Personal Injury awards are made up of several components, explains Darren White, Solicitor at Quality Solicitors Dunn & Baker. The aim of an award of compensation is to restore the Claimant to the position they were in directly before an accident happened.
Take Linda’s case as an example. Let’s assume that Linda slipped over and suffered a minor fracture to her wrist. She was in a plaster cast for the first month and relied heavily on her partner for help with everyday tasks like washing and dressing during this time. It took her a further month of physiotherapy treatment before she could go back to work. She made a full recovery from her symptoms within 12 months.
Linda’s award of £6,500 was broken down to compensate her for each of the issues above. For the pain, suffering and inconvenience that she suffered, Linda was awarded £3,500. This figure was calculated by relying on judicial guidelines and previous awards for Claimants with minor wrist fractures.
As well as providing compensation for pain and suffering, any award will also include expenses and financial losses that have been caused as a direct result of an accident or injury that can be fully evidenced.
Linda paid £350 of her own money for private physiotherapy treatment. As this was to treat her accident related injuries and she was able to provide receipts for each session, she was awarded £350 to restore her to her pre-accident position.
Linda earns £1,250 a month. As she lost two month’s pay due to being unable to work and was able to fully evidence this with payslips, she was awarded £2,500.
Finally, Linda’s partner had spent an hour a day for the first 30 days helping Linda with personal hygiene, dressing, caring and providing assistance. As they did more than someone would reasonably expect a spouse to do, Linda’s award included £5 for each hour of care for them, a further £150.
Therefore, the headline from the advert above is true, Linda was awarded £6,500. However, this figure was calculated and broken down according to Linda’s particular situation.
At Quality Solicitors Dunn and Baker we can help you to recover the correct amount of compensation for your individual circumstances. If you have been in an accident that wasn’t your fault, contact our specialist team of Solicitors, led by Darren White, who are happy to answer any questions you may have in relation to any claim.