Head Injury Claims – How To Claim Compensation

This guide will discuss the process of making head injury claims. We will look at the steps you’ll have to take to receive compensation for your injury and how claims are valued.

head injury claims

Head injury claims guide

We’ll be discussing how in order to make a successful claim, a third party must have broken their duty of care to you, resulting in you being injured. This article will include examples of the evidence you could provide in support of your claim.

As well as this, we’ll also be exploring what No Win No Fee agreements are and what they can mean for your personal injury claim if you would prefer to work with a lawyer but want to avoid the upfront costs that this can entail.

If you’ve got any questions, or want to see if you could begin your claim, then you can get in touch with our advisors anytime by using the contact details below:

Choose A Section

  1. A Guide To Head Injury Claims
  2. When Are You Able To Claim For A Head Injury?
  3. Potential Evidence That Could Be Used In Head Injury Claims
  4. Head Injury Claims – What Compensation Could You Recieve?
  5. Use Our Panel Of No Win No Fee Personal Injury Solicitors To Claim
  6. Learn More About How To Claim For A Head Injury

A Guide To Head Injury Claims

This guide aims to provide you with information that could be useful to you when making a head injury claim. In this article, we’ll cover the different scenarios in which a breach of duty of care could cause you to sustain an injury.

Further on in this guide, we’ll look at the different types of evidence that you can use to support your claim. We will also address how our No Win No Fee solicitors’ services may benefit you, providing you have a valid claim.

Head injuries can come in various severities, ranging from life-changing and severe permanent damage to relatively minor head injuries and concussions. Because of this, the amount of compensation you could be awarded in a successful claim might also vary.

If you have any queries or want to start your claim, then you can get in touch with us by using the contact details above. If you have a valid claim, they could connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel.

When Are You Able To Claim For A Head Injury?

You would only be able to make a head injury claim if you could prove that your injury was caused by third-party negligence. This means that the third party in question:

  1. Owed you a duty of care
  2. Breached this duty that they owed you
  3. Caused or contributed to your injury because they breached their duty of care

Below, we give some examples of accidents that could occur as a result of a breach of duty of care.

Accidents At Work

Every employer has a duty of care to their employees; this is outlined in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.  This means that an employer will be expected to take reasonably practicable steps to ensure the safety of those that they employ.

Below are a few examples of potential accidents at work that you could make a claim for, provided they were caused by negligence:

  • An employer fails to provide the necessary training resulting in an employee sustaining a head injury because they fell while lifting something that was too heavy
  • An employer fails to check and maintain factory equipment. As a result, they injure themselves in an accident involving faulty equipment and sue their employer.

Accidents In A Public Place

“Occupiers” of public spaces (meaning those who are in control of them) also have a duty of care to every public member who uses their facilities. This means that they have to ensure the reasonable safety of members of the public who use the space for the intended purpose. This is outlined in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.

Below are a few types of examples that you’d be able to make a claim for:

Road Traffic Accidents

Every road user has a duty of care to ensure they act in a  way that reduces the risk of injury to themselves and others while on the road. This means that if these rules are broken, then this is an example of a road user breaching their duty of care. The Highway Code contains guidance for proper road conduct, some of which is elsewhere backed up by legislation, such as the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Below are a couple of examples of scenarios that could lead to making a successful road traffic accident claim:

  • A driver is distracted behind the wheel, resulting in them hitting your vehicle from behind whilst on the road because they failed to leave the appropriate stopping distance.
  • A drunk driver fails to notice that the light is red, meaning that they hit you as you cross as a pedestrian

Potential Evidence That Could Be Used In Head Injury Claims

In order to make a successful head injury claim, it’s important to prove that your injury was caused by the negligence of someone who owed you a duty of care. This section will clarify different types of evidence that you can use to strengthen your claim.

Below is a short list of the types of evidence that you can use when proving negligence resulted in your injury:

  • CCTV footage of the accident; if you’ve been involved in a road traffic accident, then dash cam footage could prove useful too.
  • Getting medical care and asking for copies of any records produced
  • Taking photographs of your injury and the accident
  • Witness contact details so that they can give a witness statement at a later date
  • Keeping a diary of your treatment and symptoms.

If you’re struggling to find evidence to support your head injury claim, then working with a lawyer could be beneficial; they could help you collect any evidence that will support your personal injury claim. You could be connected with a solicitor from our panel if one of our advisors feels your case is valid.

Is There A Time Limit To Make A Head Injury Accident Claim?

The standard personal injury claims time limit for starting a claim is three years. This either is from the accident’s date or the date that you became aware your injuries were caused by negligence. This is outlined in the Limitation Act 1980

If a person lacks the mental capacity to make a claim or is under the age of eighteen, then a litigation friend could claim on their behalf.  In this case, the time limit for claiming is suspended unless a person regained the mental capacity to make a claim or turned eighteen, at which point they have 3 years to do it themselves.

If you would like guidance on the time limit that applies to claims, speak with an advisor today.

Head Injury Claims – What Compensation Could You Recieve?

This section will discuss general damages, which is one of the heads of claim that can make up personal injury compensation. Below are a table detailing compensation brackets you may be entitled to after a head injury.

These figures come from the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This publication is used by solicitors and other legal professionals to help them value claims.

The amount you actually receive might differ from the amounts in the table below. This is due to the many different factors that are considered when valuing general damages.

InjuryNotesCompensation
Brain and Head Injury(a) Very Severe£282,010 - £403,990
Brain and Head Injury(b) Moderately Severe£219,070 - £282,010
Brain and Head Injury(c) Moderate (i)£150,110 - £219,070
Brain and Head Injury(c) Moderate (ii)£90,720 - £150,110
Brain and Head Injury(c) Moderate (iii)£43,060 - £90,720
Brain and Head Injury(d) Less Severe£15,320 - £43,060
Brain and Head Injury(e) Minor Injury£2,210 - £12,770
EpilepsyOne or two episodes of epilepsy. £10,640 - £26,290
Skeletal Injuries(e) Fractures of Jaws (ii)£17,960 - £30,490
Skeletal Injuries(d) Fractures of Cheekbones (i)£10,200 - £15,780

Could You Also Recieve Special Damages Compensation In My Head Injury Claim Amount?

Special damages are another head of claim that has the potential to make up your overall compensation amount. These damages aim to reimburse you for any financial losses you may have accrued as a direct result of your injuries. This can include:

  • Cost of care
  • Modifications to your home that you need to cope with your injuries
  • Any medication or prescriptions you have had to pay for
  • Loss of earnings if your injuries meant you had to take time off work

Similarly to general damages, you’ll have to provide evidence to receive compensation for these financial losses; this can include invoices, receipts, or bank statements, for example.

Use Our Panel Of No Win No Fee Personal Injury Solicitors To Claim

If you’re interested in making a personal injury claim, then you may find it beneficial to use one of the No Win No Fee solicitors from our panel. Solicitors who don’t work under a No Win No Fee agreement might expect you to make upfront payments to secure their services and continue these costs as your claim progresses.

By using a No Win No Fee solicitor working under a kind of No Win No Fee agreement called a Conditional Fee Agreement, you won’t usually be asked to pay them upfront, as they work on your claim or in the event that you’re not awarded compensation.

If you do receive a settlement, your solicitor will take a success fee. This amount is legally capped and comes out of your compensation total before it reaches you.

Learn More About How To Claim For A Head Injury

If you’d like to learn more about personal injury claims, then you can read these guides below to learn more:

Alternatively, you can follow these external links to learn more about head injury claims.

Article by Pow

Edited by Sto