Home / Personal / Medical Negligence Solicitors Cardiff
Being on the receiving end of a medical negligence case can be very distressing. It can be daunting to decide which way to turn and who to ask for help.
Robertsons Solicitors have helped countless people in Cardiff and throughout Wales in recent years after negligent treatment in hospitals, GP offices, and care homes. Our medical negligence solicitors are experts in outlining personal injury cases and fighting for you.
We often handle our negligence cases on a no-win, no-fee basis, which means there is no harm in finding out if you have a claim.
If you have one, we will guide you through the claims process. We cover all areas of negligence which includes care home claims, dental negligence claims, cosmetic claims, surgical negligence, NHS medical negligence and more.
A medical negligence claim happens when a patient takes their hospital or doctor (or, sometimes, both) to court because the care he received falls below acceptable standards. As a result, the patient is often worse off than before and must prove that the medical professional damaged his health or that the incident would not have occurred in someone else’s hands.
At Robertsons Solicitors, we’ve handled negligence cases that have dealt with dental mistakes, clinical misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis, birth injuries, surgical negligence and more. Many of our clients had been left with physical and emotional scars and ongoing financial concerns.
We are experts to help guide you through the medical negligence claims process and ensure that it is done correctly and as swiftly as possible. We are dedicated to providing the best advice and service so that you can get the best compensation for your situation.
Contact our Medical Negligence Solicitors in Cardiff today and take the first step towards securing the compensation you deserve.
Our medical negligence specialist, Andrew Collingbourne has recently assisted the family of a young boy with complex medical needs that died of meningitis after doctors were unable to diagnose him. Watch the BBC video.
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.
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