Hearing Loss Claims Specialists
We could help those with hearing loss claims receive compensation.
£85 million in compensation
Hearing Loss Claims Specialists
We could help those with hearing loss claims receive compensation.
A Guide To Hearing Loss Claims
Have you had an accident that wasn’t your fault, which has caused hearing loss? If so could make a personal injury claim with us here at JF Law.
Our guide will discuss how you could be eligible to start a hearing loss claim and the types of compensation you could be awarded.
Read on to learn how our expert No Win No Fee solicitors could help you.
What You Need To Know:
- If someone else was responsible for your hearing loss, you could have the basis to claim
- You could make a claim with one of our No Win No Fee solicitors
- Your compensation could be for both the injuries and the financial losses you have suffered due to the accident
- You must have evidence to show how someone else’s actions or inactions caused your hearing loss
- Generally, your time limit to start a claim is 3 years from the date of the accident
To learn more about hearing loss claims, contact us through either:
- Call us on 0151 375 9916
- Contact us online
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We strive to provide the highest level of service possible. Our sole aim is to get you the best result we can and one you’re satisfied with. Get in touch today to find out how we can help you.
Can I Make A Hearing Loss Claim?
For you to be able to make a hearing loss claim with us at JF Law, three components must be present to form the foundation of your claim. This is known as negligence.
In order to prove this:
- Someone must’ve owed you a duty of care
- They breached this duty
- Their breach led to your injuries
The first step in establishing negligence is determining who owes you a duty of care. We will discuss who may be liable in different circumstances below.
Accident At Work
Your employer owes you a duty of care to take reasonable steps to ensure your health and safety whilst at work. This duty of care is laid out in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
This could include:
- Providing personal protective equipment when needed
- Ensuring all employees have received appropriate training
- Performing regular risk assessments
An example of how an accident at work could lead to a hearing loss claim could be:
- Your employer fails to repair a known piece of machinery. This causes the machine to explode when it malfunctions. You were standing nearby and the loud sound causes you to lose your hearing.
Road Traffic Accident
As a road user, you are owed a duty of care by all other road users, and you also owe one in turn. Per this duty, all road users need to use the roads in a way which prevents or avoids causing harm or damage to others. This can be upheld by following the regulations set out in the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Highway Code.
An example of how a road traffic accident could cause your hearing loss could be:
- You were driving on the motorway when another road user who was speeding crashed into the back of your car, causing the airbag to go off. The impact of the airbag hitting your face and the sound causes you to suffer from partial hearing loss.
Accident In A Public Place
Whilst in a public place, the person or organisation in control of the premises owes you a duty of care to keep you reasonably safe. This is established in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
An example of how a public liability accident could lead to a hearing loss claim is:
- You were in a restaurant and they failed to signpost or clean a known spillage. You slipped on this, and your fall causes a head injury, which leads to permanent hearing loss in your left ear.
Medical Negligence
All medical professionals who treat have a duty of care to provide you with the correct standard of treatment. This duty extends to doctors, nurses and even pharmacists.
Common examples of medical negligence include misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose, which can lead to a worsening of a patient’s condition.
An example of how medical negligence could lead to hearing loss claims would be:
- A doctor fails to diagnose an ear infection, and it goes untreated. This ear infection then leads to permanent deafness in one ear.
Can Claims Be Made On Behalf Of Loved Ones?
Yes, claims can be made on behalf of family or loved ones. This role is known as a litigation friend. You can apply to be one or be appointed by the courts.
You can only act in this role for two types of claimants:
- Those who are under 18 as a minor can’t claim for themselves
- Adults who lack the mental capacity to claim on their own behalf
As a litigation friend, you have a few responsibilities to advocate in the claimant’s best interests. This can include:
- Discussing the claim with the claimant’s solicitor
- Make sure to update the claimant about the claim
To learn more about the role of litigation friends or about the hearing loss claims process, you can contact our advisors.
How Much Compensation Could I Get After A Hearing Loss Injury?
Compensation in hearing loss claims could be made up of two heads. These are called general and special damages. Your general damages is compensation for:
- Pain
- Suffering
- Loss of amenity. What this means is that if your hearing loss has left you unable to engage in hobbies or activities the way you did before the accident, then this will be considered in this head of claim.
When determining your compensation amount, the professionals responsible may refer to frameworks such as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG), a document that outlines various injuries and accompanying compensation guidelines.
The table below lists some of these figures. The first entry was not taken from the JCG.
Please note that these are suggestive figures only.
| Injury | Notes | Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Severe Injuries + Special Damages such as loss of earnings | Cases will show multiple serious injuries plus special damages such as loss of earnings or earning potential | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Total Deafness | The level of speech deficit and tinnitus will impact the amount of compensation in this bracket | £110,750 to £133,810 |
| Total Loss of Hearing in One Ear | The presence of tinnitus, dizziness and headaches will impact the amount of compensation | £38,210 to £55,570 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (i) | Cases will either suffer severe tinnitus or noise induced hearing loss | £36,260 to £55,570 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (ii) | Cases will either experience moderate tinnitus, or noise induced hearing loss | £18,180 to £36,260 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (iii) | Cases here will show mild tinnitus and some noise induced hearing loss | £15,370 to £18,180 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (v) | Slight or occasional tinnitus with slight noise induced hearing loss | £8,890 to £15,370 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (iv) | Cases here will either be mild tinnitus or mild noise induced hearing loss | Around £14,300 |
| Partial Hearing Loss and/or Tinnitus (vi) | Cases in this bracket will show either slight noise induced hearing loss or slight tinnitus | Up to £8,560 |
How Is Compensation For Deafness And Hearing Loss Calculated?
