Average Loss Of Thumb Compensation Amount

Loss of thumb compensation guide

Loss of thumb compensation guide

By Lewis Houston. Last Updated 25th January 2023. The loss of your thumb is a serious and life-altering injury. The thumb is essential to gripping objects and most acts of manual dexterity. Learning to readjust to life after its amputation can be a prolonged and painful experience. Did you suffer this injury because of the negligence of someone else? Perhaps it was an accident in the workplace or as a consequence of a careless driver? Loss of thumb compensation may be due to you and this article can help.

If you’re ready to commence your request for damages now and need help on how to claim, you can get in touch with our advisors. With the expertise and insights they have, it can be possible to offer you instant guidance on your eligibility. Call for free advice on:

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  1. Loss Of Thumb Compensation Claims
  2. What Could Cause The Loss Of A Thumb?
  3. How The Loss Of A Thumb Could Affect You
  4. Loss Of Thumb Compensation For Workplace Accidents
  5. What Do You Need To Prove For A Personal Injury Claim?
  6. Loss Of Thumb Compensation
  7. Start Your No Win No Fee Loss Of Thumb Compensation Claim
  8. Related Articles

Loss Of Thumb Compensation Claims

In order to be eligible for loss of thumb compensation, you would need to prove that a party who had a responsibility for your health failed in this aspect and this led to the amputation of your thumb.

In many areas of life, you are owed a duty of care by different parties. On the road, road users owe a duty of care not to cause avoidable harm. While at work employers owe a duty of care to their staff to keep them as safe as is practically possible. This same rule is applied to those in control of public areas.

So, if your thumb injury was caused because the responsible party breached that duty of care they owed you, then you could be eligible for loss of thumb compensation.

Evidence will be needed to prove liability. In this article, we offer the information that can help you assemble this proof. We explain how you need a medical assessment to confirm the extent of your injuries and how a personal injury solicitor could help arrange this for you.

In addition, we look at the sort of award brackets that a thumb amputation can attract if your personal injury claim is successful

In conclusion, we offer information about how a No Win No Fee agreement could help you. When a personal injury lawyer enters into an agreement such as this with you, it means you can access legal representation at no upfront cost to you.

What Could Cause The Loss Of A Thumb?

Before you start your loss of thumb compensation claim, it’s important to be clear about liability. Under a set of laws that seek to protect our health and wellbeing, there is a concept called ‘duty of care’. This requires certain parties to be responsible for fundamental standards of safety. If you can demonstrate that they failed to uphold those basic requirements, that party could be responsible for the accident which caused your injury.

There are three fundamental points to be clear on:

  • Who had the legal duty of care at that moment to safeguard your safety?
  • How was this duty of care breached?
  • Did you suffer injuries as a direct consequence?

Workplace injuries, car accidents and accidents in public could result in anything from a slightly diminished thumb grip to the complete loss of the thumb.

The thumb can be crushed or suffer compartment syndrome injuries requiring surgical amputation. The exposed and constant use of the thumb means injury could happen in a multitude of circumstances.

Call our advisors to see if you could be eligible for loss of thumb compensation.

How The Loss Of A Thumb Could Affect You

The loss of a thumb is a serious and significant injury. The nature of the thumb means that it plays a crucial role in virtually every type of gripping or manual dexterity. To lose a thumb means that the sufferer has to learn how to adapt and re-learn the multitude of tasks in life, or rely on the other hand more. This adjustment can be expensive and prolonged.

In addition to this, they may be a need for reconstructive or plastic surgery. This can be painful and entail months of a difficult recovery. A prosthetic may be appropriate (not in all cases) but again, there is an adjustment period to get used to an artificial thumb during which your finances or lifestyle could be radically impacted.

Apart from the self-esteem issues of a disfigured or missing thumb, the loss of this digit could directly compromise your ability to do your job and limit your ability to retrain for a new one. It may require you to reassess your current lifestyle in numerous unexpected and costly ways. If you decide to launch a personal injury case a lawyer can help you identify these impacts more precisely. Speak to our team now to find out more.

Loss Of Thumb Compensation For Workplace Accidents

In the workplace, the Health and Safety At Work etc Act 1974 is a piece of legislation that dictates the requirements of employers in keeping employees reasonably safe.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance to employers (and employees) on how to keep the work environment safe. This can include: conducting regular safety reviews, and ensuring staff are properly trained, supplied with the right tools and adequately supervised.

Employees should be fully aware of procedures and the safe practices that are integral to their job. Under Section 7 of the Act, employees are also expected to take as much care personally to avoid injury.

This duty is a basic, fundamental requirement and any employer who fails to adhere to these health and safety laws could be liable for injuries to employees.

To support your personal injury claim after an accident at work you could begin to gather:

  • Witness details so statements can be taken later on in the claiming process.
  • CCTV footage, images of your injuries and the accident cause
  • Always seek medical advice and have your injury documented in your medical records.
  • Fill in the accident log as this can provide the details of the incident.

In the workplace, there are several ways that you could lose your thumb, a few examples are:

  • Faulty machinery could tear the thumb from the hand
  • Falling in a bad way could damage the thumb seriously
  • Sharp, exposed edges or hazardous surfaces can lacerate the thumb
  • The thumb can be crushed in the machinery due to a lack of supervision
  • Missing personal protective equipment (PPE) can create injury
  • Poor training could expose the worker to unnecessary danger

After an accident as serious as an amputated thumb, the incident should be logged in the legally required RIDDOR system for reporting serious accidents in the workplace. You can access this report as part of your evidence if you decide to start a personal injury claim.

