How To Sue For GP Negligence? – A Complete Guide

Have you suffered from unnecessary harm due to the negligent actions or omissions of your general practitioner (GP)? If so, you may be eligible to make a medical negligence claim to be compensated for your suffering. This guide will explain how to sue your GP for negligence with the help of our panel of experienced No Win No Fee solicitors.

Key Takeaways

  • GPs owe their patients a duty of care and must not cause avoidable or unnecessary harm.
  • If your GP caused your avoidable suffering, you may be eligible to make a medical negligence claim.
  • Compensation awards are calculated based on your physical and mental harm and financial losses.
  • You typically have three years to start your claim. However, there may be some exceptions to this rule.
  • Our panel of experienced solicitors may help you claim on a No Win No Fee basis.

If you have any questions about starting a medical negligence claim with our panel of solicitors, have a chat with our advisors during a free initial consultation by:

GP with his head in his hands after acting negligently by failing to refer patient for further tests

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Common Reasons People Sue Their GP For Negligence

GPs tend to have a broad arena of medical knowledge. Although they are not specialists in one specific area, they can diagnose and prescribe treatment for many injuries and conditions. However, if they fail to provide the correct standard of care, this may result in patients suffering from avoidable or unnecessary harm.

Common reasons why people may sue their GP include:

  • Avoidable harm caused by a misdiagnosis
  • Failing to refer patients to specialist medical professionals
  • Harm caused by prescription errors
  • Harm caused by delayed treatment

If you are unsure whether you are eligible to sue your GP, get in touch with our friendly advisors to discuss the harm you have suffered. You can ask them any questions you may have and work together to start a claim if you are eligible to do so.

Am I Eligible To Sue My GP For Negligence?

If you have suffered from avoidable or unnecessary harm due to your GPs actions or omissions, you may ask, ‘Am I eligible to sue my GP for negligence?’

All GPs must meet the correct or minimum standard of care while treating their patients. If they fail to do so, they would be in breach of their duty and may be responsible for causing avoidable or unnecessary harm to their patients.

To be eligible to sue your GP, you must meet the following eligibility criteria:

  • Your GP owed you a duty of care
  • Your GP committed negligent actions or omissions, breaching this duty
  • This resulted in you suffering from avoidable or unnecessary harm

Although all GPs are legally obliged to follow good medical practice and maintain a duty of care, sometimes, they fail to meet such standards. If you suffered from harm that was avoidable or unnecessary, discuss this with our advisors today to find out how to sue your GP for negligence.

The Impact Of GP Negligence On Patients

When we are concerned about our health and well-being, we all put our faith and trust in GPs to provide professional and supportive healthcare. Therefore, when they fail to meet the correct standard of care and cause avoidable harm, understandably, we become frustrated and distrustful.

You may assume that because you visit GPs for initial treatment and diagnosis, their negligent conduct or omission may not have a devastating impact. However, it may result in short or long-term consequences for patients.

For example, a patient may visit a GP because of ongoing stomach pain. If a GP negligently fails to transfer the patient for scans, assessments, or specialist consultations, their stomach cancer may go undiagnosed. This ultimately may cause the cancer to spread, causing avoidable harm and psychological problems such as stress and anxiety, which were unnecessary.

If a GP commits negligent actions or omissions, it may have a myriad of consequences for their patients. Therefore, if a GPs negligence has caused any of your suffering, you may contact our helpful advisors to discuss claiming compensation for any harm you have encountered.

GP reading medical documents after negligently misdiagnosing patient

How To Sue Your GP For Negligence

If you have suffered from avoidable or unnecessary harm from the negligent actions or omissions of your GP, you may be eligible to make a medical negligence claim. The following sections will explain how it may be possible to sue your GP for negligence with the help and support of our panel of solicitors.

Gather Evidence To Support Your Claim

When claiming against your GP, you must be able to prove that they committed a negligent act or an omission which breached their duty of care, resulting in your avoidable harm. You must provide evidence that establishes liability for the harm you suffered, such as

  • Medical records
  • Copies of scans
  • Copies of prescriptions
  • Medical correspondents
  • Witness contact details

If you are struggling to obtain evidence, our panel of solicitors may use their expertise to support you with this. They may then review the evidence and start building your case.

How Long You Have To Start A Claim

As with all medical negligence claims, there are some time restrictions regarding how long you have to start your claim. For example, in accordance with the Limitation Act 1980, you typically have three years to start your claim, beginning from the date the medical negligence occurred or the date you became aware of it.

As many people claim under different circumstances, some exceptions may apply to this rule, such as:

  • If the claimant is a minor, the time limit will be frozen until their eighteenth birthday and will end on their twenty-first birthday.
  • If the claimant lacks mental capacity, the time limit will be indefinitely frozen. However, if they regain mental capacity, the three-year time limit will commence.

If the time limit on a claim is frozen, a litigation friend may be appointed to act on behalf of the claimant throughout the claims process. Our advisors can give you more information on the role of litigation friends if necessary.

No Win No Fee Agreements – What They Mean For You

We are aware that you may have many questions about paying our panel of solicitors for their legal representation, so here is some useful information.

