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Everything You Need To Know About Pregnancy And Maternity Negligence Claims
Learn how you could receive compensation after experiencing maternity negligence with the help of one of our expert No Win No Fee solicitors.
£85 million in compensation
Everything You Need To Know About Pregnancy And Maternity Negligence Claims
Learn how you could receive compensation after experiencing maternity negligence with the help of one of our expert No Win No Fee solicitors.
Pregnancy And Maternity Negligence Claims
When navigating pregnancy, you expect to receive a high standard of care from medical professionals. Therefore, if you’ve suffered harm at the hands of a healthcare professional, this can have significant impacts on the quality of your life. As such, please read our helpful maternity negligence guide and learn how much compensation you could receive by making a claim.
Key Takeaways
- According to the NHS Resolution, around 41% of clinical negligence payments were related to maternity between 2022 to 2023.
- Around £1.15 billion worth of compensation was paid out to claimants who suffered maternity-related negligence in the same years.
- Healthcare professionals could avoid maternity negligence by adopting further training programmes, team exercises and addressing health concerns earlier.
- You could experience maternity negligence due to a failure to refer, a misinterpretation of test results or a misdiagnosis.
At JF Law, our team of advisors work around the clock to answer questions and give advice to those seeking to claim. As part of the services we offer, you could receive a free case check to look at the merits of your claim. If your case is strong, you could be connected with one of our expert No Win No Fee solicitors to start your maternity negligence claim. Please feel free to get in touch today by:
- Calling us on 0151 375 9916
- Contact us by filling out our online form
Can I Make A Maternity Negligence Claim?
Yes, you could make a maternity negligence claim provided that you meet the following eligibility requirements:
- You were owed a duty of care by a healthcare professional
- A healthcare professional breached this duty of care
- You suffered avoidable harm as a result of the breach
All healthcare professionals have a duty of care to provide the minimum expected standard of treatment to patients. This duty of care extends not only to doctors, but to midwives, nurses, medical assistants and many more professionals that work in the healthcare system. For instance, your midwife should give the correct medical advice and listen to your concerns as part of their duty.
Therefore, if you’ve experienced harm due to negligent maternity services, you could make a medical negligence claim.
To learn more about your eligibility, please contact one of our friendly advisors today.
Maternity Negligence Claims Against NHS And Private Healthcare
Essentially, the duty of care placed on healthcare professionals extends to both the public and private healthcare sector. Therefore, you could make a claim against the NHS or a private institution provided that you can demonstrate that you experienced maternity negligence.
The NHS Resolution was established to assess medical negligence claims made against it; it also provides compensation pay-outs after successful cases. Depending on where you received your negligent treatment, your claim would be made against the relevant NHS trust that it belongs to. However, if your claim is successful, your award will come from NHS Resolution and not affect services offered by the trust.
For private healthcare cases, your claim would be made directly against the institution where you received your negligent treatment. Typically, private institutions will have insurance to deal with compensation pay-outs.
Can I Make A Claim On Behalf Of A Loved One?
Yes, you could claim on behalf of a loved one by applying to be a litigation friend; typically as a parent, close family member or a solicitor, litigation friends should highlight the claimant’s best interests throughout the claim process.
As per the Limitation Act 1980, you could apply to be a litigation friend in the following scenarios:
- If the claimant is under the age of 18, or;
- If the claimant is lacking in mental capacity
Moreover, as part of their role, litigation friends must:
- Work with solicitors throughout the claim, representing the claimant’s voice
- Assist in evidence-gathering
- Communicate the claimant’s wishes.
To learn more about making a claim on behalf of a loved one, please contact our advisory team today.
The Average Maternity Negligence Claims Payouts
The average payout for a maternity negligence claim can be calculated by adding the number of successful claimants together in a given time span and also adding together the total compensation awarded between them in that time. From there, you would divide the number of claimants by this total amount. However, there is a better way to assess your claim.
Following a successful maternity negligence claim, you will be awarded with general damages as part of your compensation pay-out. In all, general damages will aim to compensate you for any pain and suffering you experienced as a result of your harm.
