With Limitation so strictly applied, when would you want to wait to start your claim?
There are occasions when you might know that a negligent act has been committed, but you do not yet know exactly when it was, or what it has caused in terms of injury. In personal injury claims, there are three ‘hurdles’ to clear in order to succeed. The first, liability, also known as breach of duty, is the negligent act that gives you the right to start the claim. However, for the claim to be worth anything to you, there must be “causation”, which is the legal link between the act of negligence and some kind of injury or loss. Finally, there is “quantum, the size of that injury or loss.
So, whilst you might now be aware that your radiologist missed something when checking your x-ray, you may not know if there has been any damage caused. In that instance, you might choose to wait.
Often, it is only following further investigation work and medical treatment, that you might know whether there is any damage, or if the medical negligence you have suffered, has delayed your recovery. At this point, you might want to bring your claim for medical negligence compensation, now that you know what you are facing.
On other occasions, you might feel that you want to make a complaint first, so you can see what the practitioner says about the negligence before deciding to instruct a solicitor specialising in medical negligence claims. When your expert medical negligence solicitor writes to the negligent practitioner, this commences the formal legal protocols and the matter will instantly be passed to a legal team or medical union for a response to be prepared. Sometimes, the reply to a complaint can be more open and whilst it is very rare for them to openly concede a full breach of duty, it can sometimes offer an insight into what has gone wrong. The letter will be classed as an open document and can be used to evidence your claim.
Have you suffered medical negligence in the last three years?
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