If your loved one died because of negligent medical treatment, we could help you claim compensation to support you at this difficult time.
We can help you with making a claim if you’re the dependent of the person who died, which can be one of the following relations:
- Husband/wife
- Former spouse (married for at least two years)
- Children
- Parents
- Cohabitee of over two years (living together without being married).
Get in touch with us to discuss your circumstances in a free initial consultation.
After you’ve got in touch we’ll set up a free initial consultation where we’ll talk about your situation. We’ll then explain what will happen if you need to attend a post-mortem and/or inquest, making sure you understand everything that’s going to happen.
We’ll always aim to make things as clear and easy as possible for you. We’ll talk you through a variety of funding options available to pay for your case, ensuring that the best method is chosen for your circumstances.
Our lawyers will then collect evidence to support your claim, including medical records, documents and the opinions of independent medical experts. Using this, we’ll come to a compensation amount that best supports your needs.
The majority of fatal medical negligence cases we handle are settled out of court. If we can’t reach a settlement which we feel is fair and reasonable, or the medical professional or organisation involved denies responsibility, we’ll start court proceedings.
Even if your claim does go to court, your case might not reach trial as we’re often able to agree a settlement before it reaches the court room. If your case does go to court, we’ll be there for you every step of the way ensuring that you have the best possible chances of getting the compensation you deserve.
Fatal mistakes in healthcare come in a wide range of issues.
Some of the most common reasons why you could claim compensation for a fatal medical mistake include:
If your loved one lost their life through a form of medical negligence not listed here, contact us to discuss whether you’re eligible to claim.
Our lawyers can support you in a number of ways if your loved one died because of negligent medical treatment. You might not only be suffering emotionally because of the loss, but you may also be facing financial issues.
We can get you funds to compensate for any pain and suffering caused prior to the death, as well as to pay for things such as:
- Funeral costs
- Loss of earnings
- Household expenses
- Medical expenses
- Loss of benefits (such as pension rights)
- Childcare costs
- Counselling services
To find out more about how compensation could help you and your family, contact our experts free on 0800 121 6567.
Our medical negligence lawyers might be able to help you get a statutory bereavement award, which is currently a flat rate of £15,120 (paid by your opponent) when a wrongful death has occurred. You can access this amount if you’re the spouse, civil partner or parent (if under 18) of the person who died.
Find out more about statutory bereavement awards.
Many of our cases are funded with a No Win No Fee agreement. This means that there’s no financial risk* to you when making a compensation claim.
At the start of your case we’ll discuss funding options with you, advising you which we think is most suitable. If you have legal expenses insurance (LEI) or are covered by a trade union policy, these may be best for you. Legal expenses insurance is included in many household insurance policies, so it’s always worth checking whether you’re already covered.
If we think you’re best supported by a No Win No Fee agreement, we’ll explain the process clearly. This involves setting up an insurance policy that will protect you, at no cost to you. You’ll only have to pay anything when your claim is successful – your opponent will pay most of our fees.
Please visit our No Win No Fee page for more information on how it works.
To begin your claim for a fatal medical mistake, get in touch with us. You’ll have a free initial consultation with one of our expert solicitors, who’ll advise you on if you can make a claim for compensation. They’ll discuss the course of action and funding options available to you.
We’ll also explain what’ll happen if your loved one needs a post-mortem or there’s going to be a coroner’s inquest. We’ll make sure you’re fully aware of all that’ll happen.
We’ll gather all the evidence to help prove your claim. Evidence we’ll use to prove your claim for fatal medical negligence includes:
- Medical records
- Documents
- Independent medical expert opinions.
We’ll approach the individual, hospital, or other organisation responsible for the fatal mistakes and inform them we intend to launch a claim against them.
We’re able to settle most medical negligence claims out of court. However, if we can’t reach a settlement that we feel is fair to you, or if the responsible party won’t admit blame, we’ll start court proceedings.
If your claim needs to go to court, we’ll do all we can to make sure you’re as prepared and comfortable as possible.
We always advise you to start your claim as quickly as possible after learning medical negligence occurred. The evidence will be more readily available, and the details will be fresher in your mind, making it easier to prove your case.
The time limit for making a claim is normally three years. This time limit begins from the date the negligent treatment or surgery took place.
If you didn’t learn that medical negligence was responsible for your loved one’s death until the inquest, the three-year time limit starts from this date.
The amount of compensation awarded in each fatal medical negligence claim is unique. This is because the circumstances around each case differ.
The amount of compensation you could be entitled to is based on:
- The nature of the negligence your loved one experienced
- How many people were dependent on them and in what ways, such as financially or for the care and support that provided
- Any expenses you incurred, such as loss of earnings through having to care for your loved one, or funeral expenses you’ve incurred
- Statutory Bereavement Award under the Fatal Accidents Act 1967
- Future care for you and your family, such as counselling fees.
We’ll be able to give you an estimate value of your claim if you contact us. Once we know a little more about your situation, it’ll be easier for us to advise you of how much you could claim.
As one of the largest and most respected law firms in the country, we have a specialist medical negligence team who have the expertise and experience needed to help you make a successful claim. We’ll be there to answer questions whenever you need us and will always make sure you understand what’s happening at every stage of your claim, or at inquest. With lawyers based across the country, we’ll never be too far away to help.
We also campaign for improvements in the standards of medical care. We work with charities and other organisations, such as Cancer Research UK and the AvMA (Action against Medical Accidents) to help make a difference.
We're a full service law firm, so we can help with:
- Dealing with your loved one’s estate
- Advice from our in-house support and rehabilitation coordinators who can help with non-legal issues, such as benefit entitlement, or helping you to access specialist counselling services
View our Medical Negligence team
