When Can You Make A Serious Head Injury Claim?

Are you wanting to make a serious head injury claim, maybe you are making it on behalf of a loved one who was involved in an accident caused by a third party. This guide looks specifically at the eligibility criteria that must be satisfied to pursue a personal injury claim following brain damage caused in an accident as well as provide an illustrative case study looking at the compensation someone could receive for a serious head injury claim.

Next, this guide examines how a value could be assigned to a case and what could be included in a successful settlement. Following this, we look at the usefulness of evidence and provide examples of what you could gather.

Serious-Head-Injury-Claim

Serious Head Injury Claim

Finally, this guide outlines the benefits of instructing a legal professional, like a solicitor, on a No Win No Fee basis, should you have an eligible case and want to ensure it runs smoothly. Contact our team of advisors now to see if you can work with a brain injury claim solicitor from our panel.

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  1. When Can You Make A Serious Head Injury Claim?
  2. Case Study: £1 Million Payout In Head Injury Compensation
  3. How Much Compensation Could You Receive From A Serious Head Injury Claim?
  4. Evidence That Can Help In Serious Injury Claims
  5. See If You Can Make A No Win No Fee Personal Injury Claim
  6. Learn More About Making Serious Injury Claims

When Can You Make A Serious Head Injury Claim?

To make a serious head injury claim, it must be shown that those who have a responsibility for the health and safety of others caused the accident which led the injury to occur. This could have been through negligent actions or omission. Therefore to make a personal injury claim, the following criteria must be true: 

  • You were owed a duty of care.
  • The duty of care owed to you was breached.
  • Due to this breach, you suffered an injury.

If you can show the above, which forms the basis of negligence in tort law, then the criteria to pursue a personal injury claim have been met. Below we outline the duty of care owed by third parties in different circumstances.

Road Traffic Accidents

When navigating the roads, all road users owe one another a duty of care to prevent injury and damage to themselves and others. Road users must abide by the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code to ensure they adhere to this duty.

If a road user fails to comply with the duty of care they owe, and injuries are suffered by others, they could be liable. A road user could breach the duty they owe if they drive under the influence of alcohol. This could lead them to swerve into a lane, causing a road traffic accident.  A head-on collision could lead to a road user suffering serious head trauma.

Accidents At Work

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, an employer owes a duty of care to take reasonable steps to keep employees safe while at work. If an employee was to suffer an injury due to the employer not taking such steps, then they could be liable for the harm caused. 

For example, if your employer doesn’t provide you with the personal protective equipment required for you to do your job safely, they could be liable for any injuries you suffer as a consequence. This might occur if a brick falls on your head at a construction site, and you suffer a fractured skull and severe head injury due to not being equipped with a hard hat.

Accidents In A Public Place

Parties in control of a space owe a duty of care to take steps to ensure the reasonable safety of visitors using the space for the purpose they’re permitted to do so. This legal duty can be found in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. If a party in control of a space fails to adhere to it, they could be liable should injuries result.

A controlling party could breach the duty of care they owe if they fail to ensure wet floor signs are displayed following a floor being mopped. This could lead to a person suffering a serious head injury in a slip-and-fall accident.

Contact our team of advisors now if you need more advice regarding the eligibility requirements for a serious head injury claim. They would uncover the validity of your case and may pass you over to a solicitor from our panel if it’s deemed eligible.

Case Study: £1 Million Payout In Head Injury Compensation

Mrs Parker, 32, was an experienced engineer who regularly commuted to her office via car. One day when taking her normal route to work, what appeared to be a regular drive would turn into a life-changing incident for her.

A driver on the opposite side of the road was speeding around a corner when they lost control of their vehicle, swerved into Mrs Parker’s lane and crashed into her. This led to her car rolling over several times and landing on its roof in a ditch.

Immediately after the accident, an ambulance and the fire service were called to free Mrs Parker from the wreckage and attend to her condition. She was in a critical state and was diagnosed with a severe head injury shortly after she arrived at the hospital.