Your medical records and the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) will be used by a solicitor when calculating your general damages. In essence, the JCG publication provides compensation guidelines for many different types of harm and severities.
All entries in the table below, apart from the first figure, have been taken from the JCG. Please note that they are merely guidelines and do not guarantee how much compensation you could receive.
| Harm | Notes | Compensation Payout Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Forms of Harm with Financial Losses | More than one form of severe harm with special damages such as care costs | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (a) | Infertility with sexual sexual issues and anxiety, pain, and scarring, and significant medical complications. | £140,210 to £207,260 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (b) | Sexual issues of a permanent nature in the case of a person with children or someone who would not have had any children. | £52,490 to £124,620 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (c) | Infertility with no worsening features and no sexual complications in a younger person without children. | £68,440 to £87,070 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (d) | Cases with a negative effect on fertility without any complications and where the injured person has children already. | £21,920 to £44,840 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (f) | This award is dependant on extent of pain and suffering, bleeding, anxiety and whether a removal of a fallopian tube is required. | £4,140 to £24,930 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (e) | Infertility where the injured person would not have had children due to other factors such as age | £8,060 to £22,800 |
| Female Reproductive Injuries (g) | Cases include a sterilisation that may have failed leading to an unwanted pregnancy with no serious impact | In the region of £12,450 |
For an in-depth analysis of your case, please contact one of our friendly advisors today.
Can I Claim For The Psychological Impact Of Negligent Maternity Care?
Yes, you could also claim for the psychological impact of negligent maternity care as part of your general damages. General damages are an award for any physical and mental suffering, therefore any psychological harm you experienced will be included in your settlement amount.
Please see the table below which contains figures from the JCG for psychological harm; please note that the first figure has not been taken from the JCG.
| Harm | Notes | Guideline Compensation Pay-out |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple severe harm with financial losses | More than form of severe harm with special damages such as loss of earnings | Up to £250,000+ |
| Severe Psychiatric Damage | Factors such as the effect on the injured person’s relationships and any future vulnerability will be taken into account | £66,920 to £141,240 |
| Moderately Severe Psychiatric Damage | The prognosis will be much more optimistic than above, and cases may involve a psychiatric injury following a negligent stillbirth. | £23,270 to £66,920 |
| Moderate Psychiatric Damage | Cases involving improvement by trial and the prognosis will be good. Cases of work-related stress may fall within this category | £7,150 to £23,270 |
| Less Severe Psychiatric Damage | The level of the award will consider the length of the period of disability and the extent of the effect on daily activities. | £1,880 to £7,150 |
| Severe PTSD | Cases will involve permanent effects which prevent the injured person from working or functioning at anything approaching the pre-trauma level. | £73,050 to £122,850 |
| Moderately Severe PTSD | Cases involving a better prognosis which will be for some recovery with professional help. However, the effects are still likely to cause significant disability for the foreseeable future. | £28,250 to £73,050 |
| Moderate PTSD | The injured person will have largely recovered, and any continuing effects will not be disabling. | £9,980 to £28,250 |
| Less Severe PTSD | A full recovery will have been made within one to two years and only minor symptoms will persist over any longer period. | £4,820 to £9,980 |
To learn more examples of psychological harm that you could claim for, please contact us today.
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What Else Can Maternity Negligence Compensation Cover?
Notably, maternity negligence compensation can cover financial losses you may have experienced due to the harm you suffered; this is otherwise known as special damages. For instance, you may have paid expenses out of your own pocket for long-term counselling costs after experiencing PTSD.
Please see the following examples of special damages:
- Loss of earnings, such as a loss in current or future income
- Medical expenses, such as private medical appointments
- Travel expenses, such as public transport costs
- Care costs, such as child and elderly care as well as any care and nursing support that you needed while recovering.
It’s also essential that you provide supporting evidence, such as:
- Receipts
- Payslips
- Invoices
To learn more about special damages, please contact one of our helpful advisors today.
