Soft tissue injuries can cause pain and frustration as you try to go about your daily activities. You may even find yourself under financial pressure when seeking treatment. However, if you were injured by an incident that was someone else’s fault, you could be entitled to claim compensation.
You can read this guide to find out if you could be eligible to claim. We also provide examples of how soft tissue injuries can occur, as well as different pieces of evidence that could strengthen your case.
Furthermore, we will address the question, ‘What is the average payout for a soft tissue injury?’ and explain what the compensation covers. Finally, you can find out how to proceed with the help of one of our No Win No Fee solicitors.
If you have any queries or would like to discuss the details of your claim for compensation, why not contact an advisor today? They may be able to pass your claim on to one of our experienced personal injury solicitors and bring you one step closer towards getting compensation:
- Call 0800 073 8804.
- Go online to contact us using our web form.
- Open the live chat tab below.
You can get further insight on soft tissue injury claims with our helpful video, which you can see here:
Select A Section
- Who Could Make Soft Tissue Injury Compensation Claims?
- How Could A Soft Tissue Injury Occur?
- Do I Need Evidence To Support A Soft Tissue Injury Claim?
- What Is The Average Compensation For A Soft Tissue Injury?
- No Win No Fee Soft Tissue Injury Compensation Claims
- Useful Links
Who Could Make Soft Tissue Injury Compensation Claims?
You may be wondering what the soft tissue injury compensation claims eligibility criteria is.
The first step is proving that you were owed a duty of care, which is a responsibility for your health and safety owed to you by a third party.
Here are some third parties that owe you a duty of care:
- Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, occupiers (those who control a public space) have a duty of care to ensure reasonable safety to those who visit the area. This could include supermarkets, hotels, and gyms.
- All road users owe a duty of care to one another to prevent harm to others while on the road. To uphold this duty, they are expected to comply with the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code.
- Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, employers owe their employees a duty of care to take reasonable steps to protect them from harm at work.
The second step is proving that this duty of care was breached. We look at how duty of care can potentially be breached in the next section of this guide.
The third step is proving that you sustained a soft tissue injury as a result of this breached duty of care.
In short, here is the criteria to make an eligible soft tissue injury claim:
- You were owed a duty of care by a third party, such as an occupier, an employer, or a road user.
- The third-party breached their duty of care.
- You sustained a soft tissue injury as a result of this breached duty of care.
If you can show that you have been through each of the above criteria, then please contact us.
How Could A Soft Tissue Injury Occur?
There are many ways that you could suffer a soft tissue injury from a breached duty of care. For example, these could include:
- At work: Soft tissue damage could occur in the workplace if a walkway is left cluttered and obstructed, causing you to trip over a cable and damage the tissues in your back.
- On the roads: You could suffer soft tissue damage in a car accident if you were involved in a head-on collision due to the other driver driving whilst drunk, which caused your arm or shoulder to wrench backwards.
- In public: A drink spillage on a restaurant terrace was not cleared up promptly despite being reported to staff. A wet floor sign was also not placed warning customers of the hazard. You slipped and fell on the spillage, badly twisting your knee. In a scenario such as this you could be eligible to claim soft tissue knee injury compensation.
To find out if you could claim compensation for soft tissue damage, contact our team of advisors today. They can evaluate your claim for free and could potentially connect you with one of our personal injury solicitors.
Do I Need Evidence To Support A Soft Tissue Injury Claim?
When making a soft tissue injury claim, you’ll need to prove that negligence occurred. To strengthen your claim for a soft tissue injury payout, you should collect evidence that proves who was liable for the accident and the severity of your injuries.
Some examples of the evidence you could collect include:
- The contact details of any witnesses who can provide a statement at a later date about the incident.
- Any CCTV footage of your accident occurring.
- Photographs of the accident scene.
- Medical evidence, such as your medical records, that states the injury you suffered and the treatment you required.
After discussing your claim with one of our advisors, they may connect you with one of our solicitors who could help you gather evidence, provided you have a valid case.
Contact our advisors today if you have any questions or to receive some examples of potential soft tissue injury settlements. Our friendly team is available 24/7 to help you and offer free advice.
What Is The Average Compensation For A Soft Tissue Injury?
You might be wondering how much compensation you could receive if your claim succeeds. Since every claim is different, and compensation is awarded depending on the circumstances surrounding each case, we can’t offer an average amount.
However, we can provide more information on how compensation is calculated and what it could consist of. Generally, personal injury compensation can be split into two heads, the first of which is general damages.
