If you have been injured as a result of an accident which wasn’t your fault, been impacted by a data breach, harmed by medical negligence or suffered a criminal injury, you could be owed compensation. In this guide we look at when you could be eligible to claim as well as how to claim compensation.
Key Points To Remember When Claiming Compensation
- You may be able to claim compensation if another party caused you harm. You must meet the relevant eligibility criteria.
- Your claim must be made inline with the appropriate claims process.
- Compensation is calculated on a case-by-case basis. Unless otherwise stated, figures in the tables below are taken from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG).
- To claim for special damages you must provide supporting evidence.
- One of our specialist solicitors could offer a free initial consultation and help you to claim on a No Win No Fee basis.
Get in touch with our team for help with your claim.
- Phone our team on 0800 073 8804.
- Discuss your case over our live chat.
- Use our contact page.
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Browse Our Guide
- How To Claim Compensation For A Personal Injury
- Claiming Compensation For A Data Breach
- Making A Criminal Injury Claim
- Medical Negligence Compensation Claims
- How To Claim Compensation With Legal Expert
- Get More Information
How To Claim Compensation For A Personal Injury
If you have been injured in an accident which was someone else’s fault, you could make a personal injury claim. Personal injury claims could be made for accidents at work, in public places or on the road.
To make a claim, you must show that:
- Another party owed you a duty of care.
- They were in breach of this duty.
- You were harmed as a result of this.
- You are within the applicable limitation period.
It’s possible to claim on behalf of someone who can’t represent themselves. For example, in child accident claims, an injured child can’t act for themselves, so their parents can make a claim for them.
Below, we look at the legislation relevant to each of these types of claims and how to claim compensation.
Accidents At Work
Whilst in the work your employer owes you a duty of care. They must adhere to all legislation relevant to your workplace or job role and must take all reasonable steps to ensure your health and safety. The main piece of legislation all workplaces must comply with is the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Road Traffic Accidents
Road users owe each other a duty of care, using the roads in a way which is safe for them and other people. In line with this, they must comply with The Road Traffic Act 1988 and The Highway Code.
Public Place Accidents
The party in control of this space (known as the occupier) has a duty of care to ensure that the space is reasonably safe for lawful visitors to use. Their duty of care is set out in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
Compensation In Personal Injury Claims
Here we include figures taken from the JCG. The top figure illustrates general and special damages and does not come from the JCG. Special damages may compensate you for financial losses related to your claim.
Special damages may compensate for costs or losses such as:
- Lost income, including earnings and workplace benefits.
- Medical expenses related to your injury
- Care costs. For example, if you suffered a shoulder injury and had to get help with household chores like cooking and cleaning, you can recover these costs.
- The cost of attending appointments for medical care.
You must provide evidence of these losses for them to be taken into consideration as part of your claim.
| Injury | Severity | Damages |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple types of injury | Serious or severe | Up to £1,000,000+ with special damages |
| Brain damages | Very severe - A | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Neck injuries | Severe - A - Ii | In the region £181,020 |
| Shoulder injuries | Severe - A | £23,430 to £58,610 |
| Hip or pelvis injuries | Moderate - B - i | £32,450 to £47,810 |
If you have suffered a personal injury which was someone else’s fault, please contact our team to see if you could claim compensation.
Claiming Compensation For A Data Breach
If your personal data has been involved in a data breach you could be able to claim compensation. You must meet the criteria below to claim for a data breach.
- A wrongful conduct caused a personal data breach.
- Your data was affected by this breach.
- You experienced harm as a result of this.
What Is A Data Breach?
Personal data may include information which could identify someone such as, you name, address email address or national insurance number. Sensitive personal information such as your health, genetic or biometric data is classed as special category data. Under Article 4 of the UK GDPR, a personal data breach is defined as the unlawful or accidental disclosure, alteration, loss or destruction of personal data. It also includes unauthorised access to said data.
You could claim compensation if your personal data has been involved in a data breach.
Making A Criminal Injury Claim
When taking action for a criminal injury, such as that caused by an assault, your claim may be made via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). Such claims and action may operate differently to those for personal injuries or medical negligence.
Can I Make A Claim?
In order to successfully claim through the CICA you must meet the relevant eligibility criteria. These are that:
- You were the victim of a violent crime as defined under the CICA Scheme. Examples include assault and sexual abuse.
