Accident & Emergency Claims

A visit to Accident and Emergency (A&E) is traumatic for any patient, as this means you are in serious need of medical attention.

If this happens, you have the right to expect a certain standard of care. If an accident and emergency department fails to provide this, you may be able to make a Medical Negligence claim against the Hospital Trust.

Call Jackson Lees or complete our online enquiry form.

We have over 25 years of Medical Negligence experience and we have helped thousands of clients across England and Wales.

We will not charge you to discuss your case and will provide initial advice free of charge.

We offer conditional fee agreements also known as ‘no win, no fee’.

When Can You Make an Accident and Emergency Claim?

While accident and emergency staff deal with a wide variety of different cases, there are three main areas of Negligence that can make you eligible to make an A&E claim.

For example, if your condition is not properly diagnosed, it can worsen to the point where it becomes much more difficult to treat. In the case of an illness or disease, what may have been treatable when you arrived at the accident and emergency department could progress to a life-threatening stage as a result of the delay or failure to diagnose.

If you are given a diagnosis, it falls upon the accident and emergency professionals to ensure you are provided with the appropriate medical treatment. Unfortunately, negligence can occur in the form of either poor treatment, such as a failure to administer the correct medication properly, or a failure to treat your condition at all despite a diagnosis being provided.

The impact of this A&E negligence both from a physical and mental perspective can be devastating to you and your loved ones, at Jackson Lees we understand this, we will do all we can to help you through this difficult time and to enable you to achieve the outcome you deserve.

Case Study

As the range of cases dealt with by A&E departments is so broad, at Jackson Lees, we have dealt with a number of different claims where Clinical Negligence has been alleged.

In one case, a client had attended the A&E department, following a fall from a horse. She had landed on her back, with her arms raised, and told the A&E staff that she was in a great deal of pain, and that she had limited feeling in her arms, was unable to move her arms, and had limited movement in her legs.

Although X rays were taken of her arms, no x-rays were taken of her spine, and she was sent away and advised to use pain relief. She re-attended A&E some days later, but again, no spinal x-rays were undertaken. It was only on a third attendance that spinal x-rays were undertaken, and a fracture to the cervical spine was diagnosed.

Following receipt of expert medical opinion, we were able to argue successfully that the Defendant had been negligent in failing to carry out spinal x-rays at an earlier stage, or to carry out an appropriate neurological examination, amongst other failures.

The client was left with a neurological deficit, which affected her dominant arm, and affected her independence and quality of life. We argued that if a prompt diagnosis had been made, these problems would have been avoided, and the client would have faced lesser problems of only intermittent pain and stiffness after some 6 months after the accident.

The case was settled for £75,000.

Get Medical Negligence Advice From Jackson Lees

Jackson Lees Solicitors can draw on over 25 years of Medical Negligence experience to offer a full assessment of your A&E claim, including the next steps you need to take.

To help you with any questions you may have relating to Medical Negligence, we have put together a useful article: ‘Do you need Clinical Negligence advice?’ and a list of FAQs.  

We take great pride in providing our clients with the practical support that is often vital during these difficult times. We will also act on your behalf to help look after a loved one, for example if you need to make a claim on behalf of your child.

Jackson Lees will help you understand the facts of your accident and emergency claim. We aim to help you do the right thing, the right way.

Our work has been recognised by Action Against Medical Accidents (AvMA) and the Law Society. Contact us now by filling out an online enquiry form, or alternatively you can call our Medical Negligence solicitors today.