Malta Injury Claim Time Limit Guide – Limitation Period For A Personal Injury Claim In Malta? – How Long Do I Have To Claim Compensation?
Malta is an Island in the Mediterranean Ocean close to North Africa. It is popular with British tourists because English is spoken widely due to previous British rule of the Island. If you’re involved in an accident while on the Island, then it’s important to understand the Malta holiday accident claim time limits.
Legal Expert can help with a claim for an injury in Malta, if it was caused by somebody else. To begin a claim today, please call 0800 073 8804 and speak to a member of our team.
Select A Section
- A Guide To Compensation Claim Time Limits In Malta
- Malta Time Bars And Limitation Periods – How Long Do I Have To Claim?
- What Accidents Could Happen On Holiday In Malta?
- How We Could Conduct A Claim For An Accident In Malta
- Duty Of Care For Your Injuries
- How Damages Are Estimated In Maltese Law
- Maltese Holiday Accidents – Personal Injury Claims Calculator
- Examples Of What You Could Be Compensated For After A Holiday Accident
- No Win No Fee Travel And Tourism Holiday Accident Claims
- How Our Team Could Help Victims Of Overseas Accidents
- How To Contact A Holiday Injury Claim Solicitor
- Related Guides And Contacts
A Guide To Compensation Claim Time Limits In Malta
Personal injury time limits Malta
Malta was ruled by Britain until 1964 when it gained independence from the UK. Based between Southern Italy and North Africa, it offers tourists a warm climate all through the year. There are many tourist attractions on offer and three UNESCO world heritage sites.
As in the UK, personal injury claim time limits in Malta have been written into law. This means that you must lodge a claim in time or risk losing the right to claim compensation.
This guide will provide information about the limitation period in Malta and offer advice about the level of compensation that might be awarded. We’ll also cover the difference between UK and Maltese law.
If, after reading this guide, you still have questions about claiming, please contact our team for free legal advice. We’ll provide information about what steps you need to take next.
Malta Time Bars And Limitation Periods – How Long Do I Have To Claim?
As discussed earlier in this guide, there is a Malta personal injury claim time limit. This is the same in other countries around the world and has to be adhered to. If you claim too late, you won’t receive any compensation.
The table below shows the different scenarios discussed in this guide and the relevant holiday accident claim time limit:
| Type of Holiday / Claim | Time Limit |
|---|---|
| Accident or illness that happened while on a package holiday booked through UK tour operator. | 3 years may very |
| Accident on a holiday that was booked privately | Contact us for more information as this may very. |
| Injury suffered on a flight to Malta International Airport montreal convention law (booked privately) | 2 years may very |
Our advice is to contact Legal Expert as soon as possible following your return to the UK. This will give us time to make a thorough claim with the correct evidence. It will also ensure the limitation period in Malta isn’t exceeded.
What Accidents Could Happen On Holiday In Malta
There are a number of different types of accident which lead to personal injury claims. Some are more common than others. In this section we’ll list some of the more common accidents that could happen.
Types of Accidents
Balcony Falls: A fall from a balcony can be fatal or cause serious injury. If it was caused because the rail was damaged, missing or unsuitable, you may be able to make a claim for any injuries.
Slips Trips and Falls
You might be able to claim compensation following a fall. This would be the case if somebody else was liable. For instance, if a handrail on stairs in your hotel was damaged, causing you to fall, you may be able to claim against them.
Road Traffic Accidents
If you’re a pedestrian, cyclist, passenger or driver involved in a road traffic accident, you could be entitled to compensation. Injuries including whiplash could be claimed for. If another driver was to blame for the accident, please contact Legal Expert when you return to the UK.
Allergic Reactions
Food labelling regulations mean that food packaging should clearly highlight any allergen it contains. This is the same for menus in restaurants. If you suffer a food allergy, let us know how it happened. We’ll let you know if you have a chance of compensation or not.
Food Poisoning
If you contract food poisoning through eating contaminated food, or by contact with another sufferer, we may be able to help you claim. Viruses that are commonly contracted include e-coli, norovirus and salmonella. We can help with claims for any of these as well as other food poisoning conditions.
