Claim Compensation
If you have been in an accident or sustained an injury that wasn’t your fault, you may be able to claim compensation. This compensation is there to help you get your life back on track and also to make up for the pain and suffering that you have experienced.
If you are thinking of making a personal injury compensation claim, call us on 0121 565 4317 or claim online to arrange your free, no obligation consultation. Our expert team of experienced personal injury claim solicitors will listen to the details of your case and make sure that we understand the exact nature of your individual situation. This allows us to give you the best quality, personalised legal advice as to how to proceed with your compensation claim.
What Kinds Of Accident Or Injury Can I Claim Compensation For?
Not all accidents can lead to a personal injury compensation claim, but many can. There are three conditions that must be met for an accident or injury to lead to a personal injury compensation claim.
- Someone else must be to blame for your accident. You can only make a claim for personal injury if someone had a responsibility to prevent or mitigate your accident or injury and failed to do so.
- You must usually know who you consider to be to blame. There are a few circumstances where you may be able to make a claim against an unknown person, for example following a ‘hit and run’ car accident where you cannot identify the driver. In most normal circumstances, however, you will need to know who you are claiming against before we can begin your compensation claim.
- You must have sustained an injury and/or loss as a result of your accident. The injury you sustain may not be entirely physical in nature, as it is also possible to claim for psychological difficulties that have occurred as a result of your accident. Your compensation claim amount is not limited to the immediate physical or psychological injuries you have sustained, but you cannot claim for near misses or accidents that did not lead to any actual consequences.
Common Accidents That Often Lead To Personal Injury Claims Include:
- Accidents at work. All workplaces contain hazards. It is the responsibility of your employer to minimise the chances of you having an accident at work and to minimise the severity of those accidents that cannot be avoided. When making an accident claim for an accident at work, it is important to note that your employer is often not the same person as your boss. Making a claim does not mean that you are blaming your line manager or work colleagues. It is a claim against the owner of the company for not fostering a safe environment at work. If you have suffered an accident at work, you may be eligible for compensation.
- Road traffic accidents. Accidents on the road are very common and can lead to some very serious injuries. In many cases, these accidents lead to injuries that are eligible for personal injury compensation claims. It is not just drivers who can claim compensation following a road traffic accident.
- Accidents in supermarkets. Any shop or other space where the general public have access is required to make sure that the environment is safe for everyone. This means that there should not be any slip or trip hazards or that any hazards that cannot be removed must be clearly marked and highlighted. All surfaces that members of the public may be in contact with must be kept safe. If the company has not done this and you trip, fall or suffer another form of preventable accident leading to injury, you may be able to pursue a claim for compensation.
How Much Compensation Can I Claim?
It is impossible to give an accurate estimate of the likely compensation payment for your accident or injury claim without knowing the full details of your case. This is why our expert team of personal injury solicitors take the time to fully understand your unique situation. In more general terms, however, your compensation can be divided into two parts.
The first relates to the nature of the injury itself and is designed to compensate you for the pain and suffering you have experienced as a result of your injury. The amount of compensation you might receive for this is set by the Judicial College (a national governing body) and is in broad ranges. The ranges are deliberately very wide, to allow for the huge variation in injuries and prognosis (the likelihood of getting better).
The second part of your compensation amount is based on how much it will take to get your life back on track. The purpose of compensation is to help you get as close as possible to the situation you were in before your accident happened. For some very serious injuries we recognise that this is impossible, but we want to get you as much of your life back as we can. This part of your claim would include any modifications you may require to help you adapt to your new life. This could include providing you with the best quality of assistance, such as an electric wheelchair to allow you to continue with as many of your previous activities as possible or adapting your home so that you are able to continue to live independently. If you are unable to work as a result of your accident or injury, you are also able to claim compensation for your lost earnings. If your injuries prevent you from continuing in your previous career, you may also be able to claim for the loss of potential future earnings, to reflect the costs associated with retraining and you having to enter a whole new professional field with the loss of your previous years of experience.
