Fatal Injury Claims
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If your loved one has died in an accident or due to a medical mistake, you may be considering a fatal injury claim.
Making a claim can help you to get answers about what happened. This can help families to move forward with their lives. It may also prevent the same thing from happening to someone else.
Making a claim can also lead to a compensation payment that helps support your future financial security.
We know how difficult it can be to consider making a claim. Our experienced legal teams will explain everything you need to know. We’ll support you in making the right decisions for you.
Contact us today to find out more about our fatal injury law services.
We help people with cases involving:
Fatal accident claims
Our solicitors are experienced in supporting families who have lost someone due to a fatal accident, whether that be at work, on the roads or in some other way.
With us, you’ll get all the support you need at such a difficult time.
We understand that no amount of money can compensate for your loss. Making a claim is often about getting answers, recognition for your loss and ensuring the same thing does not happen to someone else.
Damages may also help you and your family cope and allow you to access enhanced counselling and emotional support.
Do I have a valid fatal claim?
If someone else was responsible, or even partially responsible, for the death of your loved one you can consider making a claim.
That can include when a loved one dies due to:
- an accident at work
- industrial disease
- traumatic injury that was not their fault
- a road crash where someone else was to blame
- a medical mistake such as the misdiagnosis of an illness or delays in treatment
- a crime
We understand the complex emotions that accompany a fatal injury claim and will support you throughout the legal process.
Call us today to find out if we can help your family with a claim.
How much compensation do you get for a fatal injury?
Fatal injury compensation awards can vary a lot, depending on many things.
This can include:
- how old your loved one was
- the financial impact of their death on their family, such as loss of earnings
- any costs incurred due to their illness or injury and death
A solicitor will gather evidence on these factors to seek representative compensation. Compensation could help to cover the costs of things like counselling for trauma and grief.
Sadly, the element of damages awarded for loss and suffering often feels inadequate. The statutory bereavement award set by Parliament under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 for fatalities in negligence cases is £15,120. This amount can feel hurtfully low.
It is vital to work with an experienced solicitor on a claim to maximise the chances of getting from it what you need. They will look at things like loss of earnings and the ongoing costs of paying for the services a loved one performed, such as childcare. It’s natural to find it very difficult to think in this way when the loss of your loved one means so much more to you than the loss of the income they provided to the family.
Making a fatal claim is often about much more than money for our clients. You may want answers or an apology.
Contact us to find out how we can help. You can also discuss no win no fee arrangements with us.
How long do I have to bring a fatal injury claim?
A claim must be filed within three years of a fatality or the date it was known the death was linked to an act of negligence.
The right to continue with a claim that was in progress when someone dies passes to their estate.
In certain circumstances, the three-year period will begin again if someone dies due to negligence that was being investigated before their death. This is the case if the claim form has not been formally presented to the court. This is covered in more detail here: “What happens if I die before my claim concludes?”
It is best to get legal advice as soon as possible if someone has died and you think there may be a fatal claim.
Should I make a fatal injury compensation claim?
If your loved one died due to someone else’s negligence or you suspect that they did, a fatal injury claim may be right for you.
We are here to support people in making this decision. We’ll listen to what happened and advise you on if you might have a successful claim. We’ll talk you through the next steps and support you throughout if you decide to proceed.
Making a claim can help you to get answers about exactly what happened to your loved one. It may also provide you with more financial security due to a compensation award.
Making a claim can be a way of getting an apology and assurances that the same thing won’t happen to someone else. Many people find comfort in knowing that the investigation into their loved one’s death led to improvements that could prevent another family from suffering in the same way.
If you aren’t sure whether to make a fatal injury claim, speak to us for advice. We’re experts in this area. We’ll listen to your concerns and discuss your options. There is no pressure to proceed.
About Enable Law
We are one of the UK’s leading specialist medical negligence, personal injury and mental capacity legal firms.
We provide services to clients across the UK and have offices across the south and south west of England.
You can find out more about why people choose Enable Law here.
Who we work with
We are proud to support the efforts of Penhaligon’s Friends and the Coroner’s Courts Support Service.
Penhaligon’s Friends are a charity that supports bereaved children and families across Cornwall. They offer practical resources to help cope with loss, and offer training to childcare professionals.
The Coroner’s Courts Support Service is a voluntary service which offers emotional support and practical help to bereaved families and others who have to attend a Coroner’s Inquest.