Excursion Accidents
When you go on an excursion or sport-related activity while on holiday, it should be supervised and properly organised. If the operator acts negligently (not supervising, not providing training or not providing safety equipment), you could claim for any injuries.
This is just a sample of accidents that could happen. We can help with any injury in Malta, so long as somebody else was to blame. If you need to clarify your chances of claiming, please speak with one of our specialists. There’s no obligation to proceed but we’ll happily provide free legal advice.
How We Could Conduct A Claim For An Accident In Malta
As you’ll see in the coming sections, there are a number of differences between UK and Maltese laws. Malta holiday compensation for holidays that were booked directly will be made under Maltese laws. Package holidays booked in the UK are made under British law.
It can be quite complex in either situation, but Legal Expert can help with either. If you’re unsure about what type of claim you need to make, please contact us. We’ll assess the claim, work out who’s liable and help you decide what action to take next.
Duty Of Care For Your Injuries
In most cases, when you’re in a public place in Malta, the operator or owner will owe you a duty of care. This might be in a hotel, bar, restaurant, shopping centre, gym or any other public place.
The duty of care means that you should remain safe while using the facility. If the owner, or their staff, act negligently then they could have breached their duty of care. If this is the case, then you might be able to claim compensation against them.
But if you booked the holiday yourself, then your claim will probably be against the business owner, under Maltese law.
If you booked through a package holiday provider, then your claim could be against the tour operator under British law. This is because the package holiday provider owes you a duty of care for any part of your holiday that they contract out to others. This includes hotels, flights, transport or excursions.
How Damages Are Estimated In Maltese Law
Under Maltese law, you are not allowed to make any profit from any compensation claim. Their system revolves around the fact that compensation should put the claimant back in the same position as they would’ve been prior to the accident.
Under UK laws, claimants can be awarded a sum of compensation for pain and suffering. Until very recently, this wasn’t possible in Malta. The compensation concentrated mainly on financial losses. Pain and suffering still isn’t paid in all case in Malta.
To prevent a profit being derived from compensation, the courts in Malta used to dock 20% of anything they awarded. It had been argued that by giving a large lump sum payment, which would’ve taken many years to save, the claimant could invest it and therefore make a profit from their compensation. This is illegal so the deduction was made to prevent it happening. In recent years, because interest rates are so low now (meaning making a profit would be difficult), a judge an use their discretion and reduce the 20% or remove it altogether.
Maltese Holiday Accidents – Personal Injury Claims Calculator
If you’re looking for a personal injury claims calculator, you’ll find the table below helpful. It contains a list of injuries and how much compensation can be awarded.
As you’ll see, each injury type has a range of compensation amounts. Your solicitor will use medical records or specialists to demonstrate the exact severity of your injury. This should ensure the correct level of compensation is awarded.
