If you are sick or suspect you have an injury, your first point of contact with healthcare services may be to visit your GP. GPs (General Practitioners) are doctors who treat all common medical conditions. Where appropriate, they should also refer patients either for further testing or for specialist care. If your doctor negligently fails to diagnose your condition, carry out a proper assessment, or refer you for specialist care, and you were harmed, you could be eligible to make a GP negligence claim.
We begin by looking at when you could claim for GP negligence and examine different ways in which negligent treatment could occur. Next, we show how claims against a private hospital work before explaining the claims process. We also examine how medical negligence claims may be calculated.
We close our guide by explaining the benefits of instructing a No Win No Fee solicitor to work on your case.
For more information on how to claim against a GP please read our guide below. When you are ready to start a claim please:
- Call 0800 073 8804 to speak to a member of our team.
- Start a claim online using our contact form.
- Message us via our live support below.
Browse Our Guide
- What Is A GP Negligence Claim?
- What Types Of GP Negligence Could Lead To A Claim?
- Can I Make A GP Negligence Claim Against A Private Hospital?
- How Long Do I Have To Claim For Doctor Negligence?
- Can I Claim GP Negligence Compensation On Someone Else’s Behalf?
- What Do I Need To Make A GP Negligence Claim?
- How Much Compensation For A Doctor Negligence Claim?
- Can I Claim Medical Negligence Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis?
- More Resources About Claiming For Medical Negligence
What Is A GP Negligence Claim?
We began our guide by looking at what a GP or doctor negligence claim is. Your GP has a duty of care to you as their patient. They must ensure that they meet professional standards, meeting the minimum standard of care. If they fail to meet this standard and you were harmed, they may be considered negligent. Doctors must meet further standards, such as those set out in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance.
It is not just the GP themselves who has a duty of care to you. The GP surgery as a whole owes you a duty of care. This includes administrative staff and any other healthcare professionals treating patients, such as nursing staff.
To make a GP negligence claim you must show that:
- Your GP owed you a duty of care. This will be the case if you were under their care.
- They breached this duty of care. For instance, the GP may have failed to refer you for further tests because they did not conduct a full examination of you.
- The breach caused you to suffer unnecessary or avoidable harm. In this instance, the failure to refer you led to a delay in treatment.
Next, we look at how to make a complaint about medical malpractice.
Can I Make A Complaint About My GP?
In addition to making a medical negligence claim, you can also make a complaint about poor or negligent care. You can raise a concern about a doctor’s performance or behaviour with the General Medical Council (GMC). The NHS Constitution for England sets out patients rights, including your right to provide feedback or make a complaint.
Your GP should also have a complaints procedure in place. This should set out both how you can make a complaint and details of how it will be dealt with. If you are not satisfied with the response, you may escalate your complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.
For more information on how to report a negligent doctor, or to discuss your case, please contact our team.
What Types Of GP Negligence Could Lead To A Claim?
GP or doctor negligence describes circumstances in which you suffered avoidable harm because of negligent care. You should expect your GP to provide the right diagnosis, treatment and care. You should also expect them to refer you for additional testing, diagnosis or treatment where appropriate.
The failure to do so may constitute medical negligence. Below, we examine examples of how negligent treatment or diagnosis could cause avoidable harm.
- A doctor may have carried out a video consultation of you. The doctor may be working from home and not have access to your full medical records. This could lead to them failing to take your medical history into account and misdiagnosing you.
- A doctor may make a prescription error. They may fail to read your medical records highlighting that you are allergic to a specific type of medication and prescribe it for you, causing avoidable harm.
- Your GP may fail to spot symptoms of a common condition. For example, they may fail to sport the symptoms of a herniated disc. This could lead to your injury getting worse.
- Your GP may fail to refer you for additional tests where they would be expected to do so, such as if you present with symptoms of cancer. This could result in delayed treatment and avoidable harm to you.
These are just some examples of types of GP negligence. In these cases, you could be eligible to make a medical negligence claim. Please contact our team for more information.
Can I Make A GP Negligence Claim Against A Private Hospital?
You have the same right to expect to be treated effectively and safely in private healthcare as under the NHS. Healthcare professionals working in private hospitals must adhere to the same professional standards as those providing care through the NHS.
This means that if you were harmed by negligent treatment you have the same right to claim compensation as outlined above. Whilst the complaints process may differ, with your initial complaint being made to the private healthcare provider, the claims process will be the same.
Please contact our team if you were harmed in private healthcare, such as at a private hospital or GP surgery. You could make a GP negligence claim.
How Long Do I Have To Claim For Doctor Negligence?
GP negligence claims must be started within the applicable time limit. How long you have to begin the claims process is set out in the Limitation Act 1980. The standard time limit is three years. This begins on the date you became aware of the medical negligence. It could be the date it occurred, or a later date if you were not immediately aware of it.
In most instances, medical negligence claims must be started within this time limit. However, there are exceptions to this. We will explore these in the next part of our guide.
Can I Claim GP Negligence Compensation On Someone Else’s Behalf?
