Yes. Medical outcomes are not always good. Care is only negligent if it falls below a reasonable standard. What is reasonable depends on who is treating you. For instance, different standards are expected of GPs, A&E doctors and general physicians. All should have access to and follow the sepsis screening tools though.

Speak to one of the specialist solicitors on our legal panel. They have experience in working out what sort of things may be negligent. If they can assist with a claim, they will probably consult a medical expert. 

If your solicitor can prove that your care was negligent, it will still be necessary to show that the negligence caused harm. This means demonstrating what the outcome would have been had you been correctly managed and comparing it with the actual outcome. This can be complex. Again, your solicitor will probably need to obtain medical expert evidence.

The aim of compensation is to put you in the position you would have been in but for the negligence. A claim cannot restore your health. But it may help overcome some of the restrictions you face because of your condition. For instance, it may be possible to make good your lost earnings, fund private medical treatment, pay for care and assistance at home and improve or provide you with more suitable accommodation. For people who have suffered amputation, it may fund top-of-the-range prosthetics which are not available on the NHS.

We all recognise that the NHS has limited funds. However, a decent society ensures that people harmed by negligence have the right to be compensated to make good their loss. The NHS earmarks a sum of money every year to meet claims. So claims do not harm patient care. We all need to learn from mistakes and bringing a claim helps focus attention on them. Our solicitors try where possible to help ensure that lessons are learned and changes can be implemented so that the same does not happen to others. That is one of the reasons they work closely with the UK Sepsis Trust.  

Most claims are funded under conditional fee agreements (sometimes called ‘no win no fee’ agreements). These normally mean that you do not have to fund your claim as it progresses and if the claim fails, you pay nothing. This means that there is no risk. If the claim succeeds you make a contribution to costs from your compensation. Most solicitors cap that contribution to ensure that you retain most of any compensation awarded.  

Very few claims go to trial. Many are settled without the need to issue court proceedings. Even when it’s necessary to issue proceedings, most are eventually settled by negotiation.

Claims against NHS Trusts (who are responsible for hospitals) are backed by NHS Resolution. NHS Resolution is often willing to try to resolve contested claims by mediation. Even if mediation is not used, there are other ways to resolve disputes by negotiation.

A claim must be brought within 3 years of the negligent event taking place. In some circumstances the 3 year period runs from a later date when you discover that an action may have caused loss. However, the law here is complex. Bringing a claim also involves a lot of preparation by your solicitors. If you think you may have a claim, we strongly advise you to consult one of our panel solicitors sooner rather than later.

No. Please phone one of our panel solicitors. They will be happy to help and offer support and advice.