- The incident must have taken place in England, Scotland or Wales. Alternatively, it may have taken place in another relevant place. This may include a boat registered in Great Britain.
- That you reported the incident to the police and did so as soon as possible.
- You must begin the claim within the relevant time limit. In most cases this is two years from the date of the incident, though exceptions may be made.
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
Whilst it may be possible to make a claim against the person who attacked or assaulted you, most criminal injury claims will go through the CICA. The CICA is a government agency and administers payments made via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (the Scheme).
The table below presents figures from this. The first figure also includes special expenses. You can read more detailed information about how these are calculated in our guide to criminal injury compensation claims.
To be awarded special expenses such as those for damage to personal property, adapting your home or obtaining medical care you must provide evidence.
You may also be compensated for lost earnings, though you will not be compensated for the first 28 weeks of this.
| Type Of Injury | Severity | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple severe injuries | Severe | Up to £500,000 with special expenses |
| Brain damage | Moderately severe | £110,000 |
| Brain damage | Moderate / significant | £82,000 |
| Sexual assault | With a severe mental impact on someone | £27,000 |
| Facial injury | Multiple fractures | £11,000 |
Get in touch with our team today to learn more about how to claim compensation for a criminal injury.
Medical Negligence Compensation Claims
If you have been harmed by negligent medical treatment whilst under the care of a doctor, nurse, other medication practitioner or pharmacist, you could be eligible to claim compensation. In order to make a clinical or medical negligence claim you must meet the criteria below.
What Is Medical Negligence?
All healthcare and medical professionals owe a duty of care to patients. Medical negligence occurs when a medical professional fails to meet the correct standard of care causing your avoidable and unnecessary harm.
The eligibility criteria are that:
- The medical professional had a duty of care to you.
- They were in breach of this duty. For example, your GP failed to refer you to hospital for further tests for eye cancer where other professionals would do so. This may be considered GP negligence.
- The breach caused avoidable harm. In the above case, the failure to refer could lead to a delayed diagnosis and the disease worsening, requiring more invasive treatment.
Compensation In Medical Negligence Claims
The initial figure shows what could be awarded for general and special damages. It does not come from the JCG. Special damages may include those as described earlier in this guide.
| Harm Caused | Severity | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple types of harm. | Serious through to severe | Up to £1,000,000+ with special damages. |
| Kidney | (A) Permanent, serious damage to both | £206,730 to £256,780 |
| Bowels | (A) Double incontinence | Up to £224,790 |
| Bladder | (B) Complete loss of control and function. | Up to £171,680 |
| Female reproductive system | (C) Infertility. | £68,440 to £87,070 |
| Male reproductive system | (G) Sterility in an older man. | £8,070 to £22,800 |
Please contact our team for further information on how to claim compensation for medical negligence.
How To Claim Compensation With Legal Expert
One of our specialist solicitors could help you take legal action no matter the type of claim you are making. Our solicitors are experienced in handling numerous different types of claims.
Following a free initial consultation they could help you by:
- Explaining the claims process as well as any complex terminology.
- Building your case.
- Helping you to complete legal documentation.
- Gathering evidence to prove your claim. This could include evidence to claim for loss of earnings or other special damages. Examples could include bank statements or invoices.
- Working to settle any disputes relating to your case to avoid court proceedings being necessary.
We understand that for many people the cost of taking legal action could prevent them from doing so. Upfront costs may make taking action out of reach for some. This is why our solicitors offer to handle many claims on a No Win No Fee basis, using a Conditional Fee Agreement.
By using this type of contract you will not need to pay anything for the solicitor’s work on your case in advance. Instead, they will deduct a legally capped percentage of any compensation awarded. This is called a success fee.
If you lose your claim there is nothing to pay for your solicitor’s work.
Contact Us Today
Find out how to claim compensation with one of our specialist solicitors today.
- Call us today on 0800 073 8804.
- Talk to us on our online chat.
- Go to our contact us and complete our online form.
Get More Information
In the resources below you can learn more about how to make a compensation claim.
- Read more about slip, trip and fall claims.
- Find out how a car accident solicitor could help you.
References
- Get an overview of Statutory Sick Pay in this government reference.
- Get advice on how to keep you and your family safe online in this resource from the National Cyber Security Centre.
- Check how to raise a complaint or concern about a doctor using this guide from the General Medical Council.
Thank you for reading our guide. Please contact our team for more information on how to claim compensation for an accident, injury or data breach.
