Medical Negligence Solicitors in Cardiff

First, we must prove that the medical professional or hospital had a healthcare provider relationship with you. This is often as easy as getting access to your medical records.

Then we must prove that there was a deviation from usual, acceptable standards of care and that you suffered as a result.  We must isolate the medical professional's specific action (or inaction) that directly caused you harm or injury.  Your personal injury solicitor at Robertsons will then calculate what damages you are entitled to according to formal injury compensation guidelines set by the Ministry of Justice.

Let's be honest.  In most cases, the process can take between eighteen months to three years, but it can even take longer.  The outcome of your case will depend on how the medical professional or hospital feels about liability and causation, the injury you sustained and how complex your issue is.

A no-win-no-fee arrangement means you will not have to pay any legal fees unless your case is successful. This allows you to pursue your claim without the worry of upfront costs. We will discuss with you as to whether this type of agreement is appropriate for your case.

As a general rule, if we agree to represent you on a Conditional Fee Agreement or a Damages Based Agreement (often known as 'No Win No Fee') you will not have to pay our costs if you are unsuccessful in the application.  We will explain to you, before you enter into these types of agreements, when fees or disbursements could be payable.

However, before we agree to enter into any 'No Win No Fee' agreements, we do need to review papers and discuss matters with you.  We have a duty to establish the merits and viability of your case and provide initial advice on any likelihood of success and whether a ‘No Win No fee’ agreement is appropriate.  The cost for this work (prior to entering into any agreement) is chargeable.  Our work, for example, could include us reviewing medical evidence or obtaining a medical opinion.  We might need to review various documents to get an understanding of the case.

This work is charged on an hourly basis.  The hourly rate will depend on the level of the fee-earner and would be between £225 + VAT (Total: £270) and £325 + VAT (£390 + VAT) per hour.  VAT is charged at 20%.  The number of hours will depend on the volume of papers and time spent in discussions with you.  The total could be between £1,125 + VAT (Total: £1,350) and £3,250 + VAT (Total: £3,900).  There may also be further costs if we instruct any medical or other professionals to undertake reports, as you will also have to pay their fees. Naturally, once we have a better overview of your case, we would be able to provide you with a bespoke consideration of these initial fees.

With regards to the time scale of this initial work, this again will depend on the volume of work and whether we need external professionals to undertake reports.  The initial work could therefore take anywhere between 2 weeks to 2 or 3 months.

The amount of medical negligence compensation you can get will depend on how badly you were hurt and how your life changed because of the incident.

The medical negligence claims process will reveal in time what general damages you can claim, but special damages and future losses and expenses will also be factorized.  The level of damages you can claim will depend, among other factors, on your age, financial status, if your home had to be modified, what your expenses will be in future and if you would ever be able to work again.

No official complaint against the NHS is needed, but it can be helpful in the long run.

We would advise you to make an official complaint to get more information about the incident, and sometimes an admission of failure may follow.   We can then decide together what to do next.