As highlighted above, there are circumstances in which you could make a compensation claim outside the standard limitation period. Time limits may differ in medical negligence cases involving children or those with reduced mental capacity. In such circumstances, the limitation period is suspended to some degree.
Examples of when you could claim for negligent treatment outside the three-year time limit may include:
- Where the patient lacks the mental capacity to claim on their own behalf. This may include those with severe brain damage. In this case, the time limit is suspended unless and until they regain their mental capacity.
- Where the patient was under the age of eighteen at the time of the incident. In this case, the time limit does not begin until they turn eighteen.
Whilst the medical negligence claims time limit is suspended you may make a claim on behalf of the injured party. To do so, you will need to apply to the court to act as a litigation friend. A parent, guardian or other suitable adult may apply to be a litigation friend.
For more information on how to make medical negligence claims on someone else’s behalf, please contact our team.
What Do I Need To Make A GP Negligence Claim?
To make a claim you must show that you meet the eligibility criteria highlighted earlier in this guide. You will need to prove that the healthcare professional has acted negligently and that this negligence caused you harm.
Evidence which could help prove GP negligence claims could include:
- A copy of any correspondence between you and the GP who was treating you. You may also have correspondence with the GP surgery, NHS or other healthcare provider. This could include copies of referral letters.
- Your medical records. These can be obtained either from the NHS or the private healthcare professional who treated you. Your records will have information on your initial and subsequent diagnosis and treatment.
- A diary in which you document your symptoms and the impact that the negligent treatment has had on you.
- Photographs which show any visible injuries to you. For instance, you may have suffered scarring due to the negligent use of a needle. You can also use photographs to document your injury over time.
Please contact our team for more information on how to prove medical negligence.
How Much Compensation For A Doctor Negligence Claim?
If your GP negligence claim is successful, you will be awarded financial compensation. This compensation may be made up of two parts. These are called special and general damages. Firstly, we will look at general damages. General damages compensate for any pain and suffering experienced.
The table below uses figures from the Judicial College (JC) guidelines. Parties, such as solicitors, may use the JC guidelines to help value the avoidable harm you suffered. The first row in our table illustrates compensation for general and special damages. This figure does not come from the JC.
| Harm | Severity | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple, serious forms of harm with special damages. | Serious up to and including severe. | Up to £1,000,000+ with special damages. |
| Brain damage | Very severe - A | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Brain damage | Moderately severe - B | £267,340 to £344,150 |
| Kidney damage | Loss of both kidneys or serious and permanent damage to them - A | £206,730 to £256,780 |
| Reproductive system - female | Infertility due to disease or injury. | £140,210 to £207,260 |
| Male reproductive system - male | Total loss of reproductive organs. | Above £187,790 |
| Bowels | Loss of natural function - B | Up to £183,190 |
| Bladder | Loss of control and of function - B | Up to £171,680 |
| Lung disease | Lung cancer - B | £85,460 to £118,790 |
| Spleen | Loss of spleen with risk of infection - A | £25,380 to £32,090 |
Next, we look at other ways you may be compensated.
Can I Claim If I’m Unable To Work Due To GP Negligence?
Special damages are designed to help put you back in the same financial position you were in before you were harmed. This could compensate for medical expenses, the cost of adapting your home and getting to or from medical appointments.
A potentially large part of your medical negligence compensation payout may be for lost income. If you were unable to work, unable to return to the same job role or found your ability to work was otherwise impacted, you could be compensated for this.
Please contact our team for an assessment of what your GP negligence claim could be worth.
Can I Claim Medical Negligence Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis?
You do not need to use medical negligence solicitors in order to make a compensation claim. However, there are many benefits to making a medical negligence claim with a specialist solicitor. Our solicitors are experts at helping people to successfully claim for harm caused by negligent medical care.
They could help guide you through the claims process and make sure you get the best possible settlement. If they think you have a valid medical negligence claim, they could handle your case under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This allows the solicitor to work on a No Win No Fee basis.
The benefits of this are that:
- You will not pay for the solicitors’ work in advance.
- You will not have to pay for their work if the claim is not successful.
In fact, you will only pay for their services at the successful conclusion of your claim. If you are awarded compensation your solicitor will charge a success fee. There is a legal limit on the maximum percentage which may be charged.
Please contact our team today to find out how a No Win No Fee solicitor could help you.
- Phone our team on 0800 073 8804.
- Use our contact form to begin your claim online.
- Use the live support below to message us.
More Resources About Claiming For Medical Negligence
In the final part of our guide you can find additional medical negligence claim resources.
- Check how to claim for a death by hospital negligence in this guide.
- View the average payout for medical negligence resulting in death in this guide.
- Check how to make birth injury claims in this guide.
Helpful external resources:
- You can find out how to get a copy of your health and medical records from the NHS in this guide.
- View information on Statutory Sick Pay in this government resource.
- Check how to make a complaint about a hospital or other service in this Care Quality Commission resource.
We hope our guide on how to make a GP negligence claim has helped you. Please contact our team for more information on medical negligence claims.
