Losing a limb can be extremely traumatic. You could suffer physical and mental consequences as well as financial losses. If you have lost a limb you may be wondering whether you could be eligible to make a personal injury claim. Below, we set out the specific criteria all amputation claims must meet to be deemed as valid. Additionally, we share examples of different accidents that could lead to you losing a limb.
Furthermore, we share the evidence you could gather to help support your chances of making a successful amputation compensation claim. Following this, we discuss how your loss of limb compensation could be calculated and the financial losses you could also potentially claim for.
After this, we discuss time limits for starting a personal injury claim. We also share how a solicitor from our panel could help you and the benefits of working with them on a No Win No Fee basis.
Contact our team of advisors today to discuss your case, receive answers to your questions about the personal injury claims process and obtain free advice. They can be reached by:
- Calling 0800 408 7827
- Asking a question using the live chat feature.
- Contacting us online to arrange a callback.
Jump To A Section
- What Are Amputation Claims?
- How To Sue For An Amputation
- How Much Amputation Compensation Could I Receive?
- What Else Can I Include In My Amputation Compensation Claim?
- What Is The Time Limit For Amputation Claims?
- Why Make A No Win No Fee Amputation Compensation Claim?
- Read More About Claiming For Personal Injury
What Are Amputation Claims?
Amputation claims are a type of compensation claim made against a responsible third party that caused an accident that resulted in you losing a limb. This could include accidents that caused you to lose a limb directly or suffer a serious injury that required you to receive an amputation, such as a severe crush injury.
However, in order for you to have a valid amputation claim, you must meet the following personal injury claim requirements:
- A third party owed you a duty of care at the place and time of your accident.
- They breached it in some manner.
- This led to an accident in which you suffered your injury.
To proceed with a claim, all three criteria must be met. A duty of care is a legal responsibility placed upon someone to take steps to ensure your reasonable safety. If this duty is breached, it could lead to an accident where you are injured. Some examples include:
Accident At Work
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA) states that all employers owe a duty of care to their employees. It sets out that reasonable and practicable steps must be taken by the employer to prevent their employees from encountering harm as they work.
Among other obligations, this includes performing regular risk assessments, providing employees with correct training, and ensuring workplace machinery is safe for use and regularly maintained.
An accident at work could occur if an employer were to breach this duty of care. For example:
- An employer failed to repair or replace a known faulty piece of machinery on a production line within a factory. This resulted in an employee’s arm becoming amputated in the machine when it malfunctioned.
Accidents in a Public Place
The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 details the duty of care for those in control of spaces open to the general public. The occupier must take steps to prevent the public from being harmed and ensure their reasonable safety while using the space for its intended purpose. For example, they should address any hazards they come across or are reported to them within a timely manner.
An accident in a public place could occur if an occupier were to breach their duty of care. For example:
- Automatic doors to the entrance of a shopping centre malfunction due to them not being regularly maintained. This results in a customer getting their hand trapped in the door, and it is severely crushed, later requiring the hand to be amputated.
Road Traffic Accidents
All road users are obliged to drive in a way that presents the least risk of harm to other road users. This is their duty of care, and they must also comply with laws in the Road Traffic Act 1988 and other obligations and rules in the Highway Code. For example, road users should adhere to the relevant speed limits and pay close attention to the roads.
A road traffic accident could occur if a road user were to breach their duty of care. For example:
- A drunk driver travels above the legal speed limit and causes a serious collision, which results in the other driver suffering multiple injuries, including severe traumatic injury to their legs, which later require them to be amputated.
If you have any questions regarding the eligibility requirements for amputation compensation claims, or if you would like to see if you could claim compensation for your own limb loss, you can contact our advisors.
How To Sue For An Amputation
Evidence is an essential part of the personal injury claims process. It’s important to collect proof that shows how a breach in the duty of care owed to you caused your amputation.
Examples of evidence that could support amputation claims include:
- Copies of your medical notes that detail your injuries and what treatment you needed.
- The contact information of anyone who witnessed the accident and injury.
- CCTV or dashcam footage that captured the accident that caused the amputation.
- Take photos of the area where the accident happened and the hazard that caused it.
- Keep a personal record of important events, treatments and your mental state.
One of the personal injury solicitors on our panel could help you with gathering this and any other additional evidence that could support your case. Contact our advisors today to learn whether you could work with one of them.
How Much Amputation Compensation Could I Receive?
