Stroke Misdiagnosis Negligence Claims Guide & Claims Experts

100% No Win, No Fee Claims
Nothing to pay if you lose.

  • Medical Negligence Injury victims get the maximum compensation you deserve
  • Free legal advice from a friendly solicitor.
  • Specialist solicitors with up to 30 years experience
  • Find out if you can claim compensation Call 0800 073 8804

Start My Claim Online

Stroke Misdiagnosis Compensation Claims – How Do I Make A Claim? – Negligence Stroke Misdiagnosis

By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated On 28th April 2023. Welcome to our stroke misdiagnosis claims guide.

Did you or a loved one suffer signs of a stroke and were not treated appropriately due to misdiagnosis? While in some cases, it might not be possible to offer an accurate diagnosis of a stroke quickly enough to reduce the harm suffered by a patient, if you received negligent medical care that led to you suffering avoidable harm, you could be eligible to claim stroke misdiagnosis compensation.

stroke misdiagnosis claims

stroke misdiagnosis claims

In this stroke misdiagnosis claims guide, we look at how a stroke misdiagnosis lawsuit could come about. We will take you through the signs, symptoms and treatments for a stroke, the complications that could be caused by a misdiagnosis, and how to go about making a claim for yourself or on behalf of a loved one that has suffered due to medical negligence when diagnosing a stroke.

If you would like to ask us anything about claiming compensation for a stroke misdiagnosis or would like to begin a claim, you can reach us on 0800 073 8804. We’ll be happy to help you.

Select A Section

  1. What Is A Misdiagnosis?
  2. What Is A Stroke?
  3. What Are The Symptoms Of A Stroke?
  4. What Are The Causes Of A Stroke?
  5. Complications Which Could Be Caused By Misdiagnosis?
  6. Claiming On Behalf Of A Loved One Who Had A Stroke
  7. How Much Are Stroke Misdiagnosis Claims Worth?
  8. Special Damages You Could Claim
  9. No Win No Fee Stroke Misdiagnosis Compensation
  10. Start A Stroke Misdiagnosis Claim
  11. Essential References

What Is A Misdiagnosis?

A misdiagnosis is where a medical professional does not provide the correct diagnosis for the medical condition you have. While in some cases it may not be possible for a medical professional to accurately diagnose you because there are mitigating factors involved, they should do all that they can to provide you with safe, effective care.

If they are negligent in doing so, they could be held liable for any avoidable harm you suffer due to their negligence through stroke misdiagnosis claims.

Negligence could occur if:

  • A doctor fails to recognise the signs of you suffering a stroke.
  • The relevant tests were not ordered which meant you did not get an accurate diagnosis.
  • There was a delay in getting a brain scan for those with symptoms of a stroke (according to RRCP guidelines 2012 this should be within 12 hours of the patient being admitted).
  • An inaccurate analysis of test results could lead to a misdiagnosis
  • There was a delay in you receiving vital treatment, such as thrombolysis treatment

Whether you had a stroke misdiagnosed as a seizure or had a haemorrhagic stroke misdiagnosed because a brain scan was not ordered when it should have been, or there was any other unacceptable delay in treatment that has caused you to suffer avoidable harm, this could lead you to be entitled to stroke misdiagnosis compensation.

What Is A Stroke?

A stroke, according to the NHS could be considered a life-threatening medical condition. In essence, it occurs when the brain’s blood supply is interrupted, which kills some of the cells in the brain.

It is essential to get treatment for a stroke as soon as possible, as early treatment can, in some cases, mean less damage to the brain. What’s more, medical appointments get logged on your records, which can help evidence stroke misdiagnosis claims.

Types Of Strokes

There are a few different types of stroke. These include:

  • Ischaemic stroke – These are the most common types of stroke. They are caused by blockages which effectively cut off the supply of blood to the brain.
  • Haemorrhagic stroke – These are types of stroke that are caused by bleeding around the brain or within it. According to The Stroke Association, 15% of strokes happen because of this.
  • Transient ischaemic attack – This type of stroke could be known as a mini-stroke or TIA. These types of strokes have shorter-lasting symptoms because any blockage of blood to the brain is only temporary.

What Are The Symptoms Of A Stroke?

To determine the signs of a stroke, you could apply the FAST assessment. This means looking at the:

  • Face – If a person’s face has fallen to one side or they cannot smile, this could be due to a stroke.
  • Arms – If a person cannot raise both of their arms, and hold them there, this could be a sign of a stroke.
  • Speech – If a person is unable to speak properly, and their speech is slurred or they don’t seem to understand you, this could be due to a stroke.
  • Time – If the above symptoms are spotted, you would need to act quickly to get help. The NHS advises you to call 999 if you believe you or someone else could be suffering from these symptoms.