When your general damages compensation is being calculated, factors that will be taken into consideration include:
- The severity of your hearing loss
- Whether you also suffered additional injuries
- How your daily life has been impacted by these injuries
As we mentioned above, in hearing loss claims, you would be claiming for both general and special damages. This second head of claim is compensation for the financial impact that your accident has had. This can include:
- Loss of earnings or loss of earning capacity
- Medical costs
- Care costs
- Travel costs
But in order for you to be able to claim compensation to be financially reimbursed, you would have to hold evidence which demonstrates this. Your evidence could be:
- Payslips to show loss of earnings
- Medical invoices
- Receipts for travel
We discuss evidence further in our guide, but if you have any questions about compensation in successful hearing loss claims, please contact us 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.
Is There A Hearing Loss Claims Time Limit?
Yes, there is a time limit for hearing loss claims. Generally, you have 3 years from the date of the accident to start your claim.
This time limit is established in the Limitation Act 1980, which gives claimants a time limit to ensure claims cannot be brought indefinitely.
There are, however, exceptions to this permitted time limit for those unable to make their own claims:
- Those under the age of 18 cannot start their own claim until their 18th birthday. From which they will then have 3 years.
- Those lacking the mental capacity cannot make their own claim and will have the time limit suspended. If they regain this capacity, the 3-year time limit will start from this date.
Contact us today to discuss this, and our friendly advisors will be happy to assist you and answer any questions you might have.
How Can I Prove My Loss Of Hearing?
You can use evidence such as medical records to help demonstrate the extent of your hearing loss. Evidence can help to strengthen your claim as it highlights why someone else’s actions led to your hearing loss.
Your evidence can be made up of:
- GP or medical records
- Hearing test results
- Contact details of anyone happy to provide a witness statement at a later date
- CCTV or dashcam footage if the accident was caught on camera
- Workplace accident report book if the accident was at work
As part of the services offered by our solicitors at JF Law, we could help you to compile this supporting evidence.
We understand that it can feel daunting to make a claim, and we’re here for you every step of the way.
Contact us to learn more about evidence.
Types Of Hearing Loss
There are a few different types of hearing loss, and we discuss the most common types below:
Tinnitus
The NHS describes tinnitus as hearing noises that do not come from an outside source. These noises can be a buzzing or a high-pitched, continual noise in one or both ears. If left untreated, tinnitus can lead to:
- Stress
- Tiredness or fatigue
- Difficulty concentrating
Tinnitus affects around 7.6 million people in the UK alone. It can be caused by traumatic road traffic accidents or acoustic shock, which we discuss below. So, if you are experiencing tinnitus, you’re not alone. Both our advisors and our solicitors at JF Law are here to help you.
Acoustic Shock
Acoustic shock is a physiological response to a sudden, unexpected noise. This could occur if you’ve been at work and machinery has exploded nearby, or if you attend a concert and the staff fail to do adequate sound checks.
Acoustic shock can have both physical and psychological impacts. It can cause earache, tinnitus and even hypersensitivity to exposure to noise. Psychologically, it can cause stress, difficulty sleeping and even fear of being exposed to noise.
Head Trauma-Induced Hearing Loss
Trauma to the head or brain can lead to hearing loss in one of two ways:
- Mechanical – where someone experiences direct trauma or impact to the eardrums
- Neurological – where the trauma has affected the auditory pathways
Both types of hearing loss can cause permanent deafness or difficulty processing sounds and noises, having a lifelong impact on those affected.
The examples we have explored are not the only types of hearing loss, so if you’ve suffered hearing loss in an accident that wasn’t your fault, contact us today, as you could be entitled to compensation.
The Most Common Symptoms Of Hearing Loss
People who struggle with hearing loss or deafness will have individual experiences. However, the most common symptoms could manifest as:
- Asking people to repeat themselves or misunderstanding what has been said
- Struggling to hear people clearly
- Using a higher volume when listening to music or watching TV
- Feeling stressed or tired from having to concentrate when listening
These are just a few of the general symptoms experienced by those with hearing loss. Here at JF Law, we understand each case is different, and we’re here to help you.
Contact us today to learn more about hearing loss claims.
Can I Make A No Win No Fee Hearing Loss Or Deafness Claim?
Here at JF Law, our solicitors work on a No Win No Fee basis under a Conditional Fee Agreement.
This means that you won’t need to pay for their services at the beginning or during your hearing loss claims process.
Instead, if your claim were successful, a percentage of your compensation would be taken by your solicitor, known as a success fee. This percentage is limited under the law.
A benefit of this type of agreement is that if your hearing loss claim were unsuccessful, you wouldn’t be expected to pay a penny for our solicitor’s services.
As well as this, as part of our services, your solicitor would set up an After The Event (ATE) insurance policy. This is an insurance premium, which means if your case fails, you wouldn’t have to pay the defendant’s costs. This covers court fees, disbursements and any evidence-gathering costs.
An ATE policy can act as a safety net, as it means if your claim were unsuccessful, you wouldn’t have any legal costs to pay.
Contact JF Law
We hope that our guide has been helpful for you today, but if you have any questions or would like to know more about the hearing loss claims process, you can contact us by:
- Call us on 0151 375 9916
- Fill out our online claim form
Learn More
Read our other guides on:
- How to claim against an uninsured driver
- Advice on manual handling claims
- What to do if you’ve had a school accident
Helpful External Resources:
- How to claim Statutory Sick Pay – from GOV.UK
- When to report a workplace accident – from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
- How to get a hearing test through the NHS
Thank you for reading our hearing loss claims guide.
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