General damages cover the soft tissue damage you endured, as well as any psychological injuries suffered as a result of the accident. The Judicial College Guideline (JCG) can be used to help value this head of claim, as it provides guideline compensation brackets for a variety of different injuries.
Guideline Compensation Amounts
Below, you can find some entries taken from the JCG. Please note that the first figure is not from the JCG and that none of these figures are guaranteed. We have also included figures from the whiplash tariffs, which we’ll explain in further detail later:
- For multiple severe injuries with special damages, such as domestic and child care costs, up to £500,000+ could potentially be awarded.
- For a moderate back injury, where soft tissue injuries result in a prolonged acceleration of an already existing back condition, between £15,260 to £33,880 could potentially be awarded.
- For a minor back injury, where a full recovery is made within 2-5 years, between £9,630 to £15,260 could potentially be awarded.
- For a minor back injury, such as a soft-tissue injury, where there is a full recovery without surgery within between two and five years, you could potentially receive between £9,630 to £15,260.
- Alternatively, for a severe neck injury, where soft tissue damage leads to chronic conditions, between £55,500 to £68,330 could potentially be awarded.
- For a moderate neck injury, where there are serious soft tissue injuries to the neck and back combined, between £30,500 to £46,970 could potentially be awarded.
- For a minor neck injury, where a full recovery is made within 1-2 years, between £5,310 to £9,630 could potentially be awarded.
- Alternatively, for whiplash with psychological injuries that lasts between 18 months to 2 years, £4,345 could potentially be awarded.
- For one or more whiplash injury that lasts between 18-24 months, £4,215 could potentially be awarded.
Could I Also Claim Special Damages?
If you make a successful soft tissue injury claim, you might also receive special damages. This head of claim covers the financial losses caused by your soft tissue injuries. For example, you could recoup any earnings you lost while taking time off work to recover.
Special damages can also help you recoup the cost of:
- Prescriptions.
- Mobility aids.
- Travel expenses.
- Childcare.
- Help with cleaning and cooking.
In order to claim back these costs, you need to keep evidence of your losses. This could include your payslips, receipts and invoices. A personal injury solicitor can help you gather these if you decide to work with one.
To learn more about how much compensation you could potentially receive for soft tissue injuries, contact our team of advisors today.
What Is The Whiplash Reform Programme?
On May 31st 2021, the way some road traffic accident claims are made in England and Wales, such as those for Whiplash, changed with the introduction of the Whiplash Reform Programme. Now, you will make your claim differently if:
- You are a driver or passenger aged 18 or over.
- Your injuries are valued at £5,000 or less.
Compensation for whiplash injuries will be awarded in line with the tariff outlined in the Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021. You can find some examples of these in the table above. However, any non-whiplash injuries will be valued in the traditional way.
If you’ve suffered whiplash in a car accident, contact our team of advisors today. They evaluate soft tissue injury claims for free and can offer more information on the average payout for a soft tissue injury in the UK.
No Win No Fee Soft Tissue Injury Compensation Claims
Now that you’ve learned more about the average payout for a soft tissue injury in the UK, you might be wondering how working with a solicitor could benefit you.
Solicitors can help you through the personal injury claims process by explaining complex legal jargon and procedures, gathering evidence, and helping you negotiate a settlement.
One of our solicitors could help you with your soft tissue injury claim on a No Win No Fee basis through a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
Under a CFA, you won’t be asked to pay any ongoing or upfront fees for your solicitor’s work, nor will you pay them a fee for their services if your claim fails.
However, if your soft tissue injury claim is successful, a success fee will be given to your solicitor. However, this percentage is limited by law. The legal cap helps to ensure that the larger share of what you receive stays with you.
To find out if one of our No Win No Fee solicitors could help you, contact our team of advisors today. When you get in touch, a member of our team can offer a free consultation, during which they can answer any questions you might have about the personal injury claims process.
To get started, you can:
- Call us on 0800 073 8804
- Contact us online.
- Use the live chat feature.
Useful Links
If you’d like to learn more about soft tissue injuries, how they’re caused and your legal rights, we have some guides below that you can review:
- Dermal Filler Claims – if you get negligent lip filler treatment, you could claim compensation for your injuries.
Thank you for taking the time to read our guide on soft tissue injury compensation claims. While we won’t be able to provide you with an average payout for soft tissue injury in the UK, we can provide you with a compensation estimate over the phone.
Contact us at a time that works for you to see if you’re eligible to claim.
