Every now and then a story will crop up in the press about an accident claim that settled for millions of pounds.
Think about Lesley Ash, the Men Behaving Badly actress who received £5 million after contracting MSSA in hospital, a strain of the hospital superbug MRSA. Then there are those less high profile cases such as Agnes Collier, a 17 year old schoolgirl who was awarded £23 million after a car accident left her paralysed in all four limbs.
These headline popping pay-outs leave many to wonder why some people attract such huge compensation settlements. Why doesn’t every claimant receive millions of pounds? And is it right that some do?
The answer lies in the way compensation is calculated. A settlement is made up of two things: general damages and special damages. General damages reflect the amount of pain and suffering a claimant’s injuries have caused. This figure will be a single lump sum and will be directed by legal guidelines.
Special damages reflect the claimant’s acute financial loss, both past and future. This might be a loss of earnings, the cost of medical treatment or domestic assistance. The sum of special damages will therefore be determined by the individual set of circumstances; and this is often what makes certain claims so very high.
Indeed, the money awarded for general damages will not usually be that huge. Agnes Collier received a lump sum pay-out of £7.25 million. But the reason her claim finally totalled £23 million is because she will be given £270,000 a year for the rest of her life to cover the cost of her round the clock care. Similarly, Lesley Ash was unable to work again after her hospital acquired infection. Given that she was at the height of her acting career, her estimated future losses were considerable.
As these two cases show, people who can never work again or who require professional care face significant financial loss. The law states that they should not lose this money just because of another person’s negligence. Thus a claimant must be put back into the financial position he or she was in before the accident happened. If financial loss is extensive, the compensation settlement will reflect this.
And so it cannot be said that people such as Lesley Ash or Agnes Collier do not deserve their compensation. Not only have they wrongfully endured a degree of pain and suffering, they have also incurred great financial damage and will continue to do so in the future. And while they cannot be given their health back, their compensation settlements will at least allow them enough provision to continue with their lives as best as possible.
You may have seen the recent changes to the law relating to accident claims in the media. For more information please call us on 01772 424999, email enquiries@solicitordirect.com or fill in the form below..
