Spinal Injury Claims
An accident resulting in a spinal injury can be devastating. The effects of your injury may be long-term and are likely to involve a long process of psychological and physical readjustment. The financial and emotional impact on you and your family can be huge.
This page deals with spinal injury claims resulting from accident and injury. If you have sustained a spinal injury because of medical negligence, visit our spinal injury negligence claim page.
Claiming compensation can seem like an additional source of stress at an already difficult time. However, it is vital to secure the support you need for the future to help you deal with the consequences of your injury. The damages available for a spinal injury are often substantial, so a successful claim can make a huge difference to your financial situation and the quality of care you’re able to access.
At Barcan+Kirby we understand how hard it can seem to take on a legal case and we will do all we can to make the process as easy as possible for you.
Arrange a ‘no-win, no-fee’ consultation with our spinal injury solicitors in the UK
Our personal injury solicitors are highly experienced in pursuing spinal injury compensation claims for a wide range of clients. Our lawyers have achieved successful outcomes for even the most complex and challenging claims.
We offer a no win, no fee initial consultation with a member of our personal injury team to talk about your options, including how best to fund your claim.
Our spinal injury solicitors work with clients all over the UK from our offices spread across Bristol and the surrounding area in Bedminster, Bishopston, Bristol city centre, Kingswood and Thornbury.
To discuss a potential spinal injury compensation claim with a member of our team, please contact us on 0117 325 2929 or complete our online enquiry form.
Our expertise with spinal injury compensation claims
We act for clients throughout the UK on a wide range of personal injury compensation claims, including all types of back injuries and spinal injuries.
Our experience includes back and spinal injuries related to:
- Car accidents
- Cycling accidents
- Pedestrian accidents
- Accidents at work
- Trips, slips and falls
- Medical negligence
Our spinal injury solicitors are Business Members of the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA) and are listed in their guide to choosing a specialist Personal Injury Solicitor. Our personal injury team is also included in the Headway Head Injury Solicitors Directory.
We are recognised as leading personal injury lawyers by the top client guides to the legal profession; Chambers and Partners UK and the Legal 500. We have achieved band 3 ranking by Chambers and Partners UK and tier 3 ranking for the South West by Legal 500.
Our spinal injury claims service
Start a spinal injury compensation claim
To start a claim, simply book a no win, no fee initial consultation with our team and we will be happy to discuss your claim and talk you through how the claims process works in more detail. We will also explain the various options for funding your claim, including using a conditional fee agreement (commonly called a ‘no win, no fee deal’) where appropriate.
Establishing whether you have grounds for a claim
The first step in the claims process is determining whether you have grounds for compensation. We will need to prove that your spinal injury was caused by someone else’s negligence, omissions and/or deliberate action. This will usually mean relying on various types of evidence, depending on the circumstances. Evidence can potentially include witness statements, CCTV footage, health and safety logs, and medical records.
Valuing your claim
Working out how much compensation you may be entitled to is critical to any claim. In general, damages for a spinal injury will fall into two main categories:
General damages: to cover any non-financial losses such as pain, suffering and loss of amenity, which includes the inability to do things you used to be able to do, such as walking, sports or hobbies.
Special damages: covering financial costs you have incurred due to your injury. This will usually include a claim for loss of earnings and future loss of earnings as well as expenses such as travel to medical appointments, special equipment you may need to assist with day-to-day living and the cost of adapting your home.
Out-of-court settlements for spinal injuries
Almost all of the personal injury claims we deal with are resolved with an out-of-court settlement. This means the defendant voluntarily agrees to pay compensation without the need for you to attend a court hearing.
As a result, you can typically get fair compensation for your injuries much faster and with lower legal fees, while allowing you to avoid the stress and uncertainty of court proceedings.
Court proceedings for spinal injury compensation
In the unlikely event that court action is required, we can ensure your case is prepared effectively and that you have the very best representation for your hearing. Our team will also be with you every step of the way to provide the emotional support you need.
Access to support and rehabilitation for spinal injuries
Our spinal injury solicitors are sensitive to those who have suffered serious injury and know just how important it is to get you immediate expert rehabilitation. From the start, we’ll look to involve a specialist so that you’re able to access the ongoing therapy you need to make the fullest possible recovery from your accident.
To help you adjust to life with a spinal injury, we will look to refer you to organisations and experts outside the legal process. They can advise you on specialist equipment and will offer professional support to help you regain your independence and lead as normal a life as possible.
Managing spinal injury compensation
Our support doesn’t end at the point of securing compensation for you. We can also assist you with effectively managing the money you receive. Our goal is to make sure you get the most from your compensation and that your needs can continue to be met long-term.
Barcan+Kirby’s personal injury lawyers cannot advise you about the investment of your spinal injury compensation, so it’s important to obtain proper independent financial advice. We can, however, put you in touch with an independent financial advisor who can advise you on the various options. This can include placing your compensation into a personal injury trust, which allows you to use your compensation to meet your needs, while making sure it does not affect your entitlement to means-tested benefits.
