By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 29th August 2024. Have you sustained a broken jaw injury in an accident that was not your fault, or because you were assaulted? Did you break your jaw bone but it was not treated effectively because of medical negligence? In this guide, we take a look at some of the reasons you might wish to claim for broken jaw bone compensation.
Explained in the sections below are details about the types of injury you could have sustained, the treatment options you could have and how to check your eligibility to make a jaw fracture claim. In addition to this, you will find details of our service.
If you would like to speak to an advisor about broken jaw claims, you can do so right away by calling 0800 073 8804. Alternatively, you can reach us online using our contact section or our 24/7 live chat service.
Select A Section
- Causes Of Broken Jaw Bone Injuries
- Time Limits For Claiming Broken Jaw Bone Compensation
- Top Tips For Proving A Broken Jaw Claim
- Compensation For A Broken Jaw
- Special Damages Claimable For Broken Or Fractured Jaw Bones
- No Win No Fee Broken Jaw Compensation Claims
- Essential References
Causes Of Broken Jaw Bone Injuries
The main causes of broken jaw injuries could include blunt force trauma caused by:
- An assault
- A road traffic accident
- A fall
- A sports-related incident
In order to make a personal injury claim for one of these broken jaw causes, you would have to prove that a liable party’s negligence or dangerous behaviour had caused you to suffer harm. A personal injury lawyer could help you to do so.
However, there could be other ways in which this injury could be sustained. For example, you could suffer a broken jaw after wisdom tooth removal if too much pressure is put on the jaw by the person performing the extraction. If this is the case, and you could prove the dentist was negligent, you could receive broken jaw bone compensation for clinical negligence.
Time Limits For Claiming Broken Jaw Bone Compensation
The standard 3 year time limit for starting a non-criminal personal injury claim is applied by law under the Limitation Act 1980. The time limit starts from the day your injury occurred or could be diagnosed.
The time limit can be put on hold under certain circumstances. If, for instance, a child suffers a broken jaw injury, then the time limit for claiming does not start for them until the day of their 18th birthday. A child cannot start a personal injury claim on their own. However, a claim could be started on the child’s behalf before they reach the age of 18 by a representative known as a litigation friend. This representative could be someone close to the child, such as a parent.
If the victim of a broken jaw injury lacks the mental capacity to make decisions on their own behalf, then the time limit for claiming is also frozen in this circumstance. Again, a litigation friend could potentially claim on the victim’s behalf. If the victim later regains sufficient mental capacity to start their own claim, then the 3 year time limit for claiming starts from the day this occurs.
Top Tips For Proving A Broken Jaw Claim
If you are making a claim for a fractured jaw, then you need to be able to prove that the injury was someone else’s fault. As such, you will need to gather evidence to prove that you were injured as a result of negligence. Negligence is when:
- Someone owes you a duty of care
- They do not uphold that duty of care
- You are injured as a result
In this section, we take you through some key pieces of evidence that can be used to establish negligence. However, the list below is not exhaustive and there may be other forms of evidence that you could use. So, if you want to know more about what you could submit to help support your claim, get in touch with our advisors today.
Examples include:
Medical records – Some people may wonder “what does a broken jaw look like?” In other words, it’s possible that they’re unsure whether or not their jaw is broken. Seeking medical attention is advised if you suspect you have an injury. It’s important you know the severity of your injury and how it may continue to affect you in the future. You can present medical records as evidence which can be used to help when valuing how much your injuries are worth.
Visual evidence – This can include a variety of formats. Photographs of any visible injury are a useful piece of evidence to have. Additionally, you could even take pictures of the scene where your injury was sustained, including the possible cause of the accident.
Witness statements – If you choose to hire legal assistance, then our solicitors can help you gather the contact details of anyone who may have seen how you were injured. The witnesses could then submit a written statement to support your version of events.
If you’ve broken your jaw, our compensation calculator can give you estimate of how much you could be owed. Alternatively, get in touch with our advisors today for a personalised estimation.
Compensation For A Broken Jaw
Broken jaw bone compensation can include general damages and special damages. General damages deliver compensation for the pain and suffering that your injury has caused you. You’ll need to provide medical evidence about your injury to successfully claim general damages.
Some potential claimants may seek a broken jaw compensation calculator to help them understand how much they may receive in general damages. Those who value a broken jaw claim for general damages may check the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) for reference. This document lists compensation brackets for many different physical and psychological injuries.
For guidance purposes, you can view some relevant entries from the JCG in the list below. Please note, however, that the first entry isn’t from the JCG:
- If claiming for multiple serious injuries plus related special damages, the compensation payout may reach up to £250,000 or more.
- When claiming for very severe facial scarring, where the cosmetic effect is very disfiguring and the injured party is relatively young (usually teens to early 30s), the compensation bracket is £36,340 to £118,790.