| Body Part / Illness | Severity | Range of Compensation | Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finger | Minor | Up to £4,160 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include nails being torn off or soft tissue damage |
| Finger | Serious | £13,080 to £14,330 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include stiffness and loss of mobility |
| Finger | Loss | £3,150 to £21,910 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include partial amputation of a single finger and on to amputation of multiple fingers |
| Hand | Minor | £800 to £3,810 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include cuts, abrasions, soft-tissue damage and minor lacerations |
| Hand | Moderate | £5,110 to £11,640 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include deep lacerations requiring surgery |
| Hand | Less Serious | £12,670 to £25,430 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include a crushed hand |
| Hand | Serious | £25,430 to £54,280 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include injuries which result in 50% loss of use |
| Hand | Loss | £84,310 to £96,150 | Either the amputation of both hands or complete loss of fuctionality |
| Hand | Loss (both) | £123,310 to £176,660 | Either the amputation of the hand or complete loss of fuctionality |
| Wrist | Minor | £3,090 to £4,160 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include dislocations, soft tissue damage and injuries that heal quickly |
| Wrist | Less Serious | £11,040 to £21,480 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include sprains, strains and simple fractures (causing immobility while healing) |
| Wrist | Severe | £41,760 to £52,490 | Permanent loss of mobility of the wrist. |
| Arm | Severe | £34,340 to £48,080 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include injuries that do heal eventually but cause loss of use until healing has completed. |
| Arm (fractures) | Simple | £5,810 to £16,830 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include forearm fractures |
| Arm (fractures) | Less Severe | £16,830 to £34,340 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include upper arm fractures |
| Arm (fractures) | Serious | £34,340 to £52,490 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include multiple fractures causing loss of use while healing |
| Arm (fractures) | Severe | £84,310 to £114,810 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include multiple fractures leaving permanent reduced function |
| Arm amputation | Below elbow | £84,310 to £96,150 | Amputation of the lower arm |
| Arm amputation | Full | Not less than £120,270 | Amputation of the complete arm |
| Arm amputation | Both | £211,150 to £263,060 | Amputation of both arms |
| Toe | Severe | £12,050 to £18,480 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include the amputation of one or multiple toes |
| Toe | Loss | In the region of £27,450 | The complete loss of a single big toe |
| Toe | Loss (both) | £32,020 to £49,180 | Amputation of all toes |
| Foot | Minor | Up to £12,050 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include sprains, strains, simple fractures, soft tissue damage and lacerations, which will heal quickly. |
| Foot | Moderate | £12,050 to £21,910 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include serious fractures which will leave the foot immobile while healing |
| Foot | Very Severe | £73,620 to £96,150 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include where a permanent disability is caused |
| Foot | Loss | £73,620 to £96,150 | The loss of a foot through amputation |
| Foot | Loss (both) | £148,540 to £176,660 | The loss of both fee through amputation |
| Leg | Minor | Up to £10,380 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include sprains, soft tissue damage and very minor fractures. |
| Leg | Moderate | £24,340 to £34,370 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include disclocations, serious tendon damage and fractures |
| Leg | Serious | £34,370 to £48,080 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include multiple fractures that cause long term mobility problems |
| Leg | Very Serious | £48,080 to £74,150 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include Injuries that even when they’re healed will cause issue with the claimants mobility. |
| Leg amputation | Below knee | £85,910 to £116,620 | Amputation of a single leg below the knee. |
| Leg amputation | Above knee | £91,910 to £120,530 | Amputation of a single leg above the knee. |
| Leg amputation | Both | £211,150 to £247,280 | The complete amputation of both legs. |
| Neck | Severe | £39,870 to £130,060 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include life-changing injuries with permanent pain or restricted movement |
| Back | Minor | Up to £10,970 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include lacerations, sprains, soft tissue damage and bruising which will heal quickly with no ongoing issues |
| Back | Severe | £34,000 to £141,150 | The possible injuries in this compensation range include life-changing injuries such as a broken back |
| Food poisoning | Minor | Up to £3,460 | Short term food poisoning symptoms |
| Food poisoning | Moderate | Up to £8,360 | Medium term food poisoning symptoms |
| Food poisoning | Moderate to severe | Up to £16,830 | Medium to long term food poisoning symptoms |
| Food poisoning | Severe | Up to £46,040 | Long term food poisoning symptoms |
If you can’t see your injury listed, or have any queries, please contact a member of our team who’ll be able to give a more accurate calculation following an assessment of your injuries.
Examples Of What You Could Be Compensated For After A Holiday Accident
In this section, we’ll explain the different parts of a compensation claim. There are a number of elements a solicitor can use following a Malta holiday accident to ensure their client is compensated fully.
As we’ve discussed previously, under Maltese law, some of these elements might not be included. If you’re claiming against a UK package holiday company, all of them might be available to you.
The different parts of a claim are:
General Damages
This is the compensation awarded for any pain and suffering caused to the claimant by their injuries. Each injury type has a pre-defined range of compensation associated with it. A solicitor will need to provide evidence of how severe their clients injuries were to ensure the compensation level is correct.
Travel Costs
You may incur additional travel costs following your accident. This might be having to change your return flight ticket because you’re unfit to travel. Or it could be because you make multiple trips to the doctor when you return to the UK. In these cases, you might be able to claim the costs back.
