Medical Negligence Claims

What Counts as Medical Negligence in the UK?

Medical negligence (also called clinical negligence) occurs when a healthcare professional provides treatment that falls below the accepted standard of care, and that substandard treatment causes you harm. It is not enough that something went wrong — medicine carries inherent risks. The key legal question is whether the treatment you received was below the standard that a competent medical professional in the same field would have provided.

This standard is established by the Bolam test, from the landmark case Bolam v Friern Hospital Management Committee (1957). A doctor is not negligent if they acted in accordance with a practice accepted as proper by a responsible body of medical opinion in that specialty. The Bolitho test (Bolitho v City and Hackney Health Authority, 1997) added that such practice must also be capable of withstanding logical analysis. Together, these tests form the foundation of all medical negligence claims in England and Wales.

What Are the Most Common Types of Medical Negligence?

Misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis: When a condition is missed, wrongly diagnosed, or diagnosed significantly later than it should have been, causing the patient's condition to worsen. This is the most common form of medical negligence claim. Surgical errors: Wrong-site surgery, damage to surrounding organs or nerves, retained surgical instruments, and anaesthesia errors. Birth injuries: Negligent management of labour and delivery causing cerebral palsy, Erb's palsy, hypoxic-ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE), or maternal injuries.

Medication errors: Prescribing the wrong drug, wrong dosage, or failing to account for known allergies or drug interactions. Failure to obtain informed consent: Proceeding with treatment without properly explaining the risks, alternatives, and potential outcomes. Delayed treatment: Unreasonable delays in providing treatment that cause the patient's condition to deteriorate. Hospital-acquired infections: MRSA, C. difficile, and other infections contracted due to poor hygiene or infection control failures.

How Does the Medical Negligence Claims Process Work?

Medical negligence claims follow the Pre-Action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes, a formal process that must be followed before court proceedings can be issued. The process begins with your solicitor obtaining your full medical records from all relevant healthcare providers. An independent medical expert in the appropriate specialty then reviews these records and provides a report on whether the treatment fell below acceptable standards and whether it caused or contributed to your injuries.

If the expert supports your claim, your solicitor sends a formal Letter of Claim to the defendant (the NHS Trust, hospital, GP practice, or private provider). The defendant has 4 months to investigate and provide a Letter of Response, in which they either admit liability, deny liability, or request more time. If liability is admitted, the claim moves to the valuation stage. If denied, your solicitor will advise whether to proceed to court.

For claims against the NHS, the defendant is represented by NHS Resolution (formerly the NHS Litigation Authority), which manages all clinical negligence claims on behalf of NHS trusts in England. NHS Resolution operates the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST). Most claims settle through negotiation without the need for a court hearing.

What Is the Time Limit for Making a Medical Negligence Claim?

Under the Limitation Act 1980, you generally have 3 years to bring a medical negligence claim. However, the 3-year period does not always start from the date of the negligent treatment. There are important exceptions:

• Date of knowledge: The limitation period starts from the date you first knew (or should reasonably have known) that your injury was caused by negligent treatment. This is particularly relevant where negligence is not immediately apparent.
• Children: The 3-year period does not begin until the child turns 18. A claim can be brought at any time before the child's 21st birthday.
• Patients lacking mental capacity: There is no time limit while a patient lacks the mental capacity to manage their own affairs. A litigation friend can bring a claim on their behalf.
• Fatal cases: The family has 3 years from the date of death to bring a claim.

Even if you are unsure whether you are within the time limit, it is worth seeking legal advice. Courts have discretion under Section 33 of the Limitation Act to allow claims to proceed outside the standard limitation period in exceptional circumstances.

How Much Compensation Can You Get for Medical Negligence?

Medical negligence compensation is calculated based on the severity of your injuries and their impact on your life. Awards are guided by the Judicial College Guidelines, which set out brackets for different types and severities of injury. Compensation typically includes:

• General damages: Compensation for pain, suffering, and loss of amenity (the impact on your quality of life).
• Special damages: Financial losses including past and future loss of earnings, medical treatment costs, care and assistance, travel expenses, aids and equipment, and home adaptations.

For serious cases — such as cerebral palsy from birth injuries, brain damage from delayed diagnosis, or permanent disability from surgical errors — compensation can reach hundreds of thousands of pounds or more, reflecting both the severity of the injury and the lifetime cost of care. Less severe cases, such as a delayed diagnosis that required additional treatment but achieved the same outcome, may result in awards of £5,000 to £50,000.

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