How much compensation could be awarded in amputation claims will depend on the various factors affecting each case.
However, the head of loss known as general damages will always be awarded for every successful personal injury claim. This compensates for the mental and physical suffering the amputation injuries and accident have caused you.
Those responsible for calculating general damages often use medical evidence to guide them. In addition to this, they might refer to a document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), which provides compensation guidelines for a variety of injuries.
We’ve used some of the JCG’s entries regarding amputations for the following table. Please only use this as a guide, and note that the top entry does not come from the JCG.
Compensation Guidelines
| Type of Harm | How Severe? | Award Guidelines |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries with Special Damages | Severe | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Arm Amputations | (a) Loss of both arms | £293,850 to £366,100 |
| (b) Loss of one arm amputated at the shoulder (i) | Not less that £167,380 | |
| (b) Loss of one arm amputation above elbow (ii) | £133,810 to £159,770 | |
| Leg | (a) Loss of both legs (i) | £293,850 to £344,150 |
| (b) Loss of one arm below elbow amputation(iii) | £117,360 to £133,810 | |
| (a) Below-knee amputation of both legs (ii) | £245,900 to £329,620 | |
| (a) Above knee amputation of one leg (iii) | £127,930 to £167,760 | |
| (a) Below knee amputation of one leg (iv) | £119,570 to £162,290 | |
| Hands | (a) Total or effective loss of both hands | £171,680 to £245,900 |
| (c) Total or effective loss of one hand | £117,360 to £133,810 | |
| Foot | (a) Amputation of both feet | £206,730 to £245,900 |
| (b) Amputation of one foot | £102,470 to £133,810 |
For a free valuation of your claim, you can contact one of the friendly advisors on our team.
What Else Can I Include In My Amputation Compensation Claim?
Special damages are the second head of loss that may comprise a successful compensation award. These reimburse the claimant for any related financial harm caused by the injuries. For example, following an amputation you may have needed to take time off of work. Any lost earnings you experienced could be compensated under special damages. Other examples could include:
- Care costs, whether from professionals or acquaintances.
- Medical expenses, such as rehabilitation fees.
- The cost of essential travel.
- The costs of adaptations needed at home or in your vehicle.
All of these losses will need to be proven with evidence such as payslips, receipts and bank statements.
Contact our advisors today to learn what other financial losses you could potentially claim for under special damages as part of your personal injury claim.
What Is The Time Limit For Amputation Claims?
The personal injury claim time limit is usually three years from the date of the injury as set out in the Limitation Act 1980. This also applies to amputation claims.
However, for those who suffered their injury as a minor, the time limit does not begin until their 18th birthday. Additionally, it is permanently paused for those who do not have the mental capability to launch their own claim. For this particular case, the time limit will only begin from the date of recovery if the claimant were to regain this mental capability.
In both cases where the time limit is paused, the court could appoint a litigation friend to claim on their behalf, such as a parent or solicitor.
To see whether you could claim on behalf of someone else or to find out if you still have enough time to begin your own claim, you can contact our advisors.
Why Make A No Win No Fee Amputation Compensation Claim?
The specialist amputation solicitors on our panel have lots of experience handling various types of amputation claims and could help you with:
- Collecting evidence.
- Submitting your claim within the time limit.
- Communicating with the liable party.
- Negotiating your compensation.
In addition to this, the solicitors on our panel operate on a No Win No Fee basis by providing their clients with a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means no solicitors’ fees are required upfront or as the claim progresses for their work. No fees apply for completed solicitor’s services if the claim fails either.
Under this agreement, should the claim settle in your favour, a success fee is deducted from the compensation awarded to you. This fee is a percentage and subject to a legal limit that guarantees that you always benefit the most.
To see whether one of the solicitors on our panel could help you with your amputation injury claim, you can contact our advisors by:
- Calling 0800 408 7827
- Asking a question using the live chat feature.
- Contacting us online to arrange a callback.
Read More About Claiming For Personal Injury
Additional guides on personal injury claims:
- Learn how to sue for a scaffolding accident that caused you to suffer an injury:
- Guidance on suing a theme park for an accident and your subsequent injuries.
- Advice on claiming for a rear-end collision that wasn’t your fault.
Some useful external resources:
- Information about amputation from the NHS can be found here.
- Guidance on receiving statutory sick pay from Gov.UK.
- Support and guidance from the amputation charity Finding Your Feet.
Should you have any additional questions regarding amputation claims, you can contact our advisors.