Estimating a Claim Settlement for a Permanent Disability

You might be curious about what you could receive if you experience permanent disability because of negligence. In this guide, we look at what injuries could change your life along with examples of potential accidents that could cause them. 

permanent-disability-claims-guide

Permanent disability claims guide

We explore the situations in which you might experience a life-changing injury and be eligible to claim. To clarify this, we look at the duty of care you are owed in particular situations. Breaches in this duty of care could result in injuries. 

Examples of compensation amounts are provided for life-altering injuries. We also look at what costs you could recover. In addition, we look at what steps you could take following your injury that could strengthen your claim. 

If you’ve experienced an injury due to a breach in a duty of care that you were owed, you might be entitled to compensation. We explore a No Win No Fee arrangement and why one might be beneficial to your claim. 

You can contact our advisors to discuss your potential claim:

Choose A Section

  1. Could I Claim Compensation For A Permanent Disability?
  2. Types Of Accidents Causing Disabilities
  3. What Is Considered A Permanent Disability?
  4. Compensation Estimates For Life-Changing Injuries
  5. What Is The Definition Of A No Win No Fee Agreement?
  6. Further Guidance About Permanent Disability Claims

Could I Claim Compensation For A Permanent Disability?

If you’ve experienced an injury you might want to know if you could claim permanent disability compensation. You must be able to prove you were owed a duty of care and a breach in this resulted in your injuries in order to receive compensation. 

The duty of care you’re owed and the party who owes it to you change depending upon the situation. For example, your employer owes you a duty of care at work. You’re also owed a duty of care in a public place. Furthermore, your employer has a responsibility toward your safety while you are at work.

To discuss your potential claim for a permanent disability, contact our advisors. They can offer you free legal advice and may be able to provide you with a lawyer from our panel. 

Statistics For Permanent Injuries

Non-fatal employee injury statistics are collected by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Included are injuries reported under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR). 51,211 non-fatal injuries occurred in 2020/21. 456 of these were amputations. 106 involved the loss of or reduction in sight- however, there’s no indication as to whether this impact on vision was permanent.  

Types Of Accidents Causing Disabilities

You may experience permanent disability injuries from a range of accidents. We explore examples from on the roads, in public spaces and at work, as these are situations in which you’re owed a duty of care. 

On the roads

Under the Highway Code, road users owe each other a duty of care. As a road user, you must act in a way that reduces the risk of injury to both yourself and other road users. This applies to anyone using the roads, not just drivers. 

A driver is expected to signal when turning, for example. Failure to do so could result in them crashing into the side of a car travelling correctly in the lane. Someone could be hit while riding a bike in a cycling accident if a car runs a red light at a toucan crossing. Any of these accidents could result in a permanent disability claim.

In public

Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, the occupiers of public spaces are expected to ensure they are safe for the intended use as part of their duty of care. The occupier is a term for the person in control of the space; they don’t actually need to “occupy” it. 

This means that they are expected to take reasonable steps to reduce the risk of harm to those visiting the space. Children are less likely to be aware of their personal safety in regard to their surroundings than adults. Consideration needs to be paid to this as well. 

Damage checks for any fencing surrounding a play area, for example, should occur on a regular basis. A life-changing injury claim could be justified if you impaled yourself on a loose piece of fencing as a result of this not happening. Permanent organ damage could occur if the fencing penetrates an organ. Also, you may suffer post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of the accident, which could be permanent. 

In the workplace

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HASAWA) governs workplace health and safety requirements. Employers owe all employees a duty of care. This means they must take reasonable steps to reduce workplace hazards that pose a risk to health and safety. They may have to pay compensation for a permanent disability if a breach of duty of care causes it to happen. A workplace accident could even leave you unable to work at all in the future. 

Failure to carry out required equipment checks, for example, could result in a life-altering injury claim. You could lose your fingers in machinery if a finger guard is broken. This could have been picked up on an equipment check and the machinery taken out of use until it was repaired. 

Contact our advisors if you’ve experienced an injury due to a breach of the duty of care you were owed in one of these scenarios. 

What Is Considered A Permanent Disability?

To make a personal injury claim, you must be able to prove you were owed a duty of care and a breach of this caused your permanent disability. Steps you take following an accident could strengthen your claim. 

