How To Sue The NHS For Misdiagnosis Of Your Illness Or Injury
By Danielle Fletcher. Last Updated 25th July 2024. Welcome to our guide on how to sue the NHS for misdiagnosis.
If you’ve been misdiagnosed by the NHS because of negligence, you may be able to claim compensation. To succeed in making a medical negligence claim for misdiagnosis, you need to be able to prove that negligence on the part of a medical professional led to a worsening of your condition.
This guide will explain how to sue the NHS for misdiagnosis. We will also look at what a misdiagnosis is and what your claim could cover.
To learn more about suing the NHS for a misdiagnosis, or to see if you can make a claim, you can get in touch with us directly. We offer a free consultation and could connect you with a specialist medical misdiagnosis solicitor from our panel.
You can contact us in the following ways:
- Call us on 020 3870 4868.
- Fill out our claim online form.
- Chat with us in real-time using the live chat feature.
Services And Information
- What Is A Misdiagnosis Claim?
- What Injuries And Illnesses Could Be Misdiagnosed?
- Why Does Misdiagnosis Occur?
- Misdiagnosis – How Much Compensation Can I Claim?
- What Evidence Do I Need To Support My Misdiagnosis Claim?
- Following The NHS Complaints Process
- How Much Time Do I Have To Sue The NHS For Misdiagnosis?
- Claim Compensation For Misdiagnosis With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
- Related Medical Claims Information
- FAQs About Suing The NHS For Misdiagnosis
How To Sue The NHS For A Misdiagnosis
A misdiagnosis claim could be made if a medical professional negligently misdiagnosed you and this caused you harm. For example, if you approached your GP with symptoms of lung cancer, but they did not order further testing and instead diagnosed you with a chest infection, your lung cancer could potentially worsen without proper treatment.
All medical professionals have a duty of care to provide a reasonable standard of service to patients. If this does not occur, you could potentially come to harm. However, not all instances of harm will be cause for a claim. For a misdiagnosis claim to be valid, the following criteria will need to apply:
- You were owed a duty of care
- The duty of care was breached
- You sustained an injury due to the breach
To find out more about claims for misdiagnosis or how to claim for a wrong diagnosis, get in touch with our advisors at any time. Our lines are open 24/7.
What Injuries And Illnesses Could Be Misdiagnosed?
Further to learning if you can sue the NHS for misdiagnosis, you might be wondering what injuries and illnesses could be misdiagnosed.
Some examples could include:
- If a patient comes in with a potential fracture, then it is vital that these are x-rayed to receive to correct diagnosis. Failure to x-ray a potential broken bone, could lead to a misdiagnosis.
- Gps could fail to refer patients who are experiencing symptoms of a severe diseases, such as cancer. If they fail to consider the symptoms the patient is describing this could lead to a misdiagnosis.
- If administration errors were to occur, such as a patient’s medical records being mixed up with another, this could lead to a missed diagnosis or misdiagnosis.
These are only a few examples. Contact our advisors to discuss your specific case and see whether you could be eligible to make a medical negligence claim.
Why Does Misdiagnosis Occur?
All medical professionals owe their patients a duty of care regardless of whether they work for a private or public healthcare provider. Should they breach this duty, and you are misdiagnosed, then you could potentially make a medical negligence claim.
A few examples of medical misdiagnosis and how they could happen include:
- Your GP does not sufficiently consider your symptoms and instead diagnoses you with another condition.
- If your GP fails to refer you for further tests, this could delay your diagnosis. If your diagnosis is delayed, your condition may worsen.
- Misinterpretation or misreading test results can lead to misdiagnosis. For example, if you are sent for an X-ray, the technician or doctor may fail to recognise a fracture and diagnose you with a sprain instead.
However, not every case is eligible for compensation for misdiagnosis. If a medical professional can prove that they did not breach their duty of care, yet you still suffered harm due to being misdiagnosed, you might not have a valid claim.
If you have any questions about medical negligence claims such as ‘When could a claim for suing the NHS for a misdiagnosis be valid?’ you can contact our advisors.
Misdiagnosis – How Much Compensation Can I Claim?
Along with, “Can you sue the NHS for misdiagnosis errors?” we are often asked, “What compensation could I receive if my claim is successful?”
The compensation you are awarded can be split into up to two heads of loss. These are:
- General damages.
- Special damages, which you can read more about in the next section.
General damages compensate for avoidable physical or mental harm resulting directly from a medical professional breached the duty of care they owed.
Those working out this part of your compensation payout could use medical evidence for guidance on factors like the extent of your harm and how much treatment you’ll need.
For some insight on an appropriate payout, they could look at guideline compensation ranges found in a document called the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG).
The table below uses JCG figures in all but the top line. It doesn’t guarantee what you would receive if you successfully claim for medical negligence, but acts more as a general guide.
| Affected Area | Severity of Harm | Amount of Compensation |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Cases of Severe Harm Plus Financial Losses | Serious | Up to £1,000,000+ |
| Paralysis | Paraplegia | £267,340 to £346,890 |
| Reproductive System: Male | a) | In excess of £187,790 |
| Lung (b) | Lung Cancer (Typically in an Older Person) | £85,460 to £118,790 |
| Back | Severe (iii) | £47,320 to £85,100 |
| Digestive System | Illness/Damage Resulting From Non-Traumatic Injury (i) | £46,900 to £64,070 |
| Bladder | d) | £28,570 to £38,210 |
| Deafness/Tinnitus - Partial Hearing Loss | (ii) Moderate Tinnitus | £18,180 to £36,260 |
| Injuries to the Pelvis and Hips | Moderate (ii) | £15,370 to £32,450 |
| Wrist | Less Severe Injuries | £15,370 to £29,900 |
You could also potentially claim under special damages if the misdiagnosis financially affected you. Special damages in a medical negligence claim could address:
- Affected income
- Treatment or care costs
- Home adaptions or mobility aids needed to cope with your injury
Both general damages and special damages could be part of your final payout settlement if you were able to successfully claim.
