The cost of NHS medical negligence claims

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Medical negligence claims costing serious money for NHS

The Government have been forced to subsidise the body which deals with medical negligence claims against the NHS. This highlights just how big and expensive the issue of medical negligence claims has become. Did you know that :-

  • The bail out funds needed will be £185million
  • Medical negligence claims have tripled in the past 10 years
  • Damages exposure, on a worst case scenario, where all current cases were lost at court, would amount to the huge amount of nearly £17 billion
  • Yearly compensation payments have risen from £277 million in the year 2000-01 to an amount close to £1 billion in the last year
  • Claims made are approaching 9,000 per year.
  • There hahs been an increase in the most catastrophic types of injury claims, where medical advances mean that life expectancy is much better for the victims. These types of cases include brain damage to babies, where compensation can be as high as £6 million for lifetime care.
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Intro to medical negligence claims

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In basic terms, medical negligence claims are a form of negligence claim and in turn a firm of personal injury claim, but there are big differences between a medical negligence action and, for example, a whiplash car action type claim.

This is not to say that any personal injury claim is necessarily straightforward, but medical negligence claims do tend to be at the more specialised end of the negligence spectrum.

With a medical negligence claim it generally pays to seek a an expert and not a general personal injury practitioner and one good reason for this is that, when it comes to negotiating a settlement, this is usually with insurers representing the defendant. The credibility of the lawyer dealing with the negotiations is an important factor and the insurers will certainly be aware of whether the lawyer representing the claimant is a specialist.

On eof teh commonalities between medical negligence and other personal injury calism is that most of these claims are dealt with on a no win  no fee basis, but due to the complexities of a medical negligence action, and the standard of care expected of the doctor or team of doctors against whom negligence is claimed being that of the reasonably competent doctor of taht type, whether GP or specialist, the investigative work and reliance on medical evidence is even more acute than with most other personal injury type actions. This means that the solicitors who consider taking a case for medical negligence on will want to undertake a lot of enquiries and due diligence before agreeing no win no fee terms.

Be aware also that medical negligence claims can include claims against dentists and others as well as doctors and that negligence can also occur with ommission as well as commission. In other words, the alleged negligence may be in failing to provide necessary treatment just as much as in providing the wrong form of treatment,

If you have been the victim of malpractice you may be entitled to make an injury claim, but in this area, it is vital to have the right lawyer behind you.

 

 

 

 

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