Private treatment for medical negligence compensation claims

In some cases, we may be able to arrange for private treatment for medical negligence compensation claims as part of the No Win, No Fee package for clients.

In this article, we can briefly outline when you could be eligible to make use of private treatment and how the costs can work for this. We can look at when you could get the other side to pay for the costs as part of a claim, or at least have treatment fees delayed until the end of a successful case.

We will also tell you how you can speak to our team for free and no-obligation advice about making a medical negligence compensation claim today.

Private treatment for medical negligence claims

It is possible for us to arrange for private treatment for medical negligence compensation claims. It can be arranged on the basis that you do not need to pay for it upfront, and the costs of the treatment can be recovered as part of the case at the end. Treatment could include physiotherapy, occupational therapy, and even costs of surgery.

The way that we can arrange for it is usually:

• Where we know that a case should win, and the treatment provider is prepared for their fees to be delayed until the case ends; and/or
• Where the opponent agrees to pay for and fund treatment upfront.

Whether we can achieve this all depends on the nature of the case and where we are in terms of the other side and their liability response. It can be harder to obtain such treatment in a case where we are having to fight hard for them to accept liability, for example.

When is private treatment justified?

You may consider why you would need private treatment for medical negligence cases if it is readily available on the NHS. When it comes to justifying the costs of private treatment, it’s all about the speed of getting you back to better health, and that’s what we can look at for including it in a case.

Generally speaking, the more a person suffers, the more a case could be worth. However, there is a duty to reduce suffering as much as can be reasonably expected . If private treatment is better and faster, it can reduce your suffering which you, as a Claimant in a case, have a duty to do. Equally, the Defendant (the organisation or person you are pursuing for compensation) also has a duty to help you to recover faster. This is called “mitigating your losses”. If private treatment will be beneficial for this, the costs of it could be justified, and that’s where we may be able to include it as part of a case.

The costs can be included as part of the Special Damages section for the claim, which is for losses and expenses. You can add those on to any amounts already there, so it’s not a case of you losing part of your compensation to pay for treatment fees, as they can be added into a Schedule of Losses and Expenses.

Free, no-obligation claims advice

As specialist medical negligence lawyers, we know how important it is to know if you are eligible to claim compensation. This is why our team is able to provide you with free and no-obligation advice about your options, and all you need to do is contact the team today for help and advice.

We can usually tell you quickly if we can assist you or not and offer to represent you on a No Win, No Fee basis without delay.