Accident and Emergency (A&E) Negligence Claims

Our specialist Clinical Negligence lawyers have supported hundreds of clients throughout the South West and beyond in making successful claims for A&E negligence, helping them to get vital compensation for injuries caused by poor or negligent A&E treatment. If you or a loved one have suffered an injury or a condition has worsened as a result of negligent A&E treatment, we can help you secure the justice and compensation to which you are entitled.

Our approach to A&E negligence claims

Visits to A&E are often stressful events and staff and often under pressure to make potentially life-saving decisions and manage waiting times. But whatever the emergency, you have a right to expect a high standard of care and treatment. When standards fall short and you suffer further pain or your condition worsens as a result of the negligence or inadequacy of the staff and resources available, you may be eligible to make a claim for A&E clinical negligence.

Our specialist Clinical Negligence team combine expert legal knowledge in this field with a sympathetic and human approach. We will break down the jargon and help you to understand how to make a complaint and launch a claim for compensation. Working closely with expert medical professionals, we will help build your case, showing where A&E care was negligent, and provide guidance at every stage of your claim so that you have the best possible chance of securing compensation.

Of course, financial awards can’t fully compensate you for the pain and distress that go with A&E clinical negligence, especially if it has long-term consequences for you or your loved one, but they can help you to make any necessary adjustments to your lifestyle and get your life back on track. Making a claim may also help to highlight weaknesses in the A&E department that you attended and help ensure that similar problems do not occur in the future.

Many of the A&E clinical negligence claims that we advise on are handled on a no win no fee basis, meaning that there is no financial risk to you if your claim is unsuccessful.

Can you make an A&E negligence claim?

Our Clinical Negligence lawyers have years of experience helping people successfully claim compensation for A&E clinical negligence, including:

• Mistakes in taking a patient history
• Poor physical examination of a patient
• Misdiagnosis or a delay in diagnosis
• Failure to carry out investigations such as scans or blood tests correctly
• Misinterpretation or loss of the results of investigations such as x-rays, scans or blood tests
• Failure to refer a patient to the appropriate specialist
• Delay in treatment
• Incorrect treatment
• Failure to detect fractures from scans leading to prolonged and unnecessary pain
• Failure to detect foreign bodies, such as glass, in a wound
• Failure to act on symptoms suggestive of a serious illness, leading to a worsened outcome
• Failure to seek appropriate help from senior doctors with the ability to diagnose and treat complex conditions

Making an A&E negligence claim could help you secure compensation that would enable you to access expert care and rehabilitation to meet your ongoing and future needs. It could also provide support if your loved one has sadly died as a result of A&E negligence.

How much will your NHS negligence claim cost?

In many cases, we will be able to support you on a no win no fee basis, meaning that if your claim is not successful, you will not have to pay any legal fees. If your child has suffered serious brain injury at birth as a result of A&E negligence you may be eligible for legal aid to support your claim.

Whatever your case, we offer a free initial consultation to help you understand the process and the likely funding basis of your claim.

How long do I have to make a A&E negligence claim?

You usually have up to three years from the date of the incident or when its effects were first apparent to start a clinical negligence claim for A&E negligence.

If the claim is for your child, you have until their 18th birthday to make a claim on their behalf. After this it becomes the responsibility of the child to make the claim, with the three-year limit starting when they reach the age of 18. If they lack the ‘capacity’ to handle their own affairs, the time limit does not apply. Similarly, if the A&E negligence claim is on behalf of an adult incapable of handling their own affairs, the limitation does not apply.

We recommend that you contact us as soon as possible, so that our clinical negligence lawyers can explain the process of claiming compensation, start your claim and help you access any other support and/or rehabilitation you need.

How much compensation could you receive?

Every case of A&E negligence is different. That’s why it is important to get expert advice from qualified specialist lawyers who really understand the unique nature of each A&E negligence issue and who are experienced in working with medical professionals to truly understand its long-term implications.

The amount you can claim will depend on a number of factors, including the severity of the injury or condition, any financial losses you or your loved one have suffered or will suffer in the future, and any changes to your lifestyle that you have to make as a result of the A&E negligence. Whatever the case, our specialist clinical negligence lawyers will ensure that you get the compensation and support you are entitled to.

Of course, financial awards can’t fully compensate you or your loved one for injuries or conditions caused by A&E negligence or address any long-term consequences. But compensation can help you to make any necessary adjustments to your lifestyle and help you get your life back on track. Compensation could also help to provide vital support if you or your loved one have lost the capacity to work as a result of NHS negligence.