Guidance On How To Claim Against The NHS For Medical Negligence
By Stephen Hudson. Last Updated 2nd October 2024. This guide is on how to claim against the NHS. On this page, you will find a full and detailed guide to the process of making a compensation claim for an injury or illness caused by medical negligence.
The National Health Service (NHS) as an organisation, has a duty to care for every single patient. When something goes wrong, and a patient comes to harm such as developing an illness or being injured, then it is possible to claim compensation from the NHS.
If you would like to speak to someone, then please call Legal Expert on 0800 073 8804 today. We can answer any questions you have and help you to begin your NHS trusts claim.
Select a Section:
- How To Claim Against The NHS
- What Is NHS Resolution?
- What Types Of Claims Against The NHS Can You Make With Legal Expert?
- NHS Negligence Claims Time Limit
- What Would Be Included In A Successful Claim Against The NHS?
- No Win No Fee Solicitors For Medical Negligence
- Helpful Resources
How To Claim Against The NHS
All medical professionals in the NHS and private services owe what’s known as a duty of care to provide a minimum standard of care to all their patients. This includes doctors, surgeons, nurses and all others charged with patient care.
If a private care provider or NHS medical professional providing treatment to you fails to provide the adequate standard of care then they will have been deemed to have breached their duty of care.
It is only when a breach of this duty causes a patient harm that ultimately could have been prevented that a medical negligence claim becomes possible.
Contact our advisors for free today to learn if you could make a claim against the NHS or a private healthcare provider.
What Is NHS Resolution?
When people research making a claim against the NHS, they may see NHS Resolution mentioned and wonder what their role is.
As an arm’s-length body sponsored by the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS Resolution manages claims made against NHS Trusts and hospitals.
In its 2023/24 accounts, NHS Resolution revealed that it received 13,784 clinical negligence claims and reported incidents of substandard treatment. It also spent more than £2.8 billion in 2023/24, including over £2.1 billion that was paid in damages to claimants.
Call today to discuss how to sue the NHS and when you may have a valid medical negligence claim.
What Types Of Claims Against The NHS Can You Make With Legal Expert?
Legal Expert operates a team of personal injury solicitors that are experienced in making NHS medical negligence claims. We can assist you in claiming compensation against the NHS across a very wide range of types of cases, including:
- Negligence pertaining to Obstetrics and Gynaecology – when a woman suffers harm due to being treated incorrectly by an obstetrician or gynaecologist.
- Serious events – this includes any major problem which could have been entirely avoided, such as a person receiving entirely the wrong operation.
- Misdiagnosis – when a person is diagnosed with the wrong medical condition, this can lead to a potentially fatal delay in treating the right condition.
- Bad advice – when a medical professional gives completely the wrong advice to a patient, such as how to care for their injury, and it results in harm being caused.
- Wrongly prescribed medication – which leads to a negative health effect such as an allergic reaction or toxic reaction.
- Paramedic negligence, such as in instances where the wrong care is given or there is an undue delay in arriving at the scene.
- Surgical malpractice – which is caused by mistakes being made during surgery, or an accident taking place during the procedure.
These are the most common types of claims we see here at Legal Expert. There are many more. Call us on the number at the bottom of this page so that we can tell you whether we believe you have a valid reason to claim.
Evidence For Claims Against The NHS
If you’re wondering how to claim against the NHS, one of the most important steps that you should be aware of is collecting evidence. This is because, when you make a claim, it’s your responsibility to prove that medical negligence occurred.
Some examples of evidence that you might use when making a claim against the NHS include:
- Medical records or charts that show the actions the medical professional treating you took.
- A symptoms diary that tracks any worsening symptoms and the effect that they’ve had on you.
- Photographs of visible harm, like scarring.
- The contact details of witnesses, like chaperones or nurses, so that their statements can be taken later.
Your case might also be put to the Bolam test. This means that a panel of experts will review the actions taken by the medical professional who was treating you, and they will form a report on whether or not negligence occurred.
To learn more about making a claim against the NHS, contact our team today. Or, keep reading for more information.
NHS Negligence Claims Time Limit
There is usually a time limit in place to start a valid claim seeking compensation from the NHS. This time limit, which is set by the Limitation Act 1980, is three years from the time the medical negligence took place, or from the date you became aware or were expected to be aware that the negligence had affected you.
