Hospital Negligence Claims

What is Hospital Negligence?

Hospital Negligence is legal speak for errors or accidents caused by hospital staff that result in an injury or make existing conditions worse. This area is also known as Medical Negligence.

Hospital Negligence can leave lasting physical and psychological effects. Common examples include incorrect or delayed treatment, surgical errors, and misdiagnosis, all of which can happen in NHS and private hospitals.

In England and Wales, everybody has the right to an acceptable standard of hospital care. Medical professionals deal with a huge number of appointments, treatments and emergency visits, handling most of them without problems. But if something goes wrong, and you or a loved one suffers as a result, the consequences can be life-changing.

Making a Hospital Negligence claim could help you start to recover. Our specialists could help you secure financial compensation and once the hospital trust has admitted responsibility, we can get interim payments to arrange the best support and rehabilitation available.     

How Common are Hospital Negligence Cases?

Unfortunately, Hospital Negligence cases are common and can happen in any department. According to NHS Resolution’s 2019-20 annual report, the NHS received 11,682 Medical Negligence claims over the year.

What Are the Different Types of Hospital Negligence? 

Common Medical Negligence cases linked to hospitals include:

• Failure to manage infections like sepsis
• Delayed diagnosis or treatment, e.g., in A&E
• Misdiagnosis
• Incorrect treatment or medication, including anaesthetics
• Surgical errors
• Failure to prevent pressure sores
• Childbirth injuries
• Failure to manage Neurological conditions such as brain and spinal cord injuries
• Treatment leading to an unnecessary amputation

Hospital Negligence claims can also include common mistakes made by clinicians such as:

• Failing to examine you properly
• Failing to take your medical history into account
• Not carrying out the appropriate investigations
• Not interpreting results correctly
• Making administrative errors, such as failing to provide follow-up services
• Failing to warn you of the risks of a particular treatment

What is a Hospital-Acquired Infection and What Causes Them?

Hospital-acquired infections are those that people pick up in hospital and didn’t have before going in. They can be caused or spread by a failure to properly clean hospital equipment, and severe cases can be life-threatening.

Missed or delayed diagnosis in Hospitals

Managing and diagnosing infections, such as sepsis or Meningitis, is a key responsibility of the hospital and the implications of a missed or delayed diagnosis, can have very serious consequences and you could claim compensation for Hospital Negligence.

Can I Sue a Hospital for Negligence?  

We mostly go to hospital expecting to leave feeling better. But mistakes happen, and standards of care aren’t always met. If you’ve been harmed by something a medical professional did or failed to do, you could take legal action.

Your suffering could be immediately obvious or only noticeable over time. Whatever your situation, our Hospital Negligence Solicitors can help you understand whether you could claim compensation and will explain your options moving forward. Speak to our friendly team today for a Free Claims Assessment.

While compensation can’t erase what happened, it could bring a sense of closure and help you enjoy the best quality of life possible in the future. And by holding a hospital or individual to account, making a successful claim could prevent similar situations happening to other people.  

You can also take legal action on behalf of loved ones including:

• Someone who doesn’t have capacity to make a claim themselves, because of a neurological condition or brain injury for example
• Someone who died because of Hospital Negligence
• Children under the age of 18

Can I Sue for Medical Negligence at a Private Hospital?

You can make Hospital Negligence claims against private healthcare providers as well as NHS hospitals. All doctors registered with the General Medical Council have a duty of care to you and must meet certain professional standards, no matter who they work for.

How Much Compensation Can I Claim for Hospital Negligence?

It’s a common question, but because every case is different, there’s no easy answer. But you can rest assured that our Hospital Negligence Solicitors will fight to get you the compensation you deserve.

We’ll talk through what happened and work to establish the impact Hospital Negligence has had, and could have, on your life. That could include:

• Pain and suffering, including psychological harm
• The loss of past or future earnings. You may have been forced to take time off, look for a different job or perhaps never work again
• Any adjustments to your home or vehicle because of your injuries
• The cost of any care, treatment and extra equipment
• Travel expenses to treatment and appointments

Compensation for Hospital Negligence can help you rebuild your life by easing financial pressure and allowing you access to care you may need in the future. If the NHS Trust or private hospital admits responsibility, we’ll ask for an interim payment. They are sums of compensation paid upfront so you can pay for rehabilitation, treatment or any immediate costs you’re facing.    

You can read details of successful Hospital Negligence cases we’ve handled in our case studies hub to see if any are similar your situation. Examples include:

£12 million for severe childbirth injuries

£292,000 for failure to advise on the risks of surgery

£500,000 for delayed breast cancer diagnosis

£50,000 Compensation for Sepsis

How to Claim for Hospital Negligence

Proving Hospital Negligence can be difficult. You’ll need to show that your treatment fell below acceptable medical standards and directly caused your injury or illness.

Even if you’re not sure if you have a claim, it’s best to speak to our legal specialists as soon as possible. We offer a Free Claims Assessment where we’ll learn more about your situation and tell you if we think you have grounds to make a claim.

If we do, we’ll talk you through your options and next steps. This initial chat comes with no cost or obligation. It’s totally up to you whether you take your case further.   

Why Choose Simpson Millar as Your Hospital Negligence Solicitors?

While medical errors are rarely intentional, Hospital Negligence can have serious consequences. If you need legal support as a result, there are several good reasons to get in touch with our team.     

Our specialist Hospital Negligence Solicitors have the right experience and expertise in this area to calculate and secure the compensation you deserve. Learn more about our experts

We have a broad network of other professionals to lean on. We can organise the best possible treatment and care for your situation, as well as connect you with financial advisors for help managing your compensation

Hospital Negligence claims can be stressful, but we’ll take the pressure off while keeping you updated every step of the way. We’ll always speak to you in clear, easy to understand language

You can trust the quality of our services. We’re members of both the Law Society’s Clinical Negligence Accreditation scheme and the Action against Medical Accidents (AvMA) Clinical Negligence panel and this shows our expertise as there is a strict admissions process to access these accreditations.

What is the Hospital Negligence Claims Process Like?

Every Hospital Negligence claim we deal with starts with you getting in touch with our team for a Free Claims Assessment. From there, you can expect the process to work something like this:

Our Major Trauma Team

If you or a loved one has suffered a life-changing injury, we can help you get the right support and advice. With Simpson Millar, you’ll have a whole team on your side. We have some of the best personal injury solicitors in England and Wales and other specialist legal teams to meet all your needs. This should reassure you that you’ve come to the right place.

You’re probably facing many day-to-day challenges after your injury, so we want to make dealing with any legal issues as seamless and stress-free as possible. Then you can focus on your recovery and living a fulfilling, independent life.

Our dedicated team have the experience and knowledge to guide you through every step. We know choosing someone to help you can be an difficult decision, but hopefully we can prove that you’ve made the best choice.

Awards & Accreditations

A number of our Clinical and Medical Negligence Solicitors are members of the Law Society’s Medical Negligence Panel and AvMA Solicitors Referral Panel.

Check our full list of accreditations or browse the many awards we have won for our work. This includes several wins at the Personal Injury Awards.

Simpson Millar subscribes as a member of the AvMA Lawyer's Service and The Society of Clinical Injury Lawyers