You could:

  • Seek medical attention. 
  • Note witness contact details. 
  • Request CCTV footage. 
  • Take photographs of the scene and/or your injuries. 
  • Seek legal advice. 

Life-altering injuries

Examples of a permanent disability include:

  • Amputations. A great toe amputation, for example, does more than cut off your toe. It could also impact your balance permanently. 
  • Internal organ damage. Lung damage, for example, could leave you unable to carry out your normal activities or hobbies because of shortness of breath. You could also become reliant on an inhaler, or in extreme cases, an oxygen tank. 
  • Severe scarring. Cosmetic disability is usually what comes to mind when thinking of scarring, however, certain types of severe scars can restrict movement. 
  • Psychological injuries. This could include PTSD, anxiety and depression which might stop you from being able to live your life the way you did before. 
  • Brain damage. Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) could result in permanent personality changes, moodiness and problems with memory and concentration. 

You can discuss what proof you could use to strengthen your claim with our advisors. if they feel you have a valid claim, they could connect you with a lawyer from our panel. 

Compensation Estimates For Life-Changing Injuries

Compensation can be difficult to accurately assess because your claim could come with two heads that are dependent on your circumstances; general damages and special damages. Below we examine each head in more detail. In addition, each claim has different factors playing into it. 

Settlements for a permanent disability 

General damages compensate for your injuries along with any psychological damage experienced as a result. You might attend an independent medical assessment as part of your claim. This is to gain fuller knowledge of the extent of your injuries and what impact they have on your life. 

To help value your injuries legal professionals use the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This is a document that lists injuries alongside their potential compensation brackets. 

Examples from the 16th edition, which was published in April 2022 are included in the table below. 

InjuryPotential CompensationNotes
Tetraplegia£324,600 to £403,990Paralysis of both arms and both legs.
Paraplegia£219,070 to £284,260Paralysis of lower body, including legs.
Kidney damage (a)£169,400 to £210,400Permanent serious damage or loss of both kidneys.
Moderate brain injury (i)£150,110 to £219,070Moderate to severe intellectual deficit, personality changes, impact on senses and significant epilepsy risk.
Loss of one arm£109,650 to £130,930Above-elbow amputation.
Traumatic chest injuries (b)£65,740 to £100,670Permanent damage to chest, lungs and/or heart resulting in impairment, disability and life expectancy reduction.
Severe PTSD£59,860 to £100,670Permanent inability to function at pre-trauma level.
Severe psychiatric damage£54,830 to £115,730Inability to cope with life and relationships with a very poor prognosis.
Male reproductive system£43,010 to £88,750Permanent impotence or significant sexual dysfunction.
Toe amputationsIn the region of £31,310Great toe amputation.

Special damages recover costs incurred due to your injuries. To claim under special damages you must be able to supply evidence of your costs.  This could take the form of receipts or payslips. 

Examples include:

  • Loss of earnings. This includes future earnings if you had to leave work due to your injuries. 
  • Cosmetic devices and procedures. This could be plastic surgery or specialist makeup to conceal scars. 
  • Medical expenses. This includes items not provided for free by the NHS, such as therapy. 

Speak to our advisors to discuss what costs you could recover and for an estimate of your general damages. 

What Is The Definition Of A No Win No Fee Agreement?

A claim for a permanent disability might feel easier with a No Win No Fee solicitor. A No Win No Fee solicitor will use a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). What this means is that there are no upfront solicitors fees. You only pay a legally capped success fee if your claim is successful. This fee is not due if you lose your claim. 

No Win No Fee arrangements remove the financial risks associated with hiring a solicitor by paying for their work upfront as the claim progresses. You could receive compensation for your life-changing injury with fewer risks to your finances. 

Ask Us About A Permanent Disability Claim

Free legal advice is available from our advisors. You can discuss your symptoms of a permanent disability with them 24 hours per day, seven days per week. They can advise what costs you could potentially recover to make living with your disability a bit easier. 

If you were owed a duty of care and a breach in it gave you a permanent disability, you might be entitled to compensation. Those with eligible claims could be provided with a personal injury solicitor from our panel. 

Contact us:

Further Guidance About Permanent Disability Claims

The following links might be useful:

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Writer Danielle Blythe

Publisher Fern Stringer