What is the purpose of a medical negligence claim?

  • Posted

The purpose of medical negligence litigation is to compensate those who have suffered avoidable injury as a result of substandard medical treatment.

It is not a system designed to punish healthcare professionals. Indeed, a court’s order to compensate should not be viewed as a punishment. Instead, it is an order to make good the harm that has been caused.

The objective of compensatory damages is to place the person who has suffered an injury, so far as money is able to do so, in the same position as they would have been had they not been harmed. An award of compensation is not a “windfall” but a method of making good the damage suffered.

Broadly, the compensation can be split into two heads of award in a medical negligence claim:

  • general damages: pain, suffering and loss of amenity (PSLA)
  • special damages: losses and expenses

An award for PSLA aims to compensate the physical and psychological injuries suffered by the individual, together with a reasonable loss of enjoyment of life. Judicial College Guidelines have been developed to provide the framework for the assessment of general damages.

Special damages seek to compensate the financial losses resulting from the person’s injuries. They cover both past losses (those incurred in the period between the negligence and the claim settling) and future losses. Future losses may include, for example, future loss of earnings, medical expenses and care costs.

The court will always consider whether the claimed costs are reasonable and proportionate.

Although compensation may be the ultimate goal of the litigation process, it does not need to be the motivation behind pursuing a claim. In fact, the decision to pursue a claim for medical negligence often stems from a desire to get answers about what went wrong with the medical treatment received.

We Can Help You

If you believe we can assist you when pursuing a Medical Negligence claim, please get in contact with us on 0330 404 0777 or fill out our online enquiry form.


    Close

    How can we help you?


    Please fill in the form and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible or to speak to one of our experts call
    0330 404 0749





    I accept that my data will be held for the purpose of my enquiry in accordance with Ashtons
    Privacy Policy


    This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

    How can we help?

    If you have an enquiry or you would like to find out more about our services, why not contact us?