Whether you’re at work, on the roads, or in a public place, you expect to be able to go about your day safely. But what happens if the people who are supposed to ensure your safety fail to do so?
In this guide, we will explore everything you need to know about claiming for a serious injury. We’ll start by talking about the different kinds of serious injuries and when you could claim for them.
In some cases, you might be claiming on behalf of a loved one who suffered a serious injury and cannot claim for themself. We’ll talk about how to make a claim for someone else, and how long you have to start proceedings.
Finally, our guide will touch on how you could fund the services of a solicitor. Specifically, we’ll touch on how No Win No Fee agreements work, and how our panel of solicitors could help you.
Contact Us
Our team of advisors are here to help. If you want to learn more about serious injury claims, or if you’d like to get more help, contact us by:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7825
- Using the live chat feature
- Contacting us online
Browse Our Guide
- What Is A Serious Injury?
- What Are Serious Injury Claims?
- How Long Do I Have To Claim Serious Injury Compensation?
- Can I Claim For A Serious Injury On Behalf Of Someone Else?
- How Much Compensation Could My Serious Injury Be Worth?
- What Evidence Do I Need To Make A Serious Injury Claim?
- Claim Serious Injury Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis
- More Useful Resources About Claiming Personal Injury Compensation
What Is A Serious Injury?
A serious injury is an injury that will likely have long lasting and profound impacts on the injured individual and their loved ones. Some of these impacts may include:
- Loss of earnings.
- Loss of amenity.
- Changes to mobility.
- Personality change and intellectual deficit.
- Mobility aid costs.
- Long-term care costs.
- Adaptations to your home.
Further down this guide, we explore in more detail how you can potentially receive compensation for some of the above impacts.
Additionally, examples of some serious injuries include:
- Brain damage.
- Spinal cord injuries.
- Amputations.
- Serious burns.
- Loss of sight.
There are more types of serious injuries that could potentially be suffered. So, please contact us today to discuss your specific circumstances.
What Are Serious Injury Claims?
Serious injury claims can be made when negligence has occurred. Negligence is when you suffer an injury because a responsible third party breached their duty of care.
Here are the responsible third parties that may owe you a duty of care, and where:
- At work. Employers owe their employees a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. To adhere to their duty, employers must take steps that are reasonable in order to ensure your safety as an employee in the workplace. One of these reasonable steps includes providing the necessary training and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
- In public. Controllers of a public space (occupiers) owe lawful public visitors a duty of care under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. To adhere to their duty, occupiers must take steps to ensure your reasonable safety as a visitor on their premises. One of these steps includes responding to reports of hazards as soon as they can.
- On roads. Road users all owe each other a duty of care. To adhere to their duty, all road users must follow the rules in The Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act 1988 to ensure everyone on the road is safe. One of these rules includes not exceeding the speed limit as a driver.
As such, the serious injury claims eligibility criteria are as follows:
- A responsible third party owed you a duty of care.
- They breached their duty.
- You suffered a serious injury as a result.
If you believe you meet the above criteria, please contact us today. A friendly member of our team can assess your circumstances for free.
How Long Do I Have To Claim Serious Injury Compensation?
According to the Limitation Act 1980, you have 3 years to begin a personal injury claim after a serious incident. This time limit starts from the date the incident took place.
How Long Can Serious Injury Claims Take?
There is no exact answer to how long a serious injury claim could take. This is because there are numerous factors that can determine this, such as:
- Whether the defendant accepts liability or not, and how long the defendant takes to respond to correspondence.
- The extent of your injury. Serious injuries will often take longer to value since it will take time to fully assess the long-term impacts.
- How long evidence takes to gather.
- What the prognosis is like.
To potentially begin the serious injury claims process as soon as possible, get in touch with us today.
Can I Claim For A Serious Injury On Behalf Of Someone Else?
Yes, you may be able to claim for a serious injury for someone you know if you become their litigation friend.
The usual 3-year time limit is paused for claimants who are either:
- Lacking their full mental capacity (for example, they have brain damage).
- Younger than 18.
In these cases, a litigation friend can be appointed to start a claim on the claimant’s behalf while the time limit is paused. But, once the claimant either:
- Regains their full mental capacity
- Turns 18
And a litigation friend has not already stepped in, then the 3-year time limit will commence from these dates (date of their mental recovery or their 18th birthday).
If you wish to make a serious injury claim on behalf of someone else, please contact us today to find out whether you can be connected with a specialist solicitor from our panel.
How Much Compensation Could My Serious Injury Be Worth?
