Skip to content 
Pregnancy Negligence Claims
If you or your baby has been harmed as a result of pregnancy negligence, our expert medical negligence solicitors are here to help.
£100 million in compensation
Pregnancy Negligence Claims
If you or your baby has been harmed as a result of pregnancy negligence, our expert medical negligence solicitors are here to help.
AS SEEN ON
Antenatal negligence is the failure of a healthcare professional to provide a reasonable standard of treatment during pregnancy.
This might include a failure to monitor the health of both the mother or baby, failing to notice a high-risk pregnancy or the mismanagement of a known health complication.
Unfortunately, the impact of this type of negligence can be hugely devastating, sometimes resulting in catastrophic and life-changing consequences for the baby or mother.
Pregnancy negligence claims can help you seek compensation for the physical harm and suffering, psychological impact and any financial losses caused by the negligent medical treatment; with this said, we completely understand that no amount of compensation can undo the harm caused by maternity negligence.
Although it can be used to fund any private treatments, home adaptations or even cover lost income.
Our medical negligence solicitors at JF Law have decades of experience advocating for claimants nationwide.
With a personalised approach, they can help gather any evidence you need, offer advice and support throughout your claim and even assist you in being connected with specialists who can aid in your rehabilitation.
By placing you at the heart of their work, our solicitors can handle all communications on your behalf, ensuring that your focus can remain on your recovery.
In addition to this, our advisory team offers a free case consultation, where you have the chance to discuss the circumstances of your case, with a free assessment. If your case has merit, our advisors can then connect you with one of our specialist solicitors who will then discuss your claim, ensuring that you can answer any questions you may have.
Get In Touch
To learn more about how to get started with your own pregnancy negligence compensation claim, you can reach our team by:
- Calling us on 0151 375 9916
- Contacting us online
Can I Make A Claim For Medical Negligence During Pregnancy?
Yes, you could make a pregnancy negligence claim if we can show that you suffered avoidable harm as a result of a medical professional’s substandard treatment. In order to demonstrate this, your case must usually satisfy the following elements:
A Medical Professional Owed You A Duty Of Care
This establishes a legal link between you as a patient, and a medical professional as a provider of maternity care. A duty of care is a legal obligation owed to you from any medical professional whether this be an obstetrician, midwife, sonographer or even a GP.
Per this duty, medical professionals must provide a standard of care and treatment that reaches the minimum expected of them in their role. An example of this could be a midwife ensuring that they provide compassionate care, adhering to the professional standards laid down by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and maintaining detailed records.
The Duty Of Care Owed To You Was Breached
A breach of duty arises when a healthcare provider provides care below the minimum expected standards. This can occur if a midwife fails to refer a high-risk pregnancy to an obstetrician pre-birth, or even if a medical professional is dismissive of symptoms or worries from the mother.
This Breach Led To You Suffering Avoidable Harm
The final element we must show is that the medical professional’s breach in their duty resulted in you suffering harm that would have been avoided had the correct standards of care and treatment been met.
This establishes a direct link between the medical professional’s substandard treatment, and the harm you suffered. Moreover, this harm can be both physical or psychological, ranging from minor forms of harm to life-changing consequences; you’re able to claim for any medically recognised harm caused by negligent maternity care.
To learn whether you’d be eligible to seek compensation with our solicitors and for more information about pregnancy negligence claims, please get in touch today.
Maternity And Pregnancy Negligence Claims Examples
Maternity and pregnancy negligence claims can arise in a number of ways, our focus in this guide is to explore antenatal negligence and mistreatment during pregnancy and pre-birth.
With this in mind, a few ways that antenatal negligence can arise could be if:
- When you visit the sonographer for your 20-week scan, they misinterpret your scan meaning that they fail to visualise all chambers of your baby’s heart. As a result, your baby is born with congenital heart disease.
- Despite presenting symptoms of gestational diabetes, your midwife dismisses your worries and symptoms. This later develops into preeclampsia, causing you psychological and physical pain. Moreover, this leads to a reduction of blood flow to the placenta, restricting the growth of your baby.
- Your midwives fail to check your medical history, and prescribe you pain medication that has a drug interaction with other medication you are taking. As a result of this, you suffer a miscarriage.
These examples are by no means exhaustive, but illustrative only. However, to discuss the facts of your own pregnancy negligence claim, please get in touch with our advisors today. They are knowledgeable and available to answer any questions you might have about the claims process.
Complications Resulting From Pregnancy Medical Negligence
Pregnancy medical negligence can lead to severe, life-altering complications for both the baby and mother. These antenatal complications often arise following a misdiagnosis, poor patient monitoring or the mismanagement of a high-risk pregnancy.
Some complications that can result following maternity medical negligence include:
- Sepsis development, if an infection is not diagnosed or treated, sepsis can ensue which can a life-threatening risk to the mother.
- Failure to monitor foetal development which can cause congenital abnormalities going unnoticed, or stunt a baby’s growth and development.
- Diagnostic failures such as failing to act on blood tests, ultrasounds or genetic screenings.