Duty of Care Elsewhere

Furthermore, public areas are covered under a similar duty of care concept in the Occupier’s Liability Act 1957. This aims to safeguard the public or users against avoidable accidents in public places. Or there is the expectation as outlined in the Highway code whereby all road users must display a common duty of care to each other by adhering to safety rules and avoiding conduct that could injure others.

What Do You Need To Prove For A Personal Injury Claim?

As you set out on your loss of thumb compensation search, it’s important to note that you are free to represent yourself. It’s not a legal requirement to have a solicitor, but the advantages of working with one are obvious. Relying on their expertise and legal acumen, their advice and guidance can help you assemble thorough proof. This proof can come from a wide range of potential areas:

  • Proof of lost wages or income from missed work
  • Retraining costs to learning a new profession
  • Domestic care as you recover at home (help with shopping, cleaning and washing)
  • Prosthetic needs or expensive remedial surgery
  • Long term physiotherapy or counselling needs
  • Impact on your pension or future earnings
  • Child care provision
  • Travel costs to work or hospital
  • Car adaptations and new lessons to drive

Any receipt, statement or bill that you can present as proof of associated costs that directly relate to your injuries or ill-health can be used. Working closely with a No Win No Fee personal injury solicitor enables you to have all costs considered.

Medical evidence and general damages

A personal injury lawyer can also help arrange for an independent medical assessment to clearly state the exact extent of your injuries. This can take place at a time and location convenient to you. The report it generates can be sent as impartial evidence to the courts to support your claim.

The findings can be cross-referenced with injuries listed in a publication called the Judicial College Guideline (JCG). This document offers examples of bracket award amounts given in other injury cases to acknowledge issues such as:

  • Pain and suffering
  • Damage to personal relationships
  • Increased risk of long term health problems
  • General loss of amenity caused by the injury.

With this in mind, it’s possible to calculate a realistic and consistent estimate for all the impacts and suffering your injuries have caused. The two heads of damages together may mean you can request much more in your final settlement than you thought at first.

Thumb Amputation – How Long You Have To Claim

The limitation period is the timeframe in which you have to take action when starting a personal injury claim. When claiming for a thumb amputation, you generally have three years from the date of the accident to begin your claim. This time limit is outlined in the Limitation Act 1980.

Under certain circumstances, the time limit may be suspended. This applies to claimants who suffer an amputated thumb injury when they’re under 18 years old. The three year time limit would only begin once they turn 18. Alternatively, if a claimant lacks the mental capacity to make decisions on their own, the time limit does not apply unless they ever regain their mental capacity.

A litigation friend can claim on behalf of a young person or someone who lacks the mental capacity during the suspended time period.

We can help you with any questions you may have regarding the time limit for a personal injury claim. Get in touch at any time for free legal advice. You won’t be obligated to use our services after speaking to us. However, if you do want to work with us, you could be connected to an expert personal injury lawyer from our panel.

Loss Of Thumb Compensation

After trauma to the thumb, compensation amounts try to acknowledge these long-lasting consequences. The excerpt from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) below demonstrates:

Injury Severity Judicial College Guidelines Award Bracket Notes
Thumb (q) Loss of thumb £35,520 to £54,830

 The thumb has been amputated.
Thumb (r) Very serious £19,600 to £35,010

 Severed at the base may be grafted back but is deemed useless.
Thumb (s) Serious £12,590 to £16,760 Amputation of the tip, nerve damage or serious fracture causing impairment of grip.
Thumb (t) Moderate £9,670 to £12,590 Tendon and nerve damage, impaired function and reduced sensation
Thumb (u) Severe dislocation £6,340 to £7,780 Dislocation that is severe of the thumb.
Thumb (v) Minor thumb Up to £4,750

 Fractures that have recovered within 6 months, any scarring and tenderness is recovered from.

Crucially, it’s important to remember that these amounts do not represent cast-iron guarantees. Each case varies in the exact nature of the injury or evidence put forward. Speak to our team to establish your facts and evaluate the correct amount of compensation that could be owed to you.

A personal injury lawyer can help you collect and acknowledge predicted costs for the future as well. To emphasise, there is only one opportunity to make a personal injury claim. Your lawyer can help you include anticipated costs and ensure you include a realistic amount for these in your claim as well.

Start Your No Win No Fee Loss Of Thumb Compensation Claim

As someone considering a personal injury claim, you may be asking yourself ‘how much compensation for loss of thumb injury could I get?’ To give yourself the best chance of receiving the maximum, a No Win No Fee personal injury lawyer could help. There are several very good reasons for considering a legal arrangement like this. For example:

  • There are no upfront solicitor fees to pay
  • Unsuccessful cases require no payment to the solicitor
  • Successful outcomes require a limited sum as the fee

With this in mind, see if you can commence a claim immediately by getting in touch. Call our team of advisors to see how the advice of a skilled personal injury lawyer can directly benefit your claim. You could find out how much your loss of thumb compensation claim is really worth. Start today and:

Related Articles

In conclusion, thank you for reading this guide on how the loss of thumb compensation could help you. Furthermore, you can read more information below:

Article by EA

Publisher EC.