Following Mrs. Parker’s rehabilitation, she fully depends on professional care and will do so for the rest of her life.

Mrs Parker’s family contacted solicitors to begin a serious head injury claim. The solicitors helped build her case, by collecting evidence to support her claim. This included; dash-cam footage, witness statements, medical evidence and images of the accident scene. This led to its success and meant she was awarded £1 million in compensation. This was made up of general damages to compensate for the injury as well as special damages to cover the financial implications of the brain damage. 

Contact our team of advisors to see if a solicitor from our panel can help you today.

How Much Compensation Could You Receive From A Serious Head Injury Claim?

A successful serious head injury settlement could consist of up to two heads of claim. The first is referred to as general damages and compensates for the suffering, pain, impact on quality of life, loss of amenity as well as effects on relationships.

Furthermore, the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) is a document that could be utilised to help assign a value to your injuries. This document takes compensation previously awarded in court cases and produces valuation brackets for different injuries. Your medical report could also be requested to be analysed against the JCG.

Below we provide a table of guidance figures for different injuries taken from the JCG. Please note that we cannot guarantee the compensation you could receive due to each case differing.

Compensation Table

Injury Severity Compensation Notes
Multiple Serious Injuries Plus Special Damages Up to £1,000,000+ Multiple serious injuries plus special damages that can include: lost earnings and future lost earnings if the claimant can no longer work, nursing care, home adaptations, etc.
Brain Damage Very Severe £282,010 to £403,990 Little evidence of meaningful response to environment, requiring the need for full-time nursing care.
Moderately Severe £219,070 to £282,010 Very serious disability, meaning a substantial dependence on others is required.
Moderate (i) £150,110 to £219,070 Moderate to severe intellectual deficit with no prospect of employment.
Moderate (ii) £90,720 to £150,110 Moderate to modest intellectual deficit with a greatly reduced ability to work.
Loss Of Earnings Up to £100,000 and above Due to missing work because of injuries suffered.

Claiming Special Damages After A Serious Injury

Special damages make up the second head of claim. In serious injury claims, the amount awarded here can often exceed the amount for general damages. This is because the injured party may be faced with heavy costs and losses. This compensates for reasonable losses incurred in the past and future due to the brain damage injury. You should keep evidence of your losses to ensure you receive your full compensation entitlement.

Such evidence could include:

  • Receipts
  • Invoices
  • Payslips

A solicitor from our panel could help you gather evidence as part of their service if your case is eligible. To uncover the validity of your case, contact our advisors now.

Evidence That Can Help In Serious Injury Claims

To make a serious head injury claim, you will need evidence to prove your case. It is important to state that evidence cannot only help to prove how an accident occurred and who may be liable for the injuries caused but also to prove the harm suffered and to what extent. Evidence can help prove this, and examples of what you could supply include:

Contact our advisors now to find out if you’re eligible to have a solicitor from our panel build an evidence portfolio as part of their service. 

See If You Can Make A No Win No Fee Personal Injury Claim

If you have an eligible serious head injury claim, consider instructing a No Win No Fee legal professional, like a solicitor, to provide expert advice. A kind of No Win No Fee agreement, known as a Conditional Fee Agreement, is offered by some solicitors and provides the following benefits:

  • No upfront fees are required to begin working with a solicitor
  • No ongoing fees are required to keep your case progressing
  • If your case is successful, the solicitor will take a success fee, which is only a small percentage of the compensation you receive, and is legally capped
  • If your case doesn’t succeed, no success fee will be taken by the solicitor

Moreover, our panel of experienced No Win No Fee solicitors offer their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement and only agree to your instruction if they feel your case has a good chance of success. This means you can be certain your time will be well spent if they agree to work with you.

To find out if you can work with a solicitor from our panel, contact our team of advisors now by:

Learn More About Making Serious Injury Claims

We hope this guide has answered your questions about making a serious head injury claim. For more of our helpful guides, please look below:

For some external help, please look here: