By Danielle Newton. Last Updated 24th August 2023. In this guide, we look at the eligibility requirements to make a head injury accident claim. There are various daily situations in which you are owed a duty of care, including on the roads, at work and in public places. Should this duty be breached, and you suffer an injury as a result, you might be eligible to make a personal injury claim. This guide examines this claiming criteria.
Should you meet the eligibility requirements, you may be interested in learning how compensation could be awarded in personal injury claims. We explain the different factors that help determine how much compensation could be awarded for a head injury.
Should you have valid grounds for a personal injury claim, you may like to have the support of a solicitor to work on your case. To bring this guide to a conclusion, we look at what it means for a solicitor to provide their services under a No Win No Fee arrangement and the benefits this could offer.
If you would like to know more about head injury claims and payouts, please contact one of the advisors from our team. They can answer your questions about the claiming process, provide free advice and value your claim.
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- Call 0800 408 7825
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- Fill in our ‘contact us’ form for a call back.
Head injury compensation
Choose A Section
- What Head Injuries Can You Claim Compensation For?
- What Are The Criteria For Making A Head Injury Compensation Claim?
- Common Accidents Causing Head Injuries
- How To Calculate A Head Injury Claim Amount
- Head Injury Compensation Payouts – Case Studies
- How Is Compensation For A Head Injury Calculated?
- Can I Claim With No Win No Fee Solicitors?
- Make A Personal Injury Claim Today
- Learn More About Personal Injury Claims
What Head Injuries Can You Claim Compensation For?
Any head injury is one that causes pain to the face or head. Typical signs of a head injury on a mild level are pain, swelling, bruising and a cut. If the injury affects the brain we are looking at a totally set of different symptoms, such as trouble concentrating, not being able to remember, balance being off even causing disabilities. For longer-lasting head injuries, the symptoms would be continuous and not going away nor reducing in force. When a head injury is caused people may become unconscious and/or vomit and some may experience headaches even after the injury has healed
For a minor injury, the problem should settle within weeks, if not days. For a moderate issue, it might not go away for several months. And for severe injuries, you could be dealing with the impact for the foreseeable. Speak to us about how we could handle your head injury case claim.
What Are The Criteria For Making A Head Injury Compensation Claim?
To have a valid personal injury claim, you will need to prove that you suffered your head injury due to a relevant third party breaching their duty of care. When these factors come together, it is known as negligence.
There are various instances and places where you could be owed a duty of care. For example, you are owed a duty of care by your employer whilst you are working, as stated under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Per their duty of care, they must take reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety at work.
Anyone in control of a public space owes a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. They must take all the necessary precautions and steps to ensure your reasonable safety while you are using their premises for its intended purpose.
Road users owe each other a duty of care under the Road Traffic Act 1988. Per their duty of care, they must use the roads in a way that avoids causing harm to themselves and other road users. They also must follow the rules set out for them in the Highway Code.
If you can prove that negligence took place, you may be eligible to make a head injury compensation claim.
To learn more about the process of making a personal injury claim for head injuries, and the claim process, you can contact our advisors.
How Long Do I Have To Make A Head Injury Claim?
When claiming compensation for a head injury, it is important to remember to make your claim within the relevant time limits. The Limitation Act 1980 lays out the time limits for personal injury claims. Generally, this is 3 years from the date you were injured.
However, there are certain exceptions to this time limit, such as:
- If your child has suffered an injury, they will have 3 years to make their head injury claim from their 18th Before this point, the time limit is suspended, and a court-appointed litigation friend could make a claim on their behalf.
- For someone who lacks the mental capacity to make a claim for themself, a litigation friend could make a claim on their behalf. Or they will have 3 years to claim if they regain this mental capacity.
Contact our advisors today to find out whether you still have enough time to make your claim. They could also provide you with more information on claiming head injury compensation and case studies for other personal injury claims.
Top Tips on Proving a Head Injury Compensation Claim
To receive head injury compensation from a personal injury claim, you need to show that third-party negligence contributed to your injury. To do this, evidence will be required.
Our tips on proving a head injury compensation claim include:
- Taking photographic evidence of your injury and the accident site.
- Submitting copies of medical scans or other medical reports. This can help illustrate the nature of your injury. For example, an MRI scan can help depict the physical damage caused to your skull or brain as a result of the accident. Medical reports can also be used to illustrate the impact of the injury.