Negligent Maternity Care Examples
Critically, there are many situations where healthcare professionals could act below the standard of care. As such, please see the following examples of maternity negligence and how it could lead to claims as a result:
- A midwife could fail to recognise the signs of an infection in a pregnant patient. As such, the patient could develop a serious hepatitis C infection, leading to organ damage and PTSD.
- A consultant could misdiagnose a patient with high blood pressure instead of investigating their symptoms further. The patient could therefore experience a delayed diagnosis of pre-eclampsia, leading to seizures and brain injuries.
- A doctor could dismiss a patient presenting with intense period cramps and shoulder pain. The patient could later discover that she was suffering with an ectopic pregnancy, leading to the development of sepsis and the need for an emergency surgery.
Please note that the above list is not exhaustive, and maternity negligence can occur in many different scenarios. Please contact one of our friendly advisors today to discuss starting your maternity negligence claim.
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What Are The Impacts Of Maternity Medical Negligence
Experiencing maternity negligence can have detrimental impacts on your health and wellbeing. As such, please see the following effects that maternity medical negligence can have:
- Miscarriages
- Psychological harm, such as PTSD, anxiety, depression and paranoia
- Long-term impacts on fertility
- An increased risk of future pregnancy complications
- An increased risk of ectopic pregnancies
To discuss your unique experience, please talk to one of our friendly advisors today.
How Can I Prove Negligence During Maternity Care?
To prove that you experienced maternity negligence, it’s essential that you provide evidence to support your version of events. In all, you must demonstrate that a healthcare professional acted negligently, leading to the harm you suffered.
Please see the following examples of evidence you could provide:
- Your medical records and handheld notes
- Correspondence between yourself and the institution where you received your negligent treatment
- Any scans or test results
- Contact details of any potential witnesses who could support your version of events at a later date
- A daily symptoms diary that details the level of harm you suffered
If you’re connected with our expert No Win No Fee solicitors, they could assist in evidence-gathering on your behalf. To claim compensation, please get in touch with one of our helpful advisors today.
What Is The Maternity Negligence Claim Time Limit?
You will typically have up to 3 years to start your maternity negligence claim; this is per the Limitation Act 1980. As such, the time limit will start from:
- The date that you received negligent treatment, or;
- The date of knowledge. Ultimately, this is the date that you noticed that the harm you experienced was due to substandard medical treatment.
However, there are two exceptions to the 1980 Act such as:
- If the claimant is a child, they are required to wait until their 18th birthday to start their claim.
- If the claimant is lacking in mental capacity, the claims time limit will freeze for an indefinite period. If the claimant makes a full recovery, they will have a 3 year time limit from this date.
To learn more about time limits, please get in touch with our helpful team today.
Why Choose To Claim For Maternity Negligence With JF Law?
At JF Law, our friendly medical negligence team is here to help you. Following a free case check, you could be connected with one of our specialist No Win No Fee solicitors to start your claim. By working under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), you could experience the following advantages:
- No fees for your solicitor’s services at the start of your claim or as it progresses
- In the event that your claim is unsuccessful, you won’t be required to pay solicitor fees
- If your claim is successful, you’ll only be required to pay a success fee for your solicitor’s services. This is taken as a percentage of your compensation. Furthermore, the law puts a limit on the percentage.
To learn more about the benefits of CFAs, please get in touch with our team today.
Contact Our Solicitors
To start your maternity negligence claim, please get in touch with one of our friendly advisors today:
- Call us on 0151 375 9916
- Contact us by filling out our online form
More Information
To learn more about medical negligence claims, please see some of our other guides:
- Get help with making pressure sore claims
- Learn about how to claim for endometriosis negligence
- See the following advice about how to make a hysterectomy negligence claim
Additional external resources:
- Learn about maternity and paternity benefits and leave from the NHS
- See the following advice on statutory sick leave from Gov.uk
- Learn about the professional duty of candour from the General Medical Council
Thank you for reading our helpful guide about how to make a maternity negligence claim.
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