Exceptions to the three-year time limit can apply under some circumstances. If a person is under 18 years old when the medical negligence occurred, then the time limit does not start until this party’s 18th birthday. Before this occasion, a litigation friend could claim for medical negligence on the injured party’s behalf before they reach that age. If this doesn’t happen, then the person harmed by medical negligence will have three years to begin their own case once they turn 18.
If the injured party lacks the required mental capacity to make a start on their own medical negligence claim, then the time limit for starting such a claim will be frozen for an indefinite period. It may only become unfrozen later if the injured person manages to recover their mental capacity at a future time. If this happens, the time limit will instead begin from what’s referred to as the day of recovery. When the time limit is currently frozen, a litigation friend can claim on the injured party’s behalf.
For more advice about how to claim against the NHS and what eligibility requirements must be met, contact our team online or on the phone today.
What Would Be Included In A Successful Claim Against The NHS?
A compensation payout after successfully making a claim against the NHS or a private healthcare provider may include general damages plus special damages. General damages covers the pain and suffering endured due to the medical negligence.
Take a look at our table for some of the compensation guidelines that are found inside the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). Those involved in valuing your NHS compensation claim might use this document for some guidance.
The JCG is a collection of bracketed compensation guides for many types of injuries and illnesses. This table is just a guide and the first line of it is not based on the JCG.
| Injury/Illness | Severity | Guideline Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Serious Injuries and/or Illnesses Plus Special Damages | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Brain Damage | Very Severe | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Kidney | (a) Serious | £206,730 to £256,780 |
| Leg Injuries - Amputations | Above-knee amputation of one leg | £127,930 to £167,760 |
| Arm Amputations | Loss of one arm (i) | Not less than £167,380 |
| Female Reproductive System | (b) Sexual dysfunction | £52,490 to £124,620 |
| Male Reproductive System | (c) Sexual dysfunction that is significant or impotence | £52,490 to £108,310 |
| Bladder | (c) Serious impairment of control | £78,080 to £97,540 |
| Lung Disease | (c) Disease, such as emphysema | £66,890 to £85,460 |
| Spleen | (a) Loss of Spleen | £25,380 to £32,090 |
General damages will always feature in a payout. Special damages, however, only apply in certain qualifying cases. This head of loss compensates you for the out of pocket expenses you’ve had as a direct result of medical negligence. Among the things special damages could cover are:
- Loss of earnings if you had to stay off work during your recovery.
- The cost of certain treatments or medicines.
- Travel expenses put towards attending vital appointments; for example, train or bus tickets.
Evidence is needed to claim special damages, which can include documents like wage slips or bank statements.
Contact us today if you would like to ask questions about making a medical negligence claim and what a compensation payout could address.
No Win No Fee Solicitors For Medical Negligence
If you have a valid case to claim NHS compensation, you could do so with the help of our specialist solicitors on a No Win No Fee basis. This type of basis is offered under what is titled a Conditional Fee Agreement which means:
- There are no upfront fees for your solicitor to begin working on your medical negligence claim.
- Expert help throughout the claims process with no running solicitor fees.
- If the claim fails, you don’t pay for the solicitor’s work.
The solicitor takes a success fee if the case wins. However, a legal cap set out by The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 means they can only collect a limited percentage of the compensation awarded to you.
Get Free Guidance On Claiming
If you want to learn more about how to sue the NHS, please get in touch today.
Our advisors can assess whether you have a valid case for medical negligence. If you do, you could be connected to a solicitor right away for further support.
Choose any of these options to get started:
- Call our free helpline on 0800 073 8804
- Use our ‘Claim Online’ form to enquire.
- Speak with an advisor with our live chat feature below.
Helpful Resources
Through the links below, you will find more guides about claiming for clinical negligence:
- A guide to how GP clinical negligence claims work.
- We review pharmacy compensation claims and how we can help.
- How to claim compensation if you’ve had an allergic reaction to medication and suffered avoidable harm.
Here are some further resources that could help:
- NHS – How to complain about a medical professional’s conduct.
- GOV.UK – A Statutory Sick Pay claims guide.
- The General Medical Council, a regulatory body for doctors, explains what it expects good medical practice to look like.
Please call or get in touch online if you’d like to find out more about how to claim against the NHS when you have a valid case.
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