- Providing footage of the accident, if possible. For instance, you could have dashcam footage of the events leading up to the accident if you were involved in a road traffic accident. You can also request CCTV footage, in certain circumstances.
- Getting the contact details of any witnesses that saw the accident. Your solicitor can then contact them to take a statement later on. This can help illustrate how the accident occurred.
You may be thinking about using a head injury compensation calculator to see what compensation you could receive. While they could give you an estimate of your potential compensation, our advisors can offer you an evaluation that is more relevant to your actual injury, and may include special damages calculations as well. They can also put you through to a solicitor from our panel who could help build your case.
Please contact us for free legal advice using the above details at a time that’s convenient for you.
Common Accidents Causing Head Injuries
Negligence forms the basis for any claim that you could make. The negligence of a third party arises when they breach their duty of care towards you. If you can prove that this led to an accident resulting in you suffering a head injury, you may have a viable opportunity to claim.
We are going to look at three areas where a duty of care is owed;
The first is employer’s liability (EL). The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 applies a duty of care within the workplace, though there were 693,000 workplace accidents in 2019/20. A head injury accident at work could be you banging your skull off a wooden shelving unit that wasn’t signposted. If you suffer multiple injuries at work, a multiple injury claim could be the pathway towards your work injury payment.
Public liability (PL) is the second area. Accidents in public places should be preventable under the terms of the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. An accident in a public place could be you tripping over a hazardous cable at a nightclub and cracking your head on the floor. A public accident claim could result from any third party breaching their duty of care in a public space.
And we also have road traffic accidents (RTAs). The Highway Code notes a duty of care for road users to follow to look after one another, as well as pedestrians and cyclists. If a negligent road user causes an accident in which a third party is injured they may be liable. Find out more by speaking to us today.
How To Calculate A Head Injury Claim Amount
Let’s look at how to calculate a head injury claim amount.
When valuing your settlement, several factors may be considered, such as the severity of your injury, future prognosis and the type of injury you sustained.
Generally, though, personal injury settlements can be comprised two heads of claim. Firstly, there are general damages, which compensate for the physical or mental impact of your injuries and also the loss of amenity caused by your injury. This is when your injuries have an impact on your quality of live and affect your day-to-day activities and hobbies.
When working out general damages, it would be useful for you to undergo a private medical assessment to determine the extent of your injuries. A solicitor from our panel could arrange this for you. They may also arrange for the assessment to be close to home to avoid you having to travel too far.
The second head of claim, special damages, takes into consideration any past and future financial losses that a direct result of your injury. For example, you may need to take time off work and as a result may suffer a loss of earnings. However, you could use your pay slips as evidence to support your head injury compensation claim for special damages.
Contact us online to find out more information about seeking compensation for a head injury. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
Head Injury Compensation Payouts – A Case Study
Let’s take a look at some head injury compensation case studies.
Mr Hughes, 28, worked as a shop assistant at a supermarket. He was hoping to progress up the company ladder in a managerial capacity. But an on-site incident would severely hamper his career prospects for some time.
One evening, he was helping to replenish the stock for the next day. The store had a major sale beginning the following morning, so it was imperative for things to be ready. His line manager was also attempting to rush them along as time was not on their side. And this led to an accident.
One of Mr Hughes’ colleagues was handing him a crate of items from the top shelf in the stockroom. But his fellow employee lost his grip and dropped the crate, which hit Mr Hughes hard on the head. He was knocked out cold and an ambulance was called.
At the local A and E department, Mr Hughes underwent extensive investigations including an MRI scan. He was also kept in for several days due to a concussion. Mr Hughes struggled to remember anything about the accident and his memory was very vague. On release from the hospital, it was suggested to Mr Hughes wife that she keep a close eye on him. Any changes in mood or severe headaches she was to bring him back.
At home, Mr Hughes struggled for some time. He had been told by his doctors not to return to work just yet as he still seemed confused, was suffering from severe headaches and had concentration problems.
He felt that there was a pressure to return quickly to work, given the manner in which his line manager operated the supermarket. What’s more, Mr Hughes didn’t want to damage his long-term career prospects by staying away from work for too long.
Though he was back at 100% and back at work after several months, Mr Hughes still felt very upset about the whole ordeal. It came to light that his colleague who had accidentally dropped the crate had been handling it completely wrong due to having no manual handling training.