Generally, personal injury compensation can fall under two headings. Everyone who makes a successful personal injury claim will receive the first heading, which is called general damages.
This head of compensation covers both your physical and psychological injuries, as well as the effect that they have on your day-to-day life. For example, one kind of damage covered by this heading is called loss of amenity. This addresses the way that your injuries have affected your ability to enjoy hobbies or time socialising.
When general damages are calculated, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) can be used to help. The JCG contains guideline compensation payouts for different illnesses and injuries.
In the table below, we have included some serious injuries from the JCG and their accompanying guideline compensation payouts (except for the top payout, which isn’t from the JCG). This table should only be used as a guide since all serious injury claims are unique.
| Injury | Compensation |
|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries + Special Damages, Including Lost Earnings | Up to £10,000,000+ |
| Total Blindness and Deafness | In the region of £493,000 |
| Very Severe Brain Damage | £344,150 to £493,000 |
| Tetraplegia | £396,140 to £493,000 |
| Paraplegia | £267,340 to £346,890 |
| Loss of Both Arms | £293,850 to £366,100 |
| Loss of Both Legs (i) | £293,850 to £344,150 |
| Severe Back Injuries (i) | £111,150 to £196,450 |
| Chest Injuries (a) | £122,850 to £183,190 |
Can Serious Injury Compensation Pay For The Long-Term Impact Of My Injury?
A serious injury can have life-changing financial consequences, and you might be wondering if your compensation will reflect this. Under special damages, you are compensated for how you’ve been financially affected by your serious injury. This includes:
- Rehabilitation costs.
- Lost earnings. This includes future loss of earnings and missed bonuses if you are not able to return to work at all.
- The costs for mobility aid and adaptations that need to be made to your home. For example, you may need to relocate or make your home wheelchair accessible.
- Professional and domestic care.
Special damages are very important, as with a serious injury, the long-term impact can be very costly. This is why it is crucial to provide any evidence you have of the money you have lost due to your serious injury. Such evidence may be payslips, invoices, receipts, and bank statements.
Please contact us for more information on how successful serious injury claims are valued.
What Evidence Do I Need To Make A Serious Injury Claim?
One of the most important steps in the claims process is proving that negligence happened. Evidence is crucial because it can affect how much compensation you potentially could get, as well as how long your claim can take.
To prove your serious injury claim, you could use evidence such as:
- Photographs of visible injuries, such as an amputated limb or the loss of an eye.
- CCTV footage or dashcam footage of the accident occurring
- Medical records that show how serious your injuries are and what you’ll need to recover
- Financial records, like bank statements or receipts that show the financial losses your injuries have caused
- Records from the accident book, if your injury occurred at work or in a public place
- The contact details of anyone who witnessed the accident, as their statements can be taken by a professional at a later date
This might sound daunting, especially if you don’t have any prior legal experience. However, it doesn’t have to feel that way. Contact our team of advisors today to find out if a solicitor from our panel could help you prove your claim.
Claim Serious Injury Compensation On A No Win No Fee Basis
If you have an eligible serious injury claim, then you may be connected with a specialist No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel. Our panel of solicitors can do many things to help their clients, such as:
- Gather evidence.
- Correspond with the defendant.
- Send updates throughout the whole claims process.
- Sort legal representation if the claim goes to court.
- Ensure compensation is accurately valued.
- Ensure the claim is filed within the time limit.
- Explain legal jargon.
Additionally, our panel can offer the above services through a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a specific type of No Win No Fee agreement.
Here are few reasons why a CFA is beneficial:
- There are no upfront fees for your solicitor’s services.
- There are no ongoing fees for your solicitor’s services.
- There are no fees at all for your solicitor’s services if the claim is unsuccessful.
This means that you are only charged for your solicitor’s services if the claim is successful. Even in this case, you are still not charged directly out of pocket. Instead, your solicitor can keep a small success fee from the compensation. Success fees are a legally-capped percentage, which ensures that you take away the majority of the compensation.
So, please contact our team today. They will potentially be able to connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel, who could help you claim serious injury compensation:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7825
- Using the live chat feature
- Contacting us online
More Useful Resources About Claiming Personal Injury Compensation
For more interesting personal injury compensation guides:
- Learn about typical personal injury payouts
- Find out how to make a claim for depression
- Get help making a personal injury claim in Scotland
Or, for further resources:
- Get information on Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) from the Government
- Find out when to call 999 from the NHS
- Learn how to request CCTV footage
Thank you for reading our guide on serious injury claims.
