You may want to know if you can sue a care home for neglect in the UK for acts of abuse or negligence on you or a loved one. Yes, this is certainly possible. You are legally empowered to make Care Home Neglect claims if you, or a family member has suffered in the hands of care home staff or caregivers.
The decision to put a loved one into a care home is not an easy one and so when we finally decide to do so, we expect that they get the best form of care they deserve. It is very important that they get round the clock care as usually, residents of care home facilities are either aged, disabled or vulnerable and are unable to undertake basic daily activities unaided.
For these persons, any act of negligence from the care home staff can lead to further complications, life-altering conditions or even death. Generally, the number of residents in care homes are expected to keep rising especially in communities that have a large number of elderly or vulnerable persons in the population even as life expectancy is on the increase and more families are living even further apart.
Care homes should be a safe haven for its residents and while the majority of nursing homes do their very best to provide quality care especially those under the supervision of the NHS, there have been cases of abuse, neglect and costly errors which have caused suffering and trauma to residents and their families.
Care home negligence statistics shows that about 200,000 cases of alleged elderly abuse are received every year by the Department of Health. Of this number, 112,000 cases are from England alone while 88,00 cases come from the rest of the UK. It is very disheartening and unacceptable.
Regrettably, care home claims, especially claims bordering on abuse, have been on the increase and the trend is expected to continue especially in societies with a large population of elderly persons.
What are Care Home Negligence Claims?
Care Home Negligence describes all forms of any substandard care, negligent treatment,nursing home abuse, actions and inactions as well as other avoidable mistakes by caregivers to care home residents which causes harm, injury, leads to complications or even death of the affected persons.
Care home negligence can include abuse of residents, medication errors, poor supervision leading to sores, poor handling, among others.
Care home negligence claims refer to when an individual or a care home resident takes legal action against the care home staff or caregivers for poor standard of care or other negligent treatment that have caused harm or led to a more complicated medical condition for the resident.
In order to make claims, you will need the services of medical negligence solicitors who are specialist care home solicitors to make a proper assessment of the case and assist you to make a claim. They will also give you the much-needed care home legal advice, guide and support you throughout the entire claims process.
Why Make Care Home Claims?
When you make care home claims, it’s not just about obtaining monetary compensation for the pain, trauma or suffering of a loved one; rather, it is about seeking redress and obtaining justice.
Making care home claims also makes the Care Home management and other care home staff make necessary changes and improvements to ensure they take absolute care of their residents as required so that others do not suffer the same unfortunate situation.
Asides that, it is only fair that you receive a deserving compensation for the physical injury and psychological harm done to you or your loved one.
Examples Of Neglect In Care Homes
Neglect in care homes come in diverse ways. Having had many years of experience representing individuals with care home negligence claims, we have noticed the following as negligence that occurs in care homes.
- GP negligence leading to medication errors
- Failure in keeping proper medical history records of the patient
- Exposing residents to potentially harmful objects
- Failure to inform the resident’s family in cases where health condition deteriorates or make adequate arrangements so that the individual can be properly examined by a medical professional
- Handling errors leading to falls
- Failure in providing disabled residents with appropriate mobility aids
- Poor supervision leading to cases of residents wandering off
- Failure to treat bedsores
- Failing to replace dirty clothes and beddings with new ones
- Not providing enough food or the appropriate food according to health needs of residents
- Development of pressure sores caused by leaving a resident in one position for a long time
- Poor treatment of patients with dementia
- Use of excessive force to restrain residents or other forms of physical abuse
- Ignoring or failing to effectively handle residents’ complaints
- Verbal or sexual abuse
In cases like these our Care home negligence solicitors in the UK can assist you in suing the Care home and ensure you are well compensated.
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Care Home Negligence Claims We Handle
- Pressure Ulcers/ Pressure Sores Claims
- Care Home Injury Claims
- Care Home GP Negligence Claims
- Care Home Abuse Claims
- Care Home Misdiagnosis Claims
- Care Home Fee Claims
- Lost Medical Records Claims
Proving Nursing Home Negligence
At Medical Negligence direct we remain dedicated to our resolve to support and help the aged and vulnerable people while providing them with the much needed care home legal advice should they be victims of care home neglect.
To prove a nursing or care home negligence, you must establish that the care home staff breached their duty of care or acted negligently which has led to the avoidable injury, harm, worsened medical condition or death of the resident.
You need to establish that:
- The caregiver owed you or your loved one a duty of care
- The caregiver breached that duty of care
- You or your loved one suffered pain, injury or trauma as a result of the breach of duty
- You have also incurred other damages as a result
The following documents will be required by our Care Home Negligence Solicitors to help prepare a strong case for you. We can also help you obtain these documents if you are unable to do so.