After seeking legal advice, Mr Hughes was told that his employers had breached their duty of care towards him under the terms of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Therefore, he filed a claim against his employers. Mr Hughes received £21,000 as an out-of-court head injury claim compensation payout. This included £11,980 in general damages and £9,020 in special damages.
| Type Of Special Damages | Includes: | How Much? |
|---|---|---|
| Lost Earnings | Costs of lost earnings due to the injury during his time off | £8,000 |
| Medical Costs and Care Costs | Costs of painkillers during his rehabilitation and cost of care. | £820 |
| Public Transport | Costs of public transport journeys to & from hospital | £200 |
The case of Mr Hughes is purely an example. It is based on our past experiences of handling and valuing claims and serves to illustrate how accidents can happen and how they are valued.
How Is Compensation For A Head Injury Calculated?
As we previously stated, if you make a successful personal injury claim, your compensation for a head injury will include general damages. This head of claim compensates you for the pain and suffering your head injury has caused you.
The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) is a document that many legal professionals will use when valuing this head of claim as it provides compensation guidelines for various injuries. For the table below, we have used some of the figures listed in the 16th edition of this document.
Please only use it as a guide. The head injury claim amount you could receive will be affected by the factors of your case.
| Type of Injury | Severity | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brain and Head Injury | Very Severe | The injured person will only be able to recover the ability to do basic commands – like eye opening and sleeping. | £282,010 to £403,990 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Moderately Severe | Serious disabilities will be caused leading to professional and other care being needed constantly. | £219,070 to £282,010 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Moderate (i) | Intellectual deficit of a moderate to severe level is created as is a personality change with a significant epilepsy risk. | £150,110 to £219,070 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Moderate (ii) | Intellectual deficit is caused (moderate to modest) with their ability to work being greatly reduced. | £90,720 to £150,110 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Moderate (iii) | Memory and concentration are affected with a small epilepsy risk. | £43,060 to £90,720 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Less Severe | The injured person will be able to return to a normal social life after a good recovery, with only potential memory and concentration issues. | £15,320 to £43,060 |
| Brain and Head Injury | Minor | If any is experienced, brain damage will be minimal. | £2,210 to £12,770 |
| General Psychiatric Damage | Moderately Severe | Significant issues will be created with the injured person’s ability to deal with life, work and education. | £19,070 to £54,830 |
| General Psychiatric Damage | Moderate | Prognosis will be good because there will be a noticeable improvement by trial. | £5,860 to £19,070 |
| General Psychiatric Damage | Less Severe | How long the person suffered and the extent to which daily activities were affected will impact how much is awarded. | £1,540 to £5,860 |
Our advisors can be contacted at any time using our free live chat widget on your screen. They can answer any questions on making a claim for a head injury at work.
Can I Claim With No Win No Fee Solicitors?
An experienced solicitor from our panel may be able to help you with your head injury compensation claim. Our panel of solicitors have years of experience handling various head injury claims. They could help you with gathering evidence, such as eyewitness statements, and inform you of the process of your claim. Additionally, they could offer you a Conditional Fee Agreement, which is a type of No Win No Fee agreement.
With a No Win No Fee agreement, you are generally not expected to pay any upfront fees to your solicitor for them to begin working on your claim. You also are not usually expected to pay them for their services if the claim fails. However, you will pay your solicitor a success fee if they succeed with your claim. A success fee is a legally capped amount taken from your compensation.
Contact our advisors today if you have any questions about head injury compensation claims. Our friendly advisors are available 24/7 to offer you free legal advice and could answer questions such as, ‘how much compensation for a head injury could I claim?’.
Make A Personal Injury Claim Today
Now it’s time for you to speak with us. Get in touch by:
- Ringing our helpful team on 0800 408 7825;
- Making use of our Live Chat;
- Or simply complete the online form.
Keep in mind that even after contacting us, you wouldn’t be obliged to pursue your claim.
Learn More About Personal Injury Claims
If you require further information about making a head injury case claim, the six links below may be of use.
Visit our website to learn all about the work of Public Interest Lawyers.
We have a section devoted to cycling accidents.
Plus we explain how to claim after an accident on a bus in a public street.
The NHS have guidance on head injuries with varying levels of severity.
But they also cover scenarios where the victim is suffering serious headaches.
And they explain identifying broken bones.
Article by AR
Publisher EC.
