By Stephen Anderson. Last Updated 27th August 2024. Could you claim compensation for a dislocated shoulder? If the injury was the result of an accident that wasn’t your fault, then possibly.
If your injury happened as a result of someone’s negligence at work, in a road traffic accident (RTA), or you were injured in a public place through no fault of your own, this guide aims to help you understand what action you could take. We will discuss step-by-step what’s involved if you make a claim for compensation. We’ll examine how you could claim two types of compensation and guide you through what you will need to support your claim.
Throughout our guide, we give you the links and information to assist you in your decision of whether to make a claim.
If at any point you’d like to discuss anything raised, call us on 0800 408 7825 or drop us a line.
Select A Section
- Can I Make A Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Claim?
- Case Study: £15,000 Compensation Payout For A Dislocated Shoulder
- Can My Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Payout Cover Financial Losses?
- Examples Of Accidents That Could Cause A Dislocated Shoulder
- How Is Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Valued?
- Make A Discloated Shoulder Compensation Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis
- Additional Information On Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Claims
Can I Make A Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Claim?
A rotator cuff is a group of tendons and muscles surrounding the shoulder joint that supports the arms to the shoulder. A rotator cuff injury is one that damages the tendons or muscles in this area. Dislocation of the shoulder can lead to or involve a rotator cuff injury. According to the NHS, a dislocated shoulder occurs when the upper arm comes out of the shoulder socket.
If you sustained an injury because of someone else’s failure to meet their duty of care to you, there are three main requirements to think about:
- Did someone owe you a duty of care in the situation/environment where you had your injury?
- Was that duty of care breached?
- Did you suffer injuries as a result? (The ‘but for’ rule can be useful here. For example, but for the unattended spillage, the faulty tool at work or the reckless driver, would I have experienced this injury?)
About Duty Of Care
You could establish who had a duty of care by referring to laws and rules as follows:
- An employer has a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 to, as reasonably as possible protect your health and safety in the workplace. They should offer you appropriate training and provide visible signage around hazards, for example.
- Those in control of premises, land and property such as public spaces, roads, pavements, parks and other locations (this includes the local authority or council) have a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. They must ensure, as much as is reasonably possible, that the area they control is safe for visitors.
- Road users owe each other a duty of care as outlined in The Highway Code. It obliges them to take reasonable care to avoid causing damage to others present, including cyclists and pedestrians. This expectation extends to all road users, irrespective of age or experience. Furthermore, it asks that road users anticipate that other drivers may not display the requisite standard of skill, experience and care.
How Long Do I Have To Make A Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Claim?
The Limitation Act 1980 establishes that normally there’s a three-year time limit for starting a personal injury claim for a dislocated shoulder. This time limit usually starts from the date of the accident that caused your injury.
Under some circumstances, the time limit can work differently. If, for example, the injured party lacks the mental capacity to start a claim, then the time limit will be suspended indefinitely. A court-appointed litigation friend could instead claim on the injured party’s behalf. If this does not happen, and the injured party later recovers their mental capacity, then the time limit will start from the date of recovery.
If a child has suffered a dislocated shoulder injury, then the time limit for claiming does not activate for them until the day of their 18th birthday. Before then, a claim could be made on the child’s behalf by a litigation friend. If this doesn’t happen, then the injured party will instead have three years to start their own claim once they turn 18.
You can contact our advisors today for more advice on claiming dislocated shoulder compensation.
Case Study: £15,000 Compensation Payout For A Dislocated Shoulder
Ms Nip was a teacher at a high school in Liverpool. One day, she was walking down the stairs from her second-floor classroom, with books tucked under her right arm and her left hand on the handrail. As she moved, the handrail gave way and she fell, her shoulder hitting the steps.
Believing Ms Nip’s shoulder to be dislocated, a first aid trained staff member took her to A&E. She did have a dislocated shoulder but also suffered damage to her brachial plexus. She had to take paid time off from work while she recovered, but her finances took a hit due to her injuries. A colleague at work told her that the handrail had been damaged for some time, and still hadn’t been fixed after her injury. Concerned for her finances and the safety of others, Ms Nip contacted a personal injury solicitor.
