A Guide To Making A Hospital Negligence Claim

When you go into hospital, the objective is to leave it feeling better or at least knowing that your symptoms are being managed effectively. What we don’t expect is for negligent treatment to leave us suffering needless harm. Unfortunately, it can occur, and our hospital negligence claim guide explains when you can pursue a compensation claim.

We answer many commonly asked questions about medical negligence claims, including:

  • What is an example of hospital malpractice?
  • How long do I have to start a claim?
  • What sort of medical negligence compensation could I get?

As well as getting the answers to this and more, learn how our experienced medical negligence solicitors offer their expert services on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you’ve sustained harm because of substandard care in a hospital, ask about making a claim online with our web form. Our advisors are here to provide guidance, support and a thorough claim assessment at no charge and with no obligation to claim.

A blurred image of a hospital ward with two beds.

Browse Our Guide

  1. What Is A Hospital Negligence Claim?
  2. What Counts As Hospital Negligence?
  3. Can I Claim For A Hospital Infection?
  4. Can I Make A Hospital Negligence Claim Against The NHS?
  5. Can I Make A Hospital Negligence Claim Against A Private Provider?
  6. What Is The Time Limit For Hospital Negligence Claims?
  7. Am I Able To Claim On Another Person’s Behalf?
  8. What Evidence Could I Provide To Prove Hospital Negligence?
  9. How Much Compensation Can Be Received For Hospital Negligence?
  10. Why Claim For Hospital Negligence On A No Win No Fee Basis?
  11. More Resources About Medical Negligence Claims

What Is A Hospital Negligence Claim?

Many hospital employees, from doctors and nurses to specialists and surgeons, are trained to provide clinical treatment. As medical professionals, they are expected to provide the correct standard of care and respect patients’ rights. This will help them to uphold the duty of care they owe to all patients.

Medical negligence, which you may also see called clinical negligence, is where a professional’s care deviates from the expected standards and leads to a patient suffering avoidable harm.

With this in mind, you can make a medical negligence or clinical negligence claim by proving that:

  • A medical professional owed you a duty of care.
  • Their treatment fell below a standard expected of a reasonably competent professional, meaning that the duty of care was breached.
  • You suffered avoidable harm as a direct outcome of this breach.

If you’re unsure whether you can make a hospital negligence claim or just want to learn more about the support our specialist medical negligence solicitors provide, please get in touch.

What Counts As Hospital Negligence?

You may be wondering what a typical medical negligence case looks like. Negligent care in a hospital can take different forms, as these illustrative examples show:

  • A patient is rushed into the hospital with severe abdominal pains. A doctor fails to listen to the patient’s symptoms correctly and diagnoses gastroenteritis. The patient is suffering from appendicitis, and due to the wrong diagnosis, it eventually ruptures, putting the patient in a life-threatening situation. 
  • Due to a misdiagnosis caused by mixing up two patients’ test results, the patient gets incorrect treatment that ends up making the existing condition worse.
  • Despite being given clear instructions, a nurse gives a patient the wrong medication. This causes serious side-effects including organ damage.
  • A surgeon does not read a patient’s chart carefully. As a result, they perform wrong site surgery and amputate the incorrect arm.

By speaking with our advisors, you can learn if you suffered medical negligence and have the right to seek damages. We’re available to answer any questions you might have about making a medical negligence claim.

Can I Claim For A Hospital Infection?

Among the questions we’ve been asked is whether our medical negligence solicitors can take on cases involving hospital infection. Known in medical circles as healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs), infections from medical treatment or being in a hospital setting can have serious consequences.

Like in all other medical negligence cases, you have a valid claim if negligent care led to a harmful infection that could have been avoided with competent treatment. Examples of this are:

  • A patient is suffering from methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), yet the nurse who changes their wounds fails to change PPE when assisting another patient on the ward who has just recently had surgery. This allows the MRSA to be contracted.
  • A surgeon fails to sterilise the incision site before beginning surgery. This allows bacteria to enter the body and causes the patient to suffer a very serious infection.

Our solicitors can help with claiming compensation for infection caused by substandard care. If you believe insufficient treatment from a healthcare professional led to you suffering the effects of hospital infection, talk to us about your potential medical negligence claim today.

A hospital patient lying in bed.

Can I Make A Hospital Negligence Claim Against The NHS?

The NHS provides vital medical services to millions of people across the UK. NHS Resolution is an arms-length government body which can handle a clinical negligence compensation claim on behalf of an NHS Trust or hospital. In its annual report for 2022/23, NHS Resolution revealed that it settled 13,499 clinical negligence claims in the reporting period, paying out £1.992 billion to claimants.

If you have a valid case against an NHS hospital for negligent care, our clinical negligence solicitors can help you make a hospital negligence claim. Please reach out to us if you’d like an advisor to assess whether you have reasonable grounds to seek compensation.

Can I Make A Hospital Negligence Claim Against A Private Provider?

Private hospitals typically differ from NHS hospitals in the sense that you pay them a fee to receive treatment. However, the health professionals working there have exactly the same requirement to provide medical care to the correct standard.

This, of course, means that you have the same right to sue a private hospital as you do to claim against the NHS.

Consider whether your case meets the eligibility criteria we discussed in the first section of this guide. Whether you’re sure it does or could do with some guidance, just get in touch with us and an advisor can discuss how to make a hospital negligence claim against a private healthcare provider.