Damage to Personal Property
At the time your accident happened, if any item of personal property was damaged, you could be entitled to claim the cost or repairing or replacing the item. This might include damage to your mobile phone, clothing or jewellery.
Loss of Earnings
If you lose any salary because of your injuries, you might be allowed to include these in your compensation claim. This could be if you take time off to visit the doctor. In more serious cases, you might claim for future loss of earnings if you have to stop working altogether or change jobs because your injuries prevented you from continuing in your current role.
Medical Fees
Following your accident, if you’re out of pocket because you’ve paid for medical services, prescriptions or over the counter medicines, you could be entitled to claim these costs back. You should check with your solicitor prior to agreeing to any expenses.
With any of the financial losses listed above, try to keep receipts as evidence. You’ll need to explain how they were linked to your accident.
No Win No Fee Travel And Tourism Holiday Accident Claims
We understand, after listening to feedback from clients, that beginning personal injury claims can be a worrying time. For most, the main concern is the amount a claim is going to cost. This is why Legal Expert work on a no win no fee basis for all claims we take on.
To show how this is a benefit, we’ve compared two types of legal agreements below:
- No Win No Fee Solicitors
A personal injury solicitor who offers no win no fee agreements takes on a risk that they may not get paid for their work. This is because the agreement states that if the solicitor doesn’t win compensation, the client doesn’t have to pay them for their services.The solicitor does get paid though if they win compensation. The payment is known as a success fee. It is a percentage of any compensation won (a maximum of 25%). Once compensation is awarded, the solicitor retains their success fee and the balance is sent to the client directly. - Solicitors who charge and hourly fee or fixed price
When using this type of personal injury lawyer, you’ll be quoted an hourly rate or a fixed price for their service. You’ll probably have to pay this up front or in instalments.If your case is lost, you won’t receive any money back. This means you might have to pay out but not receive any compensation. The main benefit of this method however is, if the case is won, you’ll keep 100% of any award.
We believe the risk of not winning compensation but still having to pay for a solicitor is too big a risk for many clients. This is why we only work on a no win no fee basis – for all cases we take on.
How Our Team Could Help Victims Of Overseas Accidents
Whether you’ve been involved in a road traffic accident, suffered from a food allergy or any other type of accident in Malta, our experts could help you claim compensation.
Our team are committed to helping clients getting the right amount of compensation for their injuries. We are friendly, professional and able to help with claims wherever you’re based in the UK.
We have teams of medical professionals all over the country to ensure that, if you require a medical assessment, you won’t have to travel far.
How To Contact A Holiday Injury Claim Solicitor
Hopefully, now that you’ve read the whole of this guide, you want to begin a claim with Legal Expert. If that’s the case, you can start your claim by:
- Calling us free on 0800 073 8804. One of our specialists will take details of your claim straight away.
- Send us an email with details of your accident. Our email address is info@legalexpert.co.uk
- Use the live chat feature on this website. Our advisors can help you 7 days a week.
- Or you could fill in this online form to begin your claim.
We’ll begin by offering you a free consultation where we’ll listen to details about your accident. You can explain what happened and the injuries you sustained. You can also ask any questions you may have.
If you’re happy to proceed, and we believe you have a good chance of being awarded compensation, we’ll prepare a no win no fee agreement for you and then start your claim.
Related Guides And Contacts
Thanks for taking the time to read this guide about the current Malta holiday accident claim time limits.
For further information, we’ve linked to some more relevant and useful guides:
Malta Car Accident Claims Guide – A guide about claiming compensation following a car crash in Malta.
Package Holiday Accident Compensation – This guide explains in more detail how package holiday tourists are protected by UK legislation.
Slip, Trips and Falls Claims Guide – Information about the types of injuries sustained in a slip, trip or fall and how much compensation can be awarded.
The British High Commission in Malta – Details of the British Embassy who can support tourists in emergency situations.
Malta Travel Advice – UK government advice on travelling to Malta.
If you require any further information, please call our personal injury claim team today.