Her employer admitted that they were aware of the broken handrail, but had not yet got around to fixing it. They tried to argue that Ms Nip had been aware of the broken handrail, but was unable to prove this. Using evidence, she and her solicitor made a successful case. She was awarded £15,000 in compensation. The breakdown of her compensation was as follows:
| General damages | Special damages |
|---|---|
| Shoulder dislocation injury: £13,650 | Cost of husband’s care (cooking, cleaning, driving and washing): £800 |
| Private physiotherapy following completed NHS course: £300 | |
| Medications and painkillers: £50 | |
| Travel to and from hospital and appointments: £200 |
Although this case is merely a fictional example, it represents the sort of cases our panel of personal injury solicitors handles. Ms Nip claimed a combination of general and special damages and acted upon advice from a personal injury lawyer. She was able to win back the out-of-pocket expenses that the dislocated shoulder caused her. She was also awarded for pain and suffering.
Can My Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Payout Cover Financial Losses?
There are two types of compensation that you could pursue. General damages may be awarded for any physical or mental pain and suffering you’ve endured. Special damages compensate you for financial losses you’ve accrued as a result of your injury.
A dislocation can be both painful and inconvenient. Whether it occurs in your dominant arm or not, it could cause significant disruption to your normal routine and finances.
Think about any loss of earnings, travel costs to hospital appointments, potential private physiotherapy costs, the need for a paid carer (to assist with any basic domestic requirements) that your injury has rendered impossible. You may also have lost out financially because of the costs of medications. If you have evidence of these losses, you could recover them. Special damages are an opportunity for you to restore your finances to the level they were before your accident.
Can I Get Compensation If Someone Had To Care For Me?
Under special damages, it’s possible to claim back the costs of any professional care you received. A serious shoulder injury could temporarily make quite a lot of normal activities such as carrying shopping, washing or cleaning difficult.
Family and friends cannot always spare time to help. The recovery time for a dislocated shoulder can be several weeks. If you paid for someone to cook, clean or garden for you, you could reclaim the costs. If family or friends helped you (gracious care), you could recover their time through compensation. It’s especially important to retain all receipts and invoices for costs as, without them, it’s difficult to claim them from a third party.
Examples Of Accidents That Could Cause A Dislocated Shoulder
There are scenarios in which it can be possible to dislocate your shoulder at work, in the street or on the roads. These include:
- Slipping on a spillage.
- Falling due to a bus’ sudden stop.
- Being the victim of street crime or aggravated assault.
- Suffering any injury in a road traffic accident (RTA).
Government statistics show 693,000 people reported sustaining a non-fatal injury at work during 2019/20 and 17,550 cyclist casualties were reported in road accidents during 2018.
If you were one of them and the accident wasn’t your fault, you may be able to seek compensation and if so, you can discuss it further with our friendly team. They’re available 24/7 via the number at the top of the page and offer free legal advice.
How Is Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Valued?
As part of your personal injury claim, you should be subject to an independent medical assessment. This is your opportunity to have a medical professional confirm whether the injuries you suffered were a result of your accident or, if they were pre-existing, were worsened. A medical assessment should also provide you with information about any long-term recovery issues such as the risk of arthritis or permanent impairment.
The outcome of this assessment is important in determining whether you could receive compensation. If the medical professional finds that your injuries weren’t caused or exacerbated by the accident, your claim could be impacted.
Make A Discloated Shoulder Compensation Claim On A No Win No Fee Basis
Providing you’ve suffered an injury that wasn’t your fault, you could be eligible to use the services of a solicitor through a No Win No Fee agreement. There are numerous benefits to using a No Win No Fee solicitor for your personal injury claim, such as:
- No solicitor fees to pay upfront.
- No solicitor fees to pay while the claim is ongoing.
- If the case loses, you won’t have to pay any of your solicitor’s fees.
- If the case succeeds, the solicitor will deduct a small, legally capped success fee.
You may also find that you benefit from the peace of mind knowing a professional is working for you.
Contact our team today to find out more. They can put you in touch with personal injury solicitors. Our advisors are available 24/7 to discuss how you could claim compensation for a dislocated shoulder or rotator cuff injury caused by someone else. Whether it was at work, in a public place or as the victim of a road traffic accident, we could help.
Simply contact our advisors through any of the ways below and speak to our team today. You can:
- Call us on 0800 408 7827.
- Write to us.
- Send us a message using our live chat feature.
Additional Information On Dislocated Shoulder Compensation Claims
We hope that you’ve found this guide useful and that it has helped in your decision to seek compensation for your injury. For further reading, please see below:
Find more information from the Health and Safety Executive about the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
The HSE also has statistics on reported accidents in the workplace.
Find out details about shoulder pain through the NHS.
We provide further reading on workplace accidents.
View our website for more information on accidents in a public place.
You can also find details about claims against the council and local authority.
Thank you for reading our guide to making a compensation claim for a dislocated shoulder injury.