What Are The Causes Of A Stroke?

As mentioned above, stroke misdiagnosis claims could be made in cases where a third-party owing a duty of care was negligent and you suffered as a result. There are many different circumstances that could entitle you to stroke misdiagnosis compensation as different strokes could be caused by different factors, such as:

  • Ischaemic strokes are caused by a blood clot that forms in a small vessel or artery that leads to the brain. An ischaemic stroke could also be caused by clots that move through the bloodstream from other parts of the body. The reasons why these blockages form could include small vessel disease, arterial dissection, atherosclerosis (fatty deposits in the arteries), and some heart conditions.
  • Haemorrhagic strokes could be caused by a variety of things. Common causes of a haemorrhagic stroke could include the effects of illegal drugs, an aneurysm, high blood pressure, the effects of anticoagulant medications and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (a condition damaging the blood vessels in the brain)
  • A TIA is caused by a clot that temporarily cuts off the supply to the brain. Some causes of a TIA could include atrial fibrillation or fatty deposits in the arteries, for example.

Complications Which Could Be Caused By Misdiagnosis?

As we have mentioned earlier in this stroke misdiagnosis claims guide, clinical negligence by having a brain stroke diagnosed incorrectly could affect your recovery. Some of the complications that could occur because of a misdiagnosis of strokes could include:

  • Fatalities – Unfortunately, if a stroke progresses, and is not treated quickly enough, the patient may not survive it.
  • Physical disability – Some damage to the brain could affect a person physically. Depending on the part of the brain that was damaged, there could be a range of physical disabilities inflicted, from muscle tightness or spasms to cases where serious paralysis is caused by a stroke.
  • Intellectual deficit – If damage is done to the part of the brain that affects your ability to think, issues could include memory loss, confusion, inability to concentrate, speech disorders and mood changes, for example.
  • Pain – chronic headaches could also be a complication of damage caused by a stroke

It is important for us to mention that not all effects caused by a stroke could be claimed for. However, if you could prove that medical malpractice in diagnosing you has caused you to suffer avoidable harm or a stroke occurs, you could be entitled to claim stroke misdiagnosis compensation.

Claiming On Behalf Of A Loved One Who Had A Stroke

Unfortunately, some stroke misdiagnosis cases could lead to a person lacking the physical or mental capacity to be able to make stroke misdiagnosis claims for their own injuries. If this is the case, someone could act on the injured party’s behalf. This person would be referred to as a litigation friend. A litigation friend could be a parent/guardian, a friend, a solicitor, a deputy for the Court of Protection, a family member, a professional advocate or someone with an enduring or lasting power of attorney.

According to the government, to be considered a suitable litigation friend, it would have to be confirmed that you:

  • Do not have conflicting interests with the affected person.
  • Can make case decisions fairly and competently.

If the injured party was to regain capacity during the claims process, you may need to apply to stop being the injured party’s litigation friend.

How Much Are Stroke Misdiagnosis Claims Worth?

You may have questions about how much compensation is offered for stroke misdiagnosis claims. It is difficult to provide average figures for those claiming for the misdiagnosis of a stroke because there are numerous factors that influence payouts for each case. They include how much harm the victim has experienced because a stroke was misdiagnosed and what the short-term and long-term impacts on their life will be.

Edit
Injury type Compensation Bracket (Guideline) Notes
Brain damage – Very Severe £282,010 to £403,990 The claimant will have little (if any) meaningful response to their environment and little or no language function.
Brain damage – Moderately Severe £219,070 to £282,010 The claimant will be considered very seriously disabled and will require constant professional care.
Brain Damage – Moderate (i) £150,110 to £219,070 Symptoms will include moderate to severe intellectual deficit and the risk of epilepsy will be significant.
Brain Damage – Moderate (ii) £90,720 to £150,110 Symptoms will include moderate to modest intellectual deficit. There will likely be some risk of epilepsy.
Brain Damage – Moderate (iii) £43,060 to £90,720 The claimant’s concentration and memory are affected and their ability to work is reduced. There is a small risk of epilepsy.
Brain Damage – Less Severe £15,320 to £43,060 Under this bracket, the victim will have made a good recovery and be able to return to work and a normal social life. There may remain some issues with memory and concentration.
Brain Damage – Minor £2,210 to £12,770 Brain damage will have been minimal. The exact compensation payout will depend on factors such as the length of time taken to recover from symptoms.