Our panel of solicitors operates on a No Win No Fee basis. This means that you may avoid paying upfront solicitor fees if you sign a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) with them.

If your claim is successful, you will pay our panel of solicitors a success fee. However, if you sign a CFA, this will be taken as a small and legally capped percentage of your compensation. If your claim is unsuccessful, you do not need to pay your solicitor for their work on your claim.

How Long It Can Take To Get GP Negligence Compensation

Another question you may have about claiming medical negligence compensation is, ‘How long will it take to get my compensation if my claim is successful?’

Unfortunately, at this initial stage, we cannot give you a specific date for when you may receive your award. This is because we cannot predict how long the claims process will take or how long it will take for your award to be calculated. However, some factors that may determine how long it may take to receive your payout include:

  • Whether you are still being treated for the harm you suffered
  • Whether or not the third party has accepted liability
  • Whether or not all of the evidence has been collected

Despite this, our panel of solicitors will work as quickly and effectively as possible to ensure you receive a compensation payout in a reasonable amount of time.

You may have many more questions about how to sue your GP for negligence. If so, please get in touch with our helpful advisors so that they can answer any questions and help you start your claim.

GP reading brain scan after failing to do so months ago, causing the patient further harm

How Much Compensation Can I Claim?

If you are eligible to make a medical negligence claim, one of the first questions you may want to ask is, ‘How much compensation can I claim?’

During the initial stages of the claims process, it would be difficult to state how much compensation you may be awarded. This is because a myriad of factors are considered when your award is being calculated. However, we can explain how your award is calculated and provide examples of suggestive compensation figures.

In medical negligence claims, compensation is split into two heads of claim, referred to as general damages and special damages.

Under the first head of claim, general damages, you are compensated for the avoidable or unnecessary harm you suffered, whether physical or psychological (or both).

An experienced team is responsible for calculating your general damages. When doing so, they often use documentation such as an independent medical assessor’s report to review all of the harm you suffered and compensation guidelines provided by the Judicial College (JCG).

The JCG lists injuries and illnesses next to their suggestive compensation brackets. If you look at the table below, you will see examples of compensation guideline amounts from the JCG, except for the top figure. However, they are suggestive figures only; you are not guaranteed these awards.

Injuries Compensation Guideline FigureExplanation
Multiple Serious Injuries and Significant Financial LossesUp to £500,000 plusMultiple injuries of a serious nature were sustained, as well as significant financial losses.
Kidney Injuries (a)£206,730 to £256,780Serious damage to or loss of both kidneys.
Moderate Brain Damage (i)£183,190 to £267,340The injured person suffered a moderate to severe intellectual deficit and personality change. It also impacted speech, sight and senses, limiting employability prospects.
Chest Injuries (a)£122,850 to £183,190Total removal of one lung and/or heart damage with serious accompanied by permanent suffering and scarring.
Bowel Injuries (b)Up to £183,190Complete loss of bowels natural function and dependent on colostomy.
Bladder Injuries (b)Up to £171,680Complete loss of function and control.
Severe Leg Injuries (ii) Very Serious£66,920 to £109,290Injuries causing permanent mobility issues, the injured person must use mobility aids indefinitely. Extensive treatment may be required.
Total Loss of One Eye£66,920 to £80,210This award depends on the injured person's age, and cosmetic and psychiatric consequences.
Wrist Injuries (b)£29,900 to £47,870Permanent and significant disability but limited useful movement continues.
Hernia (a)£18,180 to £29,490Ongoing pain and discomfort limiting the injured person's physical activities and employment, even after repair.

Special Damages – How They Relate To Negligence Claims

Under the head of claim special damages, you may be compensated for any financial losses you incurred as a result of your suffering. Some examples of special damages include:

  • Lost wages for any time you needed to take off work
  • Lost work benefits such as pension contributions, bonuses and holiday entitlement
  • Healthcare, childcare and travel costs
  • Home adjustment and special equipment costs

You must provide documentation of your out-of-pocket expenses, such as payslips, bank statements and receipts, to recover these costs. Our panel of solicitors may help you obtain proof if you are struggling with this.

Understandably, you may have a lot of questions about medical negligence compensation. Do not hesitate to contact our friendly advisors to learn more about how much compensation you may be entitled to.

How Our Panel Of Solicitors Can Help You Claim

If you are eligible to make a medical negligence claim for the avoidable harm you suffered as a result of your GPs negligence, our panel of solicitors want to help you. Understandably, this is a difficult time for you. Therefore, you may benefit from their experience and specialist skills as they may support you by:

  • Providing support throughout the claims process
  • Explaining legal documents and key terminology
  • Helping you obtain evidence to support your claim
  • Explaining medical negligence compensation and ensuring accurate calculation of your damages
  • Negotiating settlements with third parties

If you have any questions about starting a medical negligence claim with our panel of solicitors, ask our friendly advisors today by:

Solicitor explaining to client how to sue a GP for negligence and compensation amounts

More Information

To learn more about medical negligence claims, access the links below or ask our friendly advisors any questions you may have.

References:

Thank you for taking the time to read this guide, which explains how to sue a GP for negligence. We hope this was helpful. Please get in touch with our medical negligence specialists to discuss GP negligence claims today.