Please reach out to member of our team for any other questions you may have regarding compensation or if you’re still wondering ‘how to sue the NHS for medical negligence?’.
What Evidence Do I Need To Support My Misdiagnosis Claim?
The crucial aspect of claiming for NHS misdiagnosis is providing evidence that shows your quality of life has been impacted. Potential evidence includes:
- Medical reports. As part of your claim, you will usually be invited to an independent medical expert. The report from this will be used to value your claim.
- A list of medicine or prescriptions
- A detailed timeline of your treatment to illustrate how your condition has worsened due to the NHS misdiagnosis
The more evidence you can use to show the impact that the misdiagnosis has had on you, the more chance you have of a potential settlement award fully reflecting your condition.
In learning how to sue the NHS for misdiagnosis, you may also want to know the evidence you need to claim for special damages. You can prove the financial losses you have experienced by providing receipts, invoices and bank statements.
Following The NHS Complaints Process
If you want to complain to the NHS, there are several stages of the complaints process.
- You can begin by complaining to your doctor or the medical professional directly.
- Most hospitals provide a Patient and Advice Liaison Service (PALS). You can speak to a PALS member informally. They can work with the department involved to solve the issue.
- If you’re thinking about complaining, a member of the independent NHS Complaints Advocacy service can help. They can attend meetings and review information you’ve been given as part of the complaints process. Your local council can make you aware of who the advocacy provider in your area is.
- You can either complain to the NHS provider directly or the commissioner of the service provider.
Complaints should normally be made within twelve months of the incident or of you becoming aware of the issue. You can either complain verbally, by email or over the phone.
The timeframe for the complaint resolution depends on the extent of the issue. You should, however, be provided with an acknowledgement of the complaint within three working days of them receiving it.
Why make a complaint to the Ombudsman?
If you’re unhappy about the resolution of an NHS complaint, you can always refer to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. They independently review the complaint and come to a final decision. If the Ombudsman side in your favour, they could recommend that the NHS make changes so the same error doesn’t happen again and can ask them to send you a formal apology letter.
You don’t need to complain through the Ombudsman to make a medical negligence claim against the NHS. You do, however, need to complain directly to the NHS first before going to the Ombudsman.
How Much Time Do I Have To Sue The NHS For Misdiagnosis?
The Limitation Act 1980 clarifies how long you have to start a medical negligence claim. In a standard case, you have three years to start a claim. This can either run from the date of the incident or the date that you became aware that your symptoms were caused by negligence.
However, there are a couple of exceptions to this rule:
- If you’ve suffered an illness or injury due to NHS negligence as a child, you have three years from the date of your eighteenth birthday to begin the claim. Before this, the time limit is suspended, and a litigation friend can claim on your behalf.
- If someone doesn’t have the mental capacity to claim, the medical negligence claims time limit is suspended indefinitely. A litigation friend can claim on behalf of them. In the event that they recover, they will have three years to start their own claim if one has not already been made.
If you would like any further information about the time limits that apply to making a claim, or if you would just like more general information on how to sue NHS for misdiagnosis, speak to our team today.
Claim Compensation For Misdiagnosis With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
If you would like to pursue a claim for misdiagnosis compensation, you could get expert help. Having reasonable grounds to sue the NHS could see you connected to a specialist solicitor from our panel.
They have a proven track record in helping clients make successful medical misdiagnosis claims. Additionally, the solicitors on our panel generally offer their services under a type of No Win No Fee arrangement called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).
When your solicitor offers their services on a No Win No Fee basis, they usually won’t ask you for an upfront payment. They don’t ask for payments towards ongoing fees either. Furthermore, if the claim is not successful, you won’t have to pay anything for the solicitor’s services.
If your solicitor is successful, they will take a percentage of your compensation award. That percentage, known as the success fee, is capped because of a legal ceiling put in place by The Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013.
If you have any questions about claiming compensation for misdiagnosis, please get in touch with our advisors. In addition to answering your questions, you could be connected to one of the solicitors from our panel.
To talk to an advisor:
- Call 020 3870 4868
- Start your claim online.
- Use our live chat.
Related Medical Claims Information
For more useful information, please use the links below.
If you’re unsure if you’ve broken a bone and would like guidance, please refer to the NHS website.
Do you want to learn more about claiming for dental negligence? If so, please view this webpage.
For more information about the time limit when making medical negligence claims, please view this page on our website.
View this page to learn more about how to report a doctor for medical negligence.
Do you want to see if you can claim for an operation gone wrong? If so, please read this page.
How Do I Claim For Testicular Cancer Misdiagnosis?
How Do I Claim For Sepsis Misdiagnosis Medical Negligence?
My Brain Cancer Was Misdiagnosed, How Do I Claim Compensation?
FAQs About Suing The NHS For Misdiagnosis
For answers to frequently asked questions about how to sue the NHS for misdiagnosis, please read below.
What are NHS never events?
Never events are events that should always be preventable if the proper procedures are followed. This includes, for example, incidents like an operation in which the wrong body part was removed.
Can you sue NHS for the wrong diagnosis?
If you’re able to prove that negligence led to you being misdiagnosed, you may be able to receive compensation. You will also need to show that the misdiagnosis directly caused your condition to get worse than it would have if you’d been diagnosed correctly.
Thank you for reading our guide on how to sue the NHS for misdiagnosis.