We know that not knowing how much compensation you could receive for the harm that was caused by your stroke misdiagnosis might be frustrating. What we can do, however, is offer some insight into the compensation that could be achievable for specific types of injury.

These rough guideline payout amounts have been taken from the Judicial College Guidelines, a legal publication used by solicitors to give an estimate of the compensation that could be appropriate for specific injuries. We have chosen injuries that we believe relate to this type of claim. If your injury doesn’t appear here, we could give you further information over the phone.

Special Damages You Could Claim

In addition to the stroke misdiagnosis claims you could make in terms of the pain and the suffering and loss of amenity they’ve caused, you could also claim for financial harm you’ve suffered as a direct result of your injuries from your stroke misdiagnosis. These are referred to as special damages. They could include, but may not be limited to:

  • Care costs – some injuries may leave a claimant unable to look after themselves and they may need someone to care for them at home. The costs associated with this care could be included within your claim.
  • Medical costs – whether you have needed physiotherapy, prescription medicines, counselling or other medical treatments that you have had to pay for, these could also be included as special damages.
  • Travel costs – travelling to medical appointments or to see your lawyer could attract costs too. These could also be claimed for as special damages.
  • Loss of earnings – if you haven’t been able to work as normal due to your injuries, you may have lost out on income. Income losses could be claimed for, and if your injuries prevent you from returning to work, future loss of income could also be included within your claim.

To claim for these or any other losses or expenses, you would need to provide evidence. Payslips, bank statements, bills and receipts could all help with this. If you do not have evidence of costs or losses, your medical negligence lawyer may not be able to include them in your claim.

We should mention that if you are struggling financially because of serious injuries that you’ve suffered, it may be worth speaking to your lawyer to see if it could be possible for them to request an interim payment in order to cover payments such as rent or your mortgage if you are unable to work due to your injuries. While this is not possible in all cases, it could, in some cases, be worth looking into.

No Win No Fee Stroke Misdiagnosis Compensation

If you wish to use the services of a medical negligence solicitor, which are similar to a personal injury solicitor, but you are concerned that you might have to pay out large amounts of money upfront to benefit from their assistance, you may be relieved to learn that you could get this help without having to pay anything until your stroke misdiagnosis claims are successful.

Claiming on a No Win No Fee basis means you would not be required to pay anything upfront or throughout your claim. Instead, you would be given an agreement to sign, known as a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which would effectively promise your lawyer a small success fee once they had successfully obtained compensation for you.

This would be capped, legally, so you would not have to worry that a large proportion of your compensation would go to your lawyer. If your lawyer was unable to get compensation for you, you would not have to cover their costs or pay them the success fee.

If you would like to be provided with a No Win, No Fee lawyer to help you with your stroke misdiagnosis claim, we could help with this. If you have questions about claiming on this basis, do feel free to call us – we’ll be happy to help.

Start A Stroke Misdiagnosis Claim

Would you like to know more about claiming stroke misdiagnosis compensation, or are you ready to begin making stroke misdiagnosis claims? Perhaps you’re not sure whether you’d fit the eligibility criteria to make a claim?

Whatever you need to know, we’re here to help. Our experienced advisors can be reached in a variety of ways and will be glad to give you the advice, support and guidance you may be looking for.

stroke misdiagnosis claims

stroke misdiagnosis claims

To reach us, simply call 0800 073 8804, email info@legalexpert.co.uk, complete our contact form or use the Live Chat service on this page. With no charge for advice or eligibility checks, there’s no reason not to get in touch to find out how to claim the compensation you deserve.

Essential References

  • Stroke Claim Case Study – This case study covers an incident where a patient successfully claimed compensation for stroke-related paralysis.
  • Paralysis Claims – Here, you can read more information concerning paralysis claims due to medical negligence.
  • A Guide To Misdiagnosis – This page covers misdiagnosis claims in detail.
  • Stroke Recovery – This NHS page on stroke recovery gives information for those who have suffered a stroke and those who may be caring for them.
  • Headway – This organisation helps those with head and brain injuries and conditions. You may find some useful information here.
  • Strokes And Driving – A stroke may affect your ability to drive. You can find more information about when to tell the DVLA about a stroke.

Some Other Claims We Could Help With

Thanks for reading our stroke misdiagnosis claims guide on how to claim the stroke misdiagnosis compensation that you deserve.

    Contact Us

    Fill in your details below for a free callback

    Meet The Team

    • Patrick Mallon

      Patrick is a Grade A solicitor having qualified in 2005. He's an an expert in accident at work and public liability claims and is currently our head of the EL/PL department. Get in touch today for free to see how we can help you.