- Misdiagnosis of conditions such as preeclampsia or gestational diabetes.
- Failure to recognise a high-risk pregnancy.
- Sonographic failures such as a missed diagnosis of a foetal abnormality such as a heart defect or growth complications.
- Ectopic pregnancy misdiagnosis.
- Wrongful birth, if for example birth defects are missed then parents are deprived of the opportunity to make a fully informed decision regarding their pregnancy.
These aren’t the only complications that can arise following pregnancy negligence, so if you would like to discuss the circumstances of your own case, please get in touch with our advisors today. With a friendly approach, we’re here to listen and offer advice on the best course of action.
How Much Compensation Could I Get For Negligence Before Or After Pregnancy?
The amount of compensation you could be awarded in a successful pregnancy negligence claim is dependent on the type of harm you suffered, the impact on your daily life and your projected recovery time. Additionally, compensation can be made up of two different heads of claim, called general damages and special damages.
The first of these is compensation for the physical pain and suffering and also the psychological damage caused by the maternity negligence. This head of loss can be valued by professionals considering any loss of amenity caused by your harm, and through reference to documents such as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This is a framework offering guideline brackets of compensation for specific types of harm and can assist those calculating general damages in a claim.
Below, we have provided a table with some figures taken from the JCG, to show you how pregnancy compensation could be calculated in a successful claim. Please however note that the top entry has not been taken from the JCG, and all figures are guidelines only, and not a guarantee of compensation.
| Type of Harm | Severity | Compensation Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| A number of severe forms of harm paired with special damages | Serious/Severe harm and related expenses including lost wages, therapy and domestic support. | Up to £500,000+ |
| Female Reproductive System | Severe (a) infertility as a result of harm or disease, leading to sexual dysfunction, depression, pain and scarring. | £140,210 – £207,260 |
| Serious (b) likely permanent sexual dysfunction. The upper section of the guideline will apply to cases with severe medical complications such as an ectopic pregnancy or multiple surgeries | £52,490 – £124,620 | |
| Moderately severe (c) infertility with no sexual dysfunction or aggravating symptoms, in a younger person with no children | £68,440 – £87,070 | |
| Moderate (d) no medical complications or sexual dysfunction but infertility where the person already has children | £21,920 – £44,840 | |
| Less severe (e) infertility where the affected person would not have had any children in any event | £8,060 – £22,800 | |
| Traumatic Harm to the Digestive System | Severe (i) ongoing pain and discomfort with severe digestive damage | £52,490 – £75,550 |
| Serious (ii) non-penetrative injury leading to permanent medical complications | £20,490 – £33,880 | |
| Psychiatric Harm | Moderately severe (b) psychiatric harm following a negligent stillbirth or the traumatic birth of a child can often fall into this bracket | £23,270 – £66,920 |
Special Damages In Pregnancy Negligence Claims
Special damages in pregnancy negligence claims is compensation for any provable, economic losses caused as a result of suffering maternity harm. This head of compensation can encompass:
- Loss of earnings for time taken out of work, including any lost wages, pension contributions, bonuses or even workplace benefits.
- Medical costs such as ongoing prescription costs, therapy or counselling costs or private medical treatments.
- Care expenses, whether this be round-the-clock professional care, gratuitous care from family members or even domestic assistance.
- Home modifications, including specialist wet rooms, wheelchair ramps or fitting a stairlift if your mobility has been permanently affected following the pregnancy negligence.
- Travel costs whether this be to and from medical appointments or rehabilitation sessions.
- Fertility treatment costs if the negligence resulted in a loss of fertility.
However, in order for you to recover these financial expenses, you must hold evidence of these losses. This could include invoices to show costs, bank statements or even payslips, all of which our solicitors could help you in gathering.
For more information about what can be included within special damages in a pregnancy negligence claim, please get in touch with our advisory team today.
We pride ourselves
on providing the best service
possible for our clients.
We pride ourselves on providing the best service possible for our clients.
What Will I Need To Bring A Claim For Medical Negligence During Pregnancy?
In order to bring pregnancy negligence claims, you will need evidence that proves how a medical professional’s substandard treatment led to you suffering avoidable harm. However, before you can begin compiling evidence, you could be wondering what to do first.
Below, we’ve provided a streamlined guide to help prioritise your health whilst also strengthening your legal position:
Seek Medical Help
After experiencing maternity negligence, make sure to visit an urgent care clinic, A&E or your GP. This offers the chance for them to assess the extent of harm you’ve suffered, and for you to be examined by a medical professional separately from those that you received substandard treatment from.
This also vitally creates an official record of any treatments, and your health condition. This can be used to show the extent of harm you’ve experienced.
Collate Evidence
When you’ve received the medical help you need, you can then begin compiling evidence that can be used to prove medical negligence. This could include:
- Pregnancy notes
- Antenatal treatments
- Medical records
- Contact details of anyone who might have witnessed the mistreatment
- Photographs of any visible harm, including bruising
- Maternity notes
- Antenatal appointments or courses you attended
Report the Substandard Care
We would recommend that you immediately report the substandard care to the direct NHS Trust or private hospital that you received mistreatment from. Additionally, you can raise concerns regarding the standard of care to the head of midwifery.
