Claim Accident Compensation

What injuries can I claim for?

There are a lot of misconceptions about what you can and can't claim for when you have suffered an injury, and just how much you should expect to receive in compensation for your accident. We'll try and cover the basics here, so you will know what your solicitor is talking about, and try and give you some examples of the range of damages that certain injuries attract.

General & special damages for personal injury

You are entitled to be compensated for all the losses that you have suffered as a result of an accident, which may include:

• damage to your clothing and property
• loss of earnings
• any insurance excess you may have.

In addition you should be compensated for the pain and suffering that you have gone through as a result of the accident and the consequent injury. Finally you can also claim for any future losses you may suffer, of example an inability to work, loss of promotion prospects, and perhaps an inability to take part in certain sports or hobbies.

Lawyers like to split the amount of compensation you should receive (damages) into two separate categories called general and special damages. Basically special damages are all those which are easily quantifiable - loss of earnings, medical expenses, taxi fares, ruined clothes etc. Try and make sure you keep a record of any additional expenses that you incur (including receipts if you can), as this will ensure you do not forget any and that your solicitor can claim them back on your behalf.

General damages are the more difficult as these have to be "assessed" i.e. some monetary value has to be placed on the pain and suffering that you have gone through, your possible future loss of earnings and how the injury may affect your general lifestyle in the future.

It is an imprecise art, which depends a lot on you as an individual, your circumstances and how you recover from the injuries you have. In order to get some guidance, lawyers (including judges) look at past cases (precedents) which are similar (no two cases are ever the same!), and the level of general damages awarded and use these as a guideline (having increased the figures to allow for inflation). A simple whiplash injury for example which causes you pain and inconvenience for say 3/4 weeks might be worth anything from £1,000 - £3,000 in general damages.

In addition the Judicial Studies Board, which provides training and instruction for all judges in England & Wales periodically issues guidelines for the assessment of General Damages in personal injury cases. Just to give you some idea of the figures that are considered appropriate here are some details from the 2002 Guidelines.

Arm Injuries

Loss of both arms

From £154,000 - £191,500

Loss of one arm

£61,500 - £83,500

Severe arm injury rendering it effectively useless

£61,500 - £83,000

Permanently disabled arm

£20,000 - £31,000

Moderate or minor arm injury

Up to £8000

Wrist injuries

£2,250 - £38,250

Leg Injuries

Total loss of both legs

From £154,000 - £180,000

Serious leg injuries short of amputation

£61,500 - £86,500

Below knee amputation of both legs

£82,960 - £103,710

Above knee amputation of one leg

£50,000 - £72,500

Below knee amputation of one leg

£47,500 - £67,500

Severe knee injury

£17,000 - £61,500

Torn cartilage or meniscus, dislocation, ligament damage in the knee

£8,750 - £17,000

Fractured ankle causing difficulty walking over uneven ground, awkwardness on stairs and residual scarring

£8,500 - £17,000

Remember these are only guidelines (and generally agreed to be quite conservative). If you do want to do some research yourself you will usually find a copy of Kemp & Kemp - Quantum of Damages in your local reference library (three large yellow tomes), which give cases and injury details in various sections.

 

Share your experiences

Please note: The views expressed in community areas of this site do not necessarily reflect or represent the views of Law on the Web, its owners, its staff or contributors.