- Comprehensive statements of the events that transpired
- Medical reports
- Pictures showing the extent of injuries
- Eye witness reports
- Contract of agreement with the care home management showing that they owed you or loved one a duty of care
- Evidence of financial losses incurred
- Reports from an independent medical expert in the field of interest after performing a proper medical examination on the resident
Who Can Make a Care Home Neglect Claim?
The categories of persons who can make a care home neglect claim are;
- The victim
- Victim’s dependents
- Victim’s family
- The victim’s estate
Process of Making Care Home Negligence Claims
When you come to us to help you make a claim, we will assign to you a specialist care home negligence solicitor who will listen to you, make a proper assessment of your case and determine if you have a strong case of negligence as well as chances of winning. You will also receive legal advice on what to do. Our consultation sessions are free of charge. The entire claims process is outlined below;
- Speak with us
- Fund Your Claim
- Gathering of Facts and Evidence
- Submission of claim
- Negotiations and securing of Interim payments
- Registering of claims before a court
- Settlement and payment
We are here to give you answers to whatever questions you may have. We also guarantee that the entire claims process will be smooth sailing for you.
We have a strong record of settling our medical negligence claims quickly without having to go to trial. Be rest assured that your case will be handled by competent solicitors.
Can You Sue A Care Home For Neglect?
Yes, you certainly can sue a nursing home for negligence. If you have suffered distress emotionally, psychologically or otherwise as a result of abuse or negligent treatment while in a care home, then all you need is the services of a specialist medical negligence solicitor to make a professional assessment of your case, give you nursing home legal advice and help you make a claim.
When you sue a care home for neglect in the UK, you can claim for both general damages and special damages. General damages refers to the pain and suffering the victim has experienced while special damages refers to other financial losses such as out of pocket expenses or loss of earnings especially where you had to give up work to take care of your loved one.
How Much Compensation For My Care Home Negligence Claim?
Like every other medical negligence claim, compensation amounts for care home negligence claims are not fixed but vary as each case is peculiar in its own way.
While the average settlement payout for medical negligence is about £50,000 in the UK according to the NHSR, the average amount of payout for care home negligence is roughly £280,000.
Various factors play key roles in determining the amount of compensation you may receive. These include;
- Type and location of injury
- Severity of the injury
- Estimated time for recovery (future prognosis)
- Financial losses (past, present and future estimated costs)
- Costs for medical appointments
- Costs of rehabilitation
The Table below gives an indication of the compensation amounts for various injuries caused by medical negligence according to the Judicial College Guidelines.
| Type/ Severity Of Injury | Range Of Compensation Value |
|---|---|
| Negligence resulting to injury to internal organs | £60,000 to £100,000. |
| Back injuries from minor to severe | £2,300 to £151,000 |
| Pelvic and Hip injury | £50,000 to £85,000. |
| Negligence resulting to amputation of the limbs | £65,000 to £200,000. |
| Negligence resulting to Pain and suffering | £1,000 to £200,000 |
| Minor to severe Neck injuries | £2,300 – £139,210 |
| Negligence resulting to Orthopaedic injuries | Values from £50,000 depending on severity |
| Care home negligence resulting to death | £12,000 to £300,000 considering the events surrounding the death |
| Negligence leading to falls causing Spinal cord injuries | £50,000 to £300,000 for moderate and less severe injuries £1 million for very severe injuries |
| Negligence resulting to knee injuries | Up to £70,000 depending on the degree of injury |
Time Limit For Making A Negligence Claim
The Limitation Act of 1980 stipulates a three-year time limit for making all forms of medical negligence claims. The three-year period starts from the date the negligence occurred or your date of knowledge.
For minors, the three-year time frame only starts from the individual’s 18th birthday, meaning that such persons have until their 21st birthday to make a claim.
Also, if the resident dies as a result of the negligent treatment, the time frame starts from the date of death.
Individuals who are incapacitated and unable to make claims are not binded by this time frame. They can make claims as soon as they are able to do so.
In the above cases, a relation known legally as a litigation friend can make claims on behalf of their affected loved ones. We can explain better to you how this is done during our consultation sessions.
No Win No Fee Care Home Medical Negligence Solicitors
With our No Win No Fee Agreement also known as Conditional Fee Agreement you can make medical negligence claims without any financial risks or implications to you. We believe that everyone should have access to quality legal representation and compensation for acts of negligence suffered regardless of financial status.
Thus, you do not have to make upfront legal fees before we can begin investigations into your claims. Additionally, should the case be unsuccessful, you do not owe us a penny.
However, you will be required to pay a “success fee” of 25% which will be deducted from your total award value if the claim is successful.
We encourage you to speak to us today or fill out our online Free Assessment Form for a free assessment of your case so that we can help you make that claim at no costs and win you a deserved compensation.
How we can help
Medical professionals including Care home staff owe a duty of care to their residents and are expected to ensure that these vulnerable persons are well taken care of. If you or your loved one has suffered or your condition is made worse as a result of Care home negligence, we are here to help and support you.
