Care Home Neglect Compensation Claims

Care Home Neglect

If a vulnerable loved one or an elderly family member is residing in a residential care home, you expect a high level of care to be taken towards their wellbeing. Whilst the majority of care homes provide proper care, there are those which treat their residents poorly and neglect them.

When staff and those in charge of the care home neglect their duties and provide a poor standard of care, it can result in severe consequences for the vulnerable and elderly people living there. This neglect can cause injuries, illnesses and fatalities in some unfortunate cases.

If you or a loved one have suffered an injury or illness as a result of care home neglect, you may be eligible to make a care home neglect compensation claim. Contact Beacon Law today to discuss your potential claim and to receive more information on the legal claims process.

Common causes of neglect in care homes

There are many reasons that can result in care home injuries. Some of the most common reasons we deal with that lead to nursing home claims include:

 

• Pressure sores and ulcers – Pressure ulcers on the skin can be caused when someone is left in bed for an extended period of time without being moved. They can be extremely painful and can affect that person’s mobility, and can also lead to infections.

 

• Injuries from falls – Care home residents can be at risk of falling if staff members neglect their duties and fail to supervise them or handle them poorly. Falling down stairs or even simply falling over can lead to concussions, bone breaks and fractures for elderly residents.

 

• Injuries from care home abuse – In some unfortunate cases, care home residents can be abused by staff members. Abuse in care homes can be physical or emotional and can leave vulnerable residents feeling traumatised from the abuse they suffered.

 

• Medication and prescription errors – Errors with medication can lead to severe and sometimes even life-threatening conditions, which can be serious for vulnerable and elderly people. These errors can be caused by overprescribing or administering incorrect medication for care home residents when staff members fail to check or maintain their health and safety records which is a form of clinical negligence.

 

If a loved one has suffered an illness or injury as a result of one of the reasons listed above, please contact one of our care home claims solicitors today for a free consultation as you may be able to claim compensation.

Who is eligible to make care home neglect compensation claims?

Anyone that has been harmed as a result of neglect whilst living in a care home or hospice is eligible to make a care home neglect compensation claim.

If the person is too vulnerable or old to make a claim for themselves, you may be able to make a claim on their behalf.

If you are looking to make a claim on a loved one’s behalf, do not hesitate to get in contact with one of our personal injury lawyers for more legal advice.

What can be recovered in care home claims?

Care home neglect compensation claims are split into two different categories, general damages and special damages.

 

General damages refer to the amount of compensation calculated that you may receive for the pain and suffering as well as loss of amenity that you have been put through. In order to calculate this, we use guidelines that are issued to judges who decide the outcome of such claims when they go to court. Your case will also be valued on the extent of your injuries as described by medical professionals.

 

Special damages include any financial losses you may have suffered as a direct result of your injury. These typically include medical costs, loss of earnings up to the settlement, loss of earnings in the future, travel costs and the costs of care provided to you.

 

Time limits for making care home neglect compensation claims

If you or someone you know has suffered a care home injury, it is very important that you contact a personal injury solicitor as quickly as possible, as there are a number of strict time limits within which you must commence legal proceedings.  These time limits can vary and depend upon your injury and the nature of the accident that caused them.

In England and Wales, formal court proceedings must be issued within 3 years of the date of the accident, or 3 years from when you first became aware you had suffered injury as a consequence of medical treatment.

Please note, if court proceedings are not commenced within the relevant limitation period, you essentially forfeit your right to claim.  An application can be made to the court to extend the limitation period, but such applications are rarely granted.

How much do care home neglect compensation claims cost?

If we feel your case has good prospects of success, we will usually agree to proceed with your case under a no win, no fee basis. The ‘No Win No Fee’ Agreement is another name for a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) which is what nearly all law firms offer their services under. One of the most important features of a ‘No Win No Fee’ Agreement is that if you do not succeed in your claim, then you will not be liable to this firm for our fees.

Running a legal action on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis with costs insurance means we are taking the largest financial risk. In ‘no win, no fee’ cases, if you lose, we don’t get paid, but the insurance will cover any exposure to the other side’s costs and your own disbursements. As a result of this risk, we will charge a ‘success fee’:

• The success fee is capped at 25% of your damages. For example, if your claim settled for £4,000, we would deduct £1,000 from your final compensation
• You will be expected to pay the success fee from your compensation
• No success fee is payable in the event of an unsuccessful outcome

Can I receive financial aid before my case concludes?

When you or a loved one is suffering as a result of care home neglect, it can sometimes put you at financial risk if it has left you being unable to work or you were forced to pay for any treatments required. Therefore, you may be able to receive an interim payment in order to relieve some of the financial pressure that you may be facing.

Interim payments are payments that can be offered before a final settlement for legal costs such as private medical treatments and rehabilitation is reached.

 

How can Beacon Law assist with care home neglect compensation claims?

Beacon Law are a specialist firm of personal injury solicitors with lots of experience in dealing with care home negligence claims. We can provide you with specialist legal advice on making care home neglect compensation claims and guide you through the process whilst negotiating the best settlement of your claim.

We provide a high level of service to all our clients and work hard to ensure you receive the highest level of compensation for your injuries and the effect it has on your day to day life.

Beacon Law is registered in England and Wales and is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. We have a registered office in Greater Manchester. To find out about our no win, no fee care home neglect compensation claim funding and legal fees, have a look at the funding section on our website.

If you have suffered a care home injury as a result of an accident due to the negligence of someone else, then please call us today on 0330 1332 857 to start your claim or complete our contact form at the top of the page to start your claim for compensation online and a member of our personal injury team will give you a call back.

Everything we do revolves around satisfying the needs of our clients. We genuinely value our client’s opinions as it is a measure of our success. Our clients prefer our personal approach; we give thought and attention to everything. Our aim is to deliver a robust, dynamic, personal and cost-effective service with no compromise on quality.

Beacon Law deals with a variety of legal injury claims, including industrial disease claims, serious injury claims, personal injury claims and medical negligence claims.