Personal Injury Compensation Claims

The compensation that you can expect to receive as a result of winning your claim will be made up of two elements.

The first is an award for Pain, Suffering and Loss of Amenity (known as General Damages) which reflects the type and extent of injury you suffered.

The second element is for the financial losses and expenses that you otherwise would not have suffered and incurred had the accident and consequential injuries not occurred (known as Special Damages). Such an award can compensate you for both past and future losses and expenses.

See below for a more detailed explanation of both types of compensation.

1. General Damages (or Compensation for Injuries Sustained)

If you suffered a whiplash injury to your neck in a road traffic accident and this lasted for a period of, say, 12 months then you could expect to recover a sum of up to £3,630. But if you suffered the whiplash injury for say two years, then you could expect to recover up to £6,600. For fractures which often lead to greater pain and suffering than just neck ache, you could recover more compensation.

No two cases are ever the same and usually always result in different amounts of compensation being awarded. An injury to one person can account for greater pain and suffering being experienced than for someone else. 

The courts refer to a set of guideline rates as an initial guide to what an injury is worth. Examples as at September 2015 include:

• Whiplash injury to neck lasting 12 months - between £2,050 and £3,630
• Fracture of ankle recovering in less than 12 months - £4,590
• Broken finger – up to £3,960
• Broken wrist – up to £7,350
• Scarring to a woman’s face that requires camouflage by use of make up – £3,300 to £11,500
• But similar scarring to a man’s face requiring use of skin creams – only £3,000 to £7,620
• Loss of a front tooth - £1,840 to £3,300
• Very severe brain damage – between £235,790 and £337,700
• Paraplegia - £183,150 to £237,600

As you can see the amount of compensation awarded for even the most serious injuries does not amount to very much. Only being awarded £200,000 in compensation for being paralysed from the chest down and losing the use of your legs when you are in your mid-20s is hardly compensation when it wasn’t your fault a drunk driver mounted a pavement and knocked you down as you were walking along minding your own business.

However, in a case such as this you would also be entitled to an award of compensation for your past and future financial losses and expenses too. This is dealt with below under Special Damages.

2. Special Damages (or Compensation for Financial Losses and Expenses)

An award of compensation for your financial losses and expenses is designed to reimburse you for all that which you otherwise would not have incurred or spent money on but for your accident and injuries.

You could be awarded compensation for past and future losses and expenses. 

For instance you could recover compensation for the following: 

• loss of earnings including overtime and bonuses
• damaged clothing
• travel expenses to hospital
• prescriptions and over the counter medication
• bandages and elasticated supports
• care and assistance
• the cost of extra gardening or DIY
• increases in utility bills
• if severely injured, the cost of improvements to existing or new improved housing, care workers, stair lifts, hoists etc.

The list of what can be claimed for is not finite. Any claim depends upon the circumstances in which it was lost or incurred and so long as it is considered to be reasonable in the eyes of a court then it is likely that you can recover compensation for it.

It is much better for you if you tell us what you have lost or incurred so that we can judge whether it is recoverable or not.

T G Baynes can offer No Win No Fee Agreements (CFAs) on qualifying cases.  If you would like to speak to us about making a  Compensation Claim, please call us on 020 8301 7777 or email info@tgbaynes.com.