- If you’re claiming for less severe facial scarring, where the disfigurement is still substantial and there is a significant psychological reaction, the compensation amount is £21,920 to £59,090.
- If claiming for significant facial scarring, where the worst effects can be reduced by plastic surgery, the compensation payout is between £11,120 and £36,720.
- For multiple fractures of the jaw that are very serious, which lead to permanent consequences and requires prolonged treatment, the compensation amount is £37,210 to £55,570.
- For a single but serious fracture of the jaw, that has permanent consequences such as difficulty opening the mouth while eating, the compensation figure is £21,920 to £37,210.
- For a simple fracture of the jaw, which requires immobilisation but from which a complete recovery will occur, the payout figure is £7,880 to £10,660.
- For Le Fort fractures of the frontal facial bones, which is another type of skeletal injury, the compensation payout ranges from £29,060 to £44,840.
- For multiple fractures of facial bones, which causes some permanent facial deformity, the compensation figure is £18,180 to £29,220.
Contact our advisors for free today to learn more about how much compensation for a broken jaw you could potentially receive.
Special Damages Claimable For Broken Or Fractured Jaw Bones
While the section above covered general damages, which are meant to compensate you for the suffering, pain and loss of amenity caused by your injuries, you could also have special damages included within your claim. These would relate to financial expenses caused by your injuries. They could include, but are not limited to:
Care costs – Some injuries could leave you unable to complete usual daily activities such as washing/dressing etc. If you have needed help with these activities, you may have incurred care costs, which could be included as part of your claim.
Travel costs – Whether you have incurred travel costs for hospital appointments, lawyer’s appointments or any other reason directly related to your injuries, you could include travel costs within your claim.
Medical costs – Some medical costs that could be covered by special damages could include prescription costs, counselling costs or costs for physiotherapy, for example.
Wage loss – In some cases, you may have had to take time off work while you recovered from your injuries. If this is the case, depending on your employer’s sick pay scheme, you may have lost out on some of your income. If this is the case, income losses could form part of your broken jaw injury claim. If your injuries prevent you from returning to work, future losses in income could also be included.
It is critical that you keep proof of any financial costs relating to your injuries so that you can evidence them within your claim. Receipts, bank statements, bills and payslips could all provide crucial evidence when claiming for special damages. It would be a good idea to keep these in a safe place so that you could provide these documents to your lawyer when appropriate to do so. If you have no evidence of these costs/losses, they could not be included as part of your jaw fracture claim.
No Win No Fee Broken Jaw Compensation Claims
There are many benefits of using a personal injury/medical negligence lawyer to help you with your broken jaw bone compensation claim. Not only could your lawyer help build a strong case for compensation on your behalf, but they could also give you advice on any settlement offer received, to see if it could be appropriate for you to take the offer or continue to fight for more compensation. If you are worried that you would have to pay upfront for these services, you could be glad to hear that if your lawyer takes your claim on a No Win No Fee basis, you would not have to pay anything until such time as your compensation was paid out.
No Win No Fee claims do not require any upfront payment to get started. Nor would you be expected to pay your personal injury solicitor throughout the duration of your claim. Instead, at the beginning of your claim, you would sign a document known as a Conditional Fee Agreement. This document would promise your lawyer, upon successful completion of your claim, a small percentage of your compensation. This is legally capped so you would not have to fear that all your compensation would be taken up in legal fees. Once your compensation payout was settled, your lawyer’s success fee would be deducted, and you would benefit from the rest. If your lawyer didn’t get you any compensation, you would not be required to settle the success fee.
If you have further questions about making a claim on a No Win No Fee basis, please don’t hesitate to call the team on 0800 073 8804. Or you can contact us online using our contact form or our live chat service.
Are you now ready to begin a broken jaw bone compensation claim, or would you like further details on the claims process or your eligibility to make a claim? Whatever you need, we’re here to help, and you can reach us in a variety of ways. You could simply call the helpline on 0800 073 8804 to speak directly to one of our knowledgeable advisors, or you could email the team on info@legalexpert.co.uk. Alternatively, if you prefer, you could use the live chat feature or contact form to get in touch. With free advice and support only a call or click away, why not get in touch today?
Essential References
Upper Jaw Fracture – This is a NHS resource on broken jaws, covering upper jaw fractures to be more exact. This offers details of what treatment you may need for your injury.
Broken Jaw Case Study – Here, you can find a broken jaw case study which led to £150,000 in compensation for this type of injury.
Broken Bone Claims – Our general guide to broken bone claims may be of interest to you if you’ve broken a bone in your jaw.
Car Accident Claims – If you’ve suffered a broken jaw due to a car accident, this guide may be of interest.
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If you would like to ask questions to an advisor about broken jaw bone compensation, then please contact Legal Expert today using the contact details featured in this page.
