By Lewis Cobain. Last Updated 12th March 2024. In this case study, we take a look at a successful compensation claim for a fractured humerus. The person claiming compensation for a proximal humerus fracture was a 60-year-old woman, who took a bad fall in the entrance to a large high street retail store. The flooring in the entrance was faulty, and this caused the heel of her shoe to become stuck. This pitched her forwards, down a flight of steps.
She was taken to the hospital and examined. Initially, she was diagnosed with nothing more than a fractured shoulder. Still in significant pain, she visited a fracture clinic the next day, when it was found that she actually had a humerus fracture. One so severe that she had to have shoulder surgery as part of the recovery process.
Following the legal claims process, she was finally awarded a total of £20,000 in compensation for her injuries.
Select A Section
- Slips, Trips And Falls
- Details Of The Proximal Humerus Fracture
- Humerus Fracture Shoulder Surgery
- How Long Does It Take To Recover From A Broken Humerus?
- Key Steps To Making Your Own Fractured Humerus Claim
- What Did The Compensation Settlement Include?
- Broken Arm Compensation Payouts
- No Win No Fee Solicitors For Broken Humerus Claims
Slips, Trips And Falls
In elderly people, proximal humerus fracture treatment is far from straightforward. However, slips, trips and falls are very common in the UK, especially amongst the elderly. This means that despite the treatment being complex when it comes to treating a fractured humerus NHS doctors have plenty of experience.
Statistics published by the UK Health & Safety Executive for 2017, show that slips, trips and falls were the second most common accident in the workplace. Just over 110,000 people suffered a slip, trip or fall at work. Or as in the case of this victim, as a member of public entering a privately-operated place of work.
Details Of The Proximal Humerus Fracture
In this particular case, the shoulder injury was extremely serious with the medical condition being exacerbated by the age of the patient.
With the original injury being missed initially and left for an extra day without treatment, the shock and trauma to the patient were also severe.
Doctor’s discovered that it would take extensive corrective surgery to begin rebuilding the shoulder into a state that it could start to repair itself.
Humerus Fracture Shoulder Surgery
The initial treatment required fractured humerus surgery to fit surgical fixings and a philos plate. This required multiple surgeries to achieve, and for the duration of the treatment, the patient had to stay in hospital as an in-patient.
It took continuous examinations over a 4-month period before doctors could be entirely sure that the injury had begun to heal. A full bone repair was not confirmed until 12 months later. During almost the entire 12-month recovery period she was forced to wear a fractured humerus sling. Regaining basic functionality of the shoulder needed physiotherapy and fractured humerus exercises.
How Long Does It Take To Recover From A Broken Humerus?
Are you wondering, ‘how long does it take to recover from a broken humerus?’. In the case study above, it took the claimant almost 12 months to recover from her broken humerus. This was down to factors including her age and the severity of the injury, so it may not always take a year to recover.
Under NHS guidance, a fractured humerus can take approximately 12 weeks to heal. However, to fully recover, it can take up to one year. For detailed information on recovery or treatment, we recommend seeking the advice of a medical professional.
Get in touch to find out how our expert personal injury solicitors could help you secure compensation after suffering a fractured humerus due to the negligence of another party.
Key Steps To Making Your Own Fractured Humerus Claim
If you have sustained a broken humerus because of negligence, there are steps you can take to strengthen your claim for personal injury compensation. Firstly, you should seek medical attention. This will ensure that your injury is treated correctly. Additionally, any diagnosis or treatment you are given will be logged in your medical records, which can then be used as evidence.
Other examples of evidence you can collect in support of a claim include:
- The contact details of any witnesses. Your solicitor can get in touch with them for a statement.
- Photographs of your injury.
- A medical report from an independent medical expert.
- Any evidence of financial harm if you are claiming special damages. For example, you could use a wage slip to prove a loss of earnings.
Finally, it’s important that you begin your claim within the time limit. As outlined in the Limitation Act 1980, you usually have three years from the date of the accident in which to start a claim.
Exceptions to the time limit can apply in cases where the injured party is under 18 or doesn’t have the mental capacity to pursue their own claim. To find out more about this, and whether the limitation period exceptions apply to your case, speak with a member of our team.
What Did The Compensation Settlement Include?
The retail store admitted full liability for the accident. However, it was not until a medical professional could make a full prognosis of the injuries at a later stage, that a full compensation pay-out could be made. Initially, an interim payment of £4,000 was made in the short-term. Once a period of proximal humerus fracture healing time had passed, it was possible to calculate a final settlement of £20,000 which covered:
- General damages for the pain, suffering and trauma caused by the physical injury.
- Special damage to cover the cost of having to hire in-home help to undertake day to day tasks.
- Medical costs such as medication and physiotherapy as the victim needed a course of humerus fracture recovery exercises to regain functionality of the shoulder.
- All costs associated with making the compensation claim.
Broken Arm Compensation Payouts
Arm injury claim payouts can vary from claim to claim depending on the circumstances of each case. Payouts can include up to two heads of claim, the first of which is general damages. This head of claim addresses your injuries and the resulting pain and suffering you go through.
When evaluating this head of your broken arm compensation, solicitors often use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) to help. This is because the JCG provides guideline settlements for a number of arm injuries of varying severities. In the table below, we have included some of the JCG’s figures for arm injuries to help give you an idea of what you could potentially receive.
| Injury | Compensation Bracket | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Severe Arm Injuries | £96,160 to £130,930 | Injuries that are extremely serious, but fall short of amputation, for example, a serious brachial plexus injury. |
| Injuries Resulting in Permanent and Substantial Disablement | £39,170 to £59,860 | Residual disability and cosmetic effects caused by serious fractures to one or both forearms. |
| Less Severe Arm Injuries | £19,200 to £39,170 | A substantial degree of recovery will have taken place despite significant disabilities. |
| Simple Forearm Fractures | £6,610 to £19,200 | Uncomplicated fractures of the forearm. |
Your compensation for a broken arm could also include special damages. This head of compensation is intended to help you claim back any financial losses you experience because of your injuries. For example, this could cover a loss of earnings, or travel costs to and from hospital appointments.
For more information on arm injury claim payouts, contact our team today. One of our advisors could provide a free evaluation of your claim and offer more advice on claiming broken arm compensation.
No Win No Fee Solicitors For Broken Humerus Claims
This specific case is a good example of how for some people, No Win No Fee solicitors are the only viable option for making a compensation claim. The victim received treatment which took almost an entire year, and during this time they would have had to find the money to pay their own legal fees if they had not engaged a legal firm under a No Win No Fee agreement.
It was not until almost 12 months later when the victim received the full £20,000 damages payment that they had to pay their solicitors anything at all. And had the solicitor not successfully made a claim, the victim would have paid nothing.
Contact Legal Expert Today
If you have recently been the victim of an accident that has resulted in a personal injury such as a broken humerus, then you owe it to yourself to give us a call right now on 0800 073 8804. Once we have learned the details of your case it is likely we will offer to take it on under a No Win No Fee agreement. This means you won’t need to pay us anything at all unless we actually win you damages.
Useful Links
A Legal Expert guide to compensation pay-outs for broken bones.
A Legal Expert guide to compensation pay-outs for shoulder injuries.
NHS advice on dealing with a broken humerus.