Funding your spinal injury claim
There are various options for funding a spinal injury claim and we will be happy to advise you on which is best suited to your circumstances.
No win, no fee spinal injury claims
The most common approach for funding a claim is to use a conditional fee agreement (CFA). This is often referred to as a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement. When using a CFA to fund your claim, there is no upfront cost to you. You’ll only be liable for our legal fees (and any unrecoverable expenses in some cases) if your claim is successful. You’ll only be liable for a contribution towards our legal fees (and any unrecoverable expenses in some cases) if your claim is successful.
Trade union funding for workplace spinal injury claims
If your injury happened at work and you are a member of a trade union, you may be able to access trade union funding to cover your legal costs. This is something we can discuss with you and is worth consulting your trade union about.
Legal expenses insurance
This type of cover is frequently offered as an optional extra with home insurance and car insurance policies. It can potentially be used to cover some or all of your legal fees where available.
Find out more about funding your claim.
Spinal injury claims FAQs
Spinal injuries can range in severity from pain and numbness to paralysis. The extent of your symptoms will depend on where your spinal cord was damaged and how badly affected it was.
While some changes may heal, in more extreme cases, loss of sensation and movement can be permanent. An injury higher up on the spinal cord could cause paralysis in the body and limbs as well as affect the functioning of the body.
Spinal injuries are often classed as either complete or incomplete. A complete spinal injury means that there is no communication between nerves from the site of the injury downwards.
An incomplete spinal injury means that some of the nerves in the spinal cord are still able to function and some sensation, and potentially also movement, is possible below the site of the damage.
The most common spinal injury claims are for spinal injury resulting from a car accident and spinal injury resulting from a fall, generally from a height.
Other potential causes include spinal injuries from motorbike accidents, other road accidents, workplace accidents, slips and trips, and sports injuries.
If the accident was not your fault or not wholly your fault, you may be entitled to claim compensation for spinal injury.
For example, if a negligent driver caused the incident or there was an accident at work because your employer failed to take reasonable steps to keep you safe from harm, you will usually be able to bring a case.
To make a successful spinal injury compensation claim, you will need to show that:
- You were owed a duty of care by the person responsible, such as the other road user or your employer;
- This duty of care was breached; and
- You suffered injury because of the breach of this duty of care
To prove a spinal injury, we will obtain your medical records. We will also ask our medical experts to examine you and prepare reports on your condition.
A number of other documents can be used to prove your injury, such as the results of a CT scan, an MRI scan and reports from other medical and physiotherapy experts. As your claim progresses, more evidence will be added to show both the extent of your injury and your likely prognosis for the future. This will allow us to ensure that you are properly compensated.
The amount of compensation for a spinal injury claim can vary widely depending on the severity of your case and the long-term effects.
The most severe cases will warrant very substantial payments, often of seven figures. This is to ensure that you have the personal care and support you need for the rest of your life and to compensate you for loss of earnings over the years that you are unable to work as well as for pain, suffering and loss of amenity.
If you speak to us, we can discuss with you how severe your case is and talk about securing the right level of compensation for you.
In most cases, you will have three years from the time the injury occurred to make a claim. However, there are various circumstances that may mean you have longer to claim, including:
If you only become aware of the injury later: the three-year time limit will normally be counted from the date when you became aware of the injury (known as the ‘date of knowledge’).
If the injured party was under 18 when the injury occurred: their parents/guardian will have until the child turns 18 to bring a claim on their behalf. Once the injured party turns 18, they can bring their own claim, if necessary, up until their 21st birthday.
If the injured party lacks the mental capacity to claim: there is no time limit for someone else to claim on their behalf. If they later regain mental capacity (e.g. they wake from a coma) their three-year time limit will be counted from the date when they regained capacity.
Yes, if you are the parent or guardian of someone under 18 who has suffered a spinal injury, you can pursue a claim on their behalf. Similarly, if you need to make a claim for someone who lacks the mental capacity to claim (e.g. due to brain damage or learning difficulties) we can guide you through the process of making a claim on their behalf.
You can claim compensation for a back injury if it happened as the result of someone else’s negligence, fault or omission. For example, you fell at work on a wet surface that wasn’t cordoned off or you hurt your back in a cycling accident that wasn’t your fault.
Compensation for a back injury can help towards the cost of rehabilitation and reimburse you for loss of earnings. If your back injury is due to an accident at work, click here to find out about our workplace injury claims expertise.
If you have already started a claim with another firm and are unhappy with the way they have handled your case, you may be able to transfer your case to our specialist personal injury claims team. We will be happy to talk you through the process and give you all the support you need for a successful claim going forward.
Start a spinal injury claim today
We offer a ‘no-win, no-fee’ consultation with a spinal injury claims solicitor to talk about your options and how best to fund your spinal injury claim.
Our lawyers work with clients all over the UK from our offices spread across Bristol and the surrounding area in Bedminster, Bishopston, Bristol city centre, Kingswood and Thornbury.
To discuss a potential spinal injury claim with a member of our team, call 0117 325 2929 or complete our online enquiry form.