nhs compensation payouts

NHS Compensation Payouts: Claim For Clinical Errors By The National Health Service

In this article we set out how to show the NHS has been negligent; the types of compensation you can claim from the National Health Service; how you solicitor calculates the amounts of compensation you are entitled to claim; with examples of NHS compensation payouts for different types of injury you might experience at the hands of the NHS.

Table of Contents

How do you show NHS negligence?

Before a calculation can be made as to the amount of NHS compensation payouts you are entitled to recover – your solicitor must show as a matter of law that an NHS worker (whether surgeon, consultant, doctor, nurse, ambulance worker, other clinician or NHS worker) was in some way negligent and that negligence led to injury or suffering whether physical or psychological.

See our initial steps to making a medical negligence claim article, which explains the initial steps you should take if you are unhappy with your treatment and the evidence your solicitor will use to prove NHS negligence.

Are GP’s included in claims from the NHS?

Technically a GP is not part of the NHS, but they do treat NHS patients as contractors to the NHS.

For the purpose of this article – the amount of compensation you recover whether against your GP or the NHS will result in the same amount of compensation payout for the same injury.

Remember – as from 2019 the same body (NHS Resolution) deals with claims against the NHS and against GP practices.

What different types of compensation can you claim from the NHS?

There are three primary parts of NHS compensation payouts – each of which require separate evidence to support a claim:

Pain and suffering NHS compensation payouts

To be able to make a claim for medical negligence your solicitor must show that hospital error led to your injury or a worsening of an existing injury.

A medical expert is instructed by your lawyer to examine your medical records and your evidence to determine what injury you have suffered due to clinical negligence. This expert will then set out in a report your injuries and describe what the future holds as to your recovery or continued disability.

Based upon this report your solicitor can compare your injury to other similar injuries in which the courts have made a compensation payout in the past and in so doing can determine average NHS compensation payouts for your pain and suffering.

The NHS compensation payouts for pain and suffering are unique to your injury and do not vary depending on who you are – only on the nature of your injury.

broken leg nhs treatment claim
Broken Leg NHS Treatment Claim

NHS compensation for your financial losses and expenses

When you are injured you will uniquely have certain financial losses and expenses. For example – if you are builder and are unable to work due to your injury for a month you might lose a wage of a few thousand pounds , whereas a doctor who is unable to work for the same period might lose four or five times that amount and a supermodel might lose hundreds of thousands.

Your NHS compensation payouts for financial losses can only be calculated by your solicitor after looking at your individual circumstances.

You should be aware that there is no limit to the amount of this claim, so long as it can be proved you have suffered a financial loss as a direct result and a medical expert verifies the loss was reasonable (for example: your time off work was reasonable given the nature of your injuries).

Clinical negligence claims against the NHS trust are highly complex and as such the use of a specialist solicitor is extremely important to ensure a successful result to your claim and the maximum NHS compensation payout.

The law recognises this complexity and the need for you to use a solicitor to help you claim. With this in mind – you are entitled to claim the legal costs you incur for your solicitor from the NHS Trust, which you will be pleased to know are in addition to your NHS compensation payouts for pain, suffering and financial loss as set out earlier at number 1 and 2 above.

The amount of a legal costs settlement depends on how much time your solicitor has spent helping you claim; the complexity of the issues involved and the amount of the final settlement award you receive.

The larger your average NHS compensation payouts and the more complex your claim the more reasonable it is that your solicitor will spend more time on your claim resulting in larger payments to your solicitor for legal costs.

NHS Average Compensation Payout Amounts

See our compensation by body part and injury type index article – for access to all our articles giving calculations for NHS compensation payouts for all manner of injury your might experience – both physical and psychological.

See our free legal help options – if you suspect you have been injured as a result of negligence. You can speak to our solicitors in person, free of charge, about your experience, ask a question or have an online assessment of your potential clinical negligence claim.