What Is The Time Limit For Hospital Negligence Claims?

It is important to be aware of the legal time limit for starting a medical negligence claim. Under the Limitation Act 1980, claims must begin within three years of either:

  • The negligent care occurring and causing avoidable harm.
  • The date of knowledge. This refers to the time when you became aware that substandard treatment was involved and you suffered harm that was unnecessary.

Certain cases might call for an exception. Someone without the mental capacity to claim has a permanently suspended limitation period. The pause only ends if they recover, at which point they must submit a claim within three years of their recovery date.

Minors under the age of 18 cannot claim, so they also have a pause in place. Once they turn 18, the claimant has until they are 21 to start their case.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you want to know more about time limits or learn how long you have to start a potential hospital negligence claim.

A hand holding a stopwatch, representing time limits for a hospital negligence claim.

Am I Able To Claim On Another Person’s Behalf? 

In the previous situation, we discussed scenarios where someone’s claim time limit is paused. You could make a claim for a person in that situation by being appointed as a litigation friend by the courts.

This means that you are a trusted adult who can make decisions on the claimant’s behalf and in their best interests. You may need to appear on their behalf during court proceedings, if they are needed, or instruct their solicitor.

Being a litigation friend doesn’t mean taking on the full burden of handling a case. A specialist solicitor can still offer support every step of the way. Learn more about representing someone else with the help of our medical negligence solicitors today by getting in touch with us.

What Evidence Could I Provide To Prove Hospital Negligence?

Your case depends on being able to prove medical negligence, so there is no bad time to start collecting relevant evidence. For example, you could gather:

  • A diary of your experience, including which hospital you were treated at, your symptoms and the corrective treatment you underwent.
  • Medical evidence. You can request a copy of your medical records to highlight the treatment you received and any further care you needed after negligence occurred.
  • Proof of medical expenses and other expenditures caused by the harm you suffered.

A hospital negligence solicitor could help you gather evidence during the case. They could also arrange an examination from an independent medical practitioner, the results of which would be added to your evidence.

To learn more about the different ways in which a specialist solicitor can help with a medical negligence claim, contact our advisors today.

How Much Compensation Can Be Received For Hospital Negligence?

The objective of a hospital negligence claim is to secure financial compensation. You might have been affected by insufficient hospital care in different ways, so this compensation can be split into what is known as heads of loss. These heads are:

  • General damages. This head focuses on the physical pain and psychological trauma that was inflicted because of negligent care. It also accounts for an existing medical condition that became worse.
  • Special damages, which is the reason for collecting proof of out of pocket expenses. This head provides compensation for the financial losses imposed on you because of the avoidable harm you suffered.

For example, you might need to pay for certain medical equipment like an inhaler, or you might have lost out on work payments because you couldn’t work. If that’s the case, special damages could make up part of your payout.

Unlike special damages, general damages always appear in a medical negligence compensation payout. Those working out how much compensation you receive may use your medical evidence for guidance. Additionally, they could look at the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document compiles guideline compensation brackets accounting for various forms of injury or medical condition.

Continue reading for some insight into guideline compensation brackets for different conditions. Otherwise, you can contact our advisors for more detailed information on hospital negligence compensation you could claim.

A calculator and a stethoscope.

Compensation Table

We have used JCG figures to collate the table you see below. Only the top entry does not use JCG brackets. It is worth remembering that all medical negligence claims are different, so this does not offer a guarantee of what you would be awarded.

HARMAMOUNT
Multiple Forms Of Severe Harm Plus Financial CostsUp to £1,000,000+
Brain Damage - Very Severe£344,150 to £493,000
Kidney - Serious Damage/Loss of Both Kidneys£206,730 to £256,780
Bladder - Complete Loss of Function and ControlUp to £171,680
Lung Disease - For A Young Person£122,850 to £165,860
Bowels - Severe Abdominal Injury£54,420 to £85,100
Chest - Damage to Chest and Lungs£38,210 to £66,920
Spleen - Loss of Spleen£25,380 to £32,090
Wrist - Less Severe Injuries£15,370 to £29,900
Scarring to Other Parts of the Body - A Number of Noticeable Laceration Scars£9,560 to £27,740

Why Claim For Hospital Negligence On A No Win No Fee Basis?

Our experienced solicitors have a proven track record in helping claimants settle medical negligence claims on terms that they’re satisfied with. A solicitor could help you through every step of the hospital negligence claims process, providing legal representation and sound expert advice.

Claimants who are worried about the financial risk of a claim benefit from the Conditional Fee Agreement offered by our solicitors. It means that:

  • You do not pay for the solicitor’s legal fees in advance or during the claim.
  • There’s no solicitor fee to pay at all in a losing case.
  • If you win your claim, your solicitor collects a percentage of the compensation awarded to you as their success fee. However, because The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 lays out a legal cap, they can only take a small percentage of your payout.

At this stage, you may be interested in working with a medical negligence solicitor. Whether you know you have a valid claim or have yet to find out, our advisors are on hand to help.

For anything from an enquiry to a full claim assessment, all for free and with no obligation to start legal action, please use our ‘Claim Online’ form today. Additionally, if we find that you have reasonable grounds to claim, an expert solicitor could be connected to you right away.

More Resources About Medical Negligence Claims

For related information:

We hope our guide has helped. If you have questions about making a hospital negligence claim, please get in touch.