, accessible through the pop-up tab below.
Discover More About Claiming For Medication Errors
Our site contains plenty of information on medication negligence claims, including the ones below:
- Guidance on when you can sue for prescription errors in hospitals and how our solicitors can help.
- A look at the most common prescription error examples and how they could lead to a claim.
- Information on claiming if a doctor has prescribed the wrong medication and caused avoidable harm.
Some further relevant information can be found through these resources:
- An NHS directory of pharmacies and where to find the stores nearest to you.
- The GPC explains how to share feedback or report concerns about a pharmacist to them.
- The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care shows how to find a pharmacist in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland and confirm if they are registered.
Should a Rowlands Pharmacy prescription error occur, and you suffer avoidable harm or illness, our advisors can assess your potential case.