Following this, you could also get in touch with the Patient Advice and Liaison Service. They’re able to resolve issues and provide advice to patients on the complaint procedure.
Keep A Personal Diary
Starting a personal diary of the extent of physical pain, and your daily symptoms can be really helpful. We would recommend making note of any medical appointments, prescriptions or treatments you’ve received following the pregnancy negligence.
Moreover, keep a note of any counselling or therapy you’re undergoing, as well as any time you’ve taken off work during your recovery.
This personal record can be used to demonstrate the full impact of the harm caused to you from maternity negligence, as well as showing the financial implications.
Get In Touch With A Specialist Pregnancy Solicitor
Contacting specialised medical negligence solicitors at the earliest possible time can be invaluable. Our solicitors here at JF Law can discuss the validity of your claim, provide a rough estimate of how much compensation you could receive in a successful claim and handle all legal complexities on your behalf.
Moreover, our advisory team offers a free consultation where they’re able to assess the facts of your case, and discuss whether you’d be eligible to claim compensation for maternity negligence. If your claim has merit, they can then connect you with one of our experienced solicitors who will then offer their support, advice and expertise from the start and throughout your claim.
Start Your Claim Within The Time Limit
Generally, when making pregnancy negligence claims, you will have 3 years from the date of the substandard treatment, or the date where you first connected the mistreatment with your harm. This time limit is established under the Limitation Act 1980, to ensure that claims can’t be brought indefinitely.
Additionally, it’s imperative that your claim is started within the limitation period to prevent it from becoming time-barred.
How Long Do I Have To Claim For Pregnancy Negligence?
You will generally have 3 years from the date either of the substandard treatment, or the date where you linked your harm to negligent treatment. However, there are two exceptions to this limitation period, for claimants who may be unable to claim independently.
For further information about how long you would have to make a pregnancy negligence claim, please get in touch with our advisors today or see our dedicated limitation period guide.
If you have any questions about how to get pregnancy negligence claims started or the claims process, speak to an advisor.
Why Make A Maternity Negligence Claim With JF Law?
At JF Law, our pregnancy negligence solicitors have a personalised approach from the beginning of your claim and throughout. By placing you at the forefront of their work, they can connect you with independent medical specialists including physiotherapists who can assist with pelvic prolapse or even trauma-informed therapists.
Moreover, our solicitors have decades of experience in this area of law, meaning they can apply their knowledge and expertise with the purpose of securing you a settlement that reflects the harm caused by maternity negligence.
If you choose to instruct one of our solicitors, you could expect:
- Support with gathering medical records, and other documents to build a strong body of evidence
- Simple explanations of legal processes and terms
- Working alongside you to create a recovery plan that suits your needs
- Connecting you with specialists who can help you get back on your feet
- Regular contact about the progression of your claim
- Providing an estimate of how much compensation you could recover
This isn’t all that our solicitors are able to help you with, so if you’d like to learn more about how JF Law can help you, please get in touch with our advisors today.
No Win No Fee Pregnancy Negligence Claims
At JF Law, our solicitors offer their services on a No Win No Fee basis. You might’ve heard of this before, but may not know how that would impact your own pregnancy negligence claim.
This type of funding arrangement works by using a contract called a Conditional Fee Agreement, which offers clients an access point to justice with little financial risk. Essentially, claiming on a No Win No Fee basis would mean that you didn’t have to pay any upfront fees in order for one of our solicitors to begin work on your case.
In addition to this, you wouldn’t be faced with ongoing solicitors fees whilst your claim advanced, but most vitally, if your claim was to be unsuccessful, you’d have nothing to pay for the work of your solicitor.
Adversely, if your claim was successful, then a pre-agreed percentage of your compensation would be deducted. This is our solicitor’s success fee, and is limited with reference to the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 to guarantee that you receive the majority of your compensation.
Again, this percentage is discussed before your claim commences, to make sure that you’re fully aware of the success fee and you can discuss any questions you might have with your solicitor.
Contact Our Solicitors
To speak with one of our friendly advisors, you can reach us by:
- Calling us on 0151 375 9916
- Contacting us online
Learn More
Why not read our other guides about:
- How to claim for a misdiagnosed ectopic pregnancy
- Cervical cancer misdiagnosis claims and how we can help
- How to make hysterectomy negligence claims
Helpful External Resources
- NHS information about pregnancy
- The Royal College of Midwives’ professional standards within the UK
- How to make a complaint about NHS treatment
Thank you for reading our pregnancy negligence claims guide, we hope it has been helpful.
Contact Us
Our helpline is open 24 hours a day, 7 days per week.
All calls are free and there’s no pressure whatsoever to proceed with a compensation claim.
If you write to us, we aim to respond within an hour or two, and no more than a few hours.
Request a Callback