Some typical compensation payments for common injuries according to the Judicial College guidelines include:
Injury | Compensation from | to |
Less severe brain damage | £12,210 | £34,330 |
Moderate brain damage | £34,330 | £174,620 |
Moderately severe brain injury | £174,620 | £224,800 |
Very severe brain damage | £224,800 | £322,060 |
Simple nose fracture | £1,360 | £2,010 |
Serious jaw fracture | £14,320 | £24,300 |
Loss of smell | £19,920 | £26,230 |
Loss of taste | £15,300 | £19,920 |
Complete loss of sight in one eye | £39,270 | £43,710 |
Total blindness | £214,210 | £214,250 |
Back injury causing chronic permanent symptoms | £30,910 | £55,590 |
Back injury recovering in 2-5 years
| £6,290
| £9,970
|
Serious back injury causing significant permanent impact
| £59,120
| £70,490
|
Severe back injury with spinal cord damage
| £72,620
| £128,320
|
Severe neck injury
| £36,240
| £118,240
|
Whiplash recovering within 3 months
| £3000
| £1,950
|
Whiplash recovering between 3 months and 1 year
| £1,950
| £3,470
|
Whiplash recovering between 1 and 2 years | £3,470 | £6,290 |
Moderate shoulder injury
| £6,290
| £10,180
|
Severe shoulder injury
| £15,300
| £38,280
|
Loss of one arm above the elbow
| £87,410
| £104,370
|
Fracture of one finger
| Up to
| £3,790
|
Loss of both hands, or loss of use of both hands | £112,109 | £160,600 |
Severe thumb dislocation
| £3,150
| £5,410
|
Very serious thumb injury
| £15,620
| £27,910
|
Elbow injury causing some long term problems
| £12,480
| £25,510
|
Severe, disabling elbow injury
| £31,220
| £43,710
|
Fractured forearms (between the elbow and the wrist) | £5,280 | £15,300 |
Wrist fractures and other injury recovering in up to one year | £2,810
| £3,790
|
Wrist injury causing permanent pain and stiffness | £10,040 | £19,530 |
Hip or pelvis fractures causing long term problems
| £49,350
| £62,490
|
Minor Achilles tendon injury
| £5,800
| £10,040
|
Severed Achilles tendon successfully repaired by surgery
| £19,920
| £23,980
|
Knee injury causing mild long term problems
| £11,820
| £20,880
|
Knee injury causing serious long term problems
| £20,880
| £34,660
|
Fractured femur (thigh bone) | £7,270
| £11,220
|
Loss of both legs below the knee | £160,600 | £215,310 |
Paraplegia | £174,620 | £226,610 |
Serious short-term food poisoning | £7,600 | £15,300 |
Injury causing lungs to collapse | £1,750 | £4,240 |
Bronchitis and wheezing | £15,300 | £20,950 |
Asbestosis and pleural thickening with low respiratory disability | £12,020 | £30,630 |
Asbestosis and pleural thickening with significant respiratory disability | £30,630 | £84,380 |
A single noticeable scar, or several superficial scars not to the face
| £1,890
| £6,240
|
Several noticeable scars or one disfiguring scar, not to the face | £6,240 | £18,120 |
How Do I Begin Making A Compensation Claim For My Personal Injury?
The first step in making an compensation claim for your accident or injury is to appoint a solicitor. Some solicitors require payment up front to work on your claim. We prefer to work on a no win no fee basis. This means that you do not have to pay anything up front and we are only paid out of the amount you are awarded if we are able to win your claim for compensation for your injury. Call us on 0121 565 4317 or claim online to talk to our friendly, experienced team. We will discuss the details of your case with you and explain the whole process, including how much compensation you can expect to receive, and make sure that you are happy to go ahead.
Having discussed your personal injury claim with you, we will let you know whether we are able to offer a no win no fee payment structure in your case. There are a few situations where we are not able to offer this payment system, but we will make sure to let you know clearly what the situation is and what your alternatives are if we are not able to offer a no win no fee arrangement.
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