Hand injuries can create extensive and far-reaching problems that severely limit the person’s ability to function as normal. Because of this, you may be entitled to compensation if your hand injury was caused by another’s negligent actions. In this guide, we explain how a hand injury compensation calculator could help you gain a clear idea of how compensation could be awarded.
The guide starts by explaining the factors that are taken into account when calculating compensation, such as the pain and suffering, the loss of earnings and the cost of medical treatments. Additionally, we explain when you could be eligible to make a personal injury claim following an accident that was not your fault.
Additionally, we discuss how to support your claim by gathering evidence, as well as what time limits apply to beginning the claiming process. The guide closes with a detailed explanation of how a solicitor from our panel could take up eligible claims under a version of a No Win No Fee agreement, helping you to fund your claim.
Read on to learn more about the hand injury compensation claims process. Or get in touch to start a conversation now:
- Call us on 0800 408 7826
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- Contact us online.
Select A Section
- How Hand Injury Compensation Claims Are Calculated
- Could I Claim For A Hand Injury?
- Common Causes Of Hand Injury Claims
- How To Begin Your Claim
- How Our Team Can Help You
- More Information
How Hand Injury Compensation Claims Are Calculated
Compensation amounts in personal injury claims are calculated by looking at two areas called general and special damages. General damages assess the physical harm suffered as well as any psychological injuries. Alongside pain and suffering, the overall negative impact on the person’s life can be evaluated, as can any permanent disability.
When calculating general damages, those involved look at medical evidence and documents like the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This publication provides guideline compensation brackets that relate to various types and severities of injury.
The table below uses some of these compensation guidelines regarding hand injuries. Please note, however, that the first entry has not come from the JCG.
| INJURY | SEVERITY | GUIDELINES | DEFINITIONS |
|---|---|---|---|
| More than one severe injury and special damages | Severe | Up to £500,000 plus | Awards like this reflect more than one type of severe injury and special damages for loss of earnings, care provision and rehabilitation costs. |
| Hands | (a) Total or effective loss of both hands | £171,680 up to £245,900 | Cases where both the hands are lost or rendered useless. |
| (c) Total or effective loss of one hand | £117,360 up to £133,810 | Crush cases where most fingers and part of the palm is surgically amputated. | |
| (d) Index and middle/ring finger amputation | £75,550 up to £110,750 | Injuries that render the hand almost useless with very weakened grip. | |
| (b) Serious damage to both hands | £68,070 to £103,200 | Causing a permanent cosmetic disability. | |
| (e) Serious | £35,390 up to £75,550 | Injuries that reduced the capacity of the hand by half or where amputated fingers are re-attached leaving clumsiness. | |
| (f) Severe finger fracture | Up to £44,840 | Partial amputation that leaves deformity, impaired grip and sensory problems. | |
| (g) Less serious | £17,640 up to £35,390 | Severe crush injuries leaving impaired function even after surgery. | |
| (h) Moderate | £6,910 up to £16,200 | Penetrating wounds, soft tissue injuries and lacerations. | |
| (j) Index finger fracture | £11,120 up to £14,930 | Cases where fracture has healed but grip is still weak. |
The financial harm caused by a hand injury is assessed under special damages. Evidence of any associated financial loss must be submitted to claim special damages such as:
- Wage slips that show a loss of earnings because of the injury.
- Receipts for amounts paid to anyone who helped you cook, clean and shop due to being unable to do this yourself because of your injury.
- Invoices for home or vehicle modifications to accommodate your injury.
- The cost of any private medical care, prescription charges and prosthetics.
- Proof of travel costs to necessary appointments.
You might be facing predicted expenses for rehabilitation and physiotherapy that can go on for weeks or months. In the hands of a skilled solicitor from our panel, these amounts can be accurately calculated and included in the overall claim.
Average Compensation Claim Amounts
It is difficult to provide an average amount of compensation, as every personal injury claim differs and are assessed on a case-by-case basis. Examples of factors that could affect the amount of compensation you receive include:
- The type of accident you were involved in
- The severity of your injury
- Whether you suffered one or multiple injuries
- If the injury has fully recovered or not
- What financial losses have been suffered
How To Use Our Compensation Calculator
Our compensation calculator could help you gather a clearer idea of the potential compensation you could receive for your case.
It works by asking you a variety of questions, such as ‘What type of accident were you involved in?, ‘What injury did you suffer?’ and ‘How severe was this injury?’. It uses the compensation guidelines listed within the JCG when providing you with an estimate.
If you have any questions on how to use a hand injury compensation calculator or would like to discuss your potential claim, you can contact our advisors.
Could I Claim For A Hand Injury?
Now that we have explained how a hand injury compensation calculator could help you, we will now explain when you may have a valid claim.
In order to be eligible to receive personal injury compensation, you need to prove:
- A duty of care was owed to you.
- This duty was breached.
- As a consequence, you suffered an injury.
All of these together are classed as negligence.
You are owed a duty of care in various incidents. Some examples include:
- In work – The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA) requires employers to take reasonable measures to prevent their employees from coming to harm.
- In public – The Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 requires that those in charge of places accessible to the public must implement any necessary steps to ensure the reasonable safety of visitors.
- On the roads – Road users are required to navigate the roads in a way that poses minimal risk to others. They need to adhere fully to the terms of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the obligations detailed in the Highway Code.
To see whether you may have a valid personal injury claim, you can contact our advisors for a free eligibility assessment.
Common Causes Of Hand Injury Claims
There are various ways that you could suffer a hand injury. However, you must remember that in order to be eligible for compensation, you must prove that negligence occurred.
Some examples of when you may be able to claim could include:
- An employer fails to provide essential personal protective equipment (PPE) such as safety gloves, and an employee suffers cuts and lacerations when handling dangerous equipment in an accident at work.
- A restaurant fails to signpost a known spillage. This causes you to fall and suffer a sprained wrist and soft tissue injuries in your hand when you try to break your fall.
- You suffer a broken hand and a broken arm in a road traffic accident due to a drunk driver crashing into the side of your vehicle when they run through a red light.
If your particular circumstance isn’t listed here, this doesn’t mean you can’t claim. Contact our advisors today to discuss the eligibility of your case. They can also answer any questions you may have about using a hand injury compensation calculator.
How To Begin Your Claim
If you’re satisfied that a breach in the duty of care caused your hand injuries, there are some steps you can take to start constructing your personal injury compensation claim:
Gather Evidence
You can collect supporting evidence to bolster your claim. Below are some examples of documentation and actions you can take to show how negligence took place:
- Copies of your medical records about the hand injury. This can include X-rays, scans, and the findings of any specialists you had to consult.
- Photos of your visible injuries.
- Video footage of the accident taking place, such as CCTV footage.
- The contact information for any eyewitnesses. If your claim is eligible and you decide to place it with a solicitor from our panel, they can gather supporting statements after your claim has started.
A skilled solicitor from our panel could help you with gathering supporting evidence for your claim.
How Long You Have To File Your Claim
The Limitation Act 1980 applies a standard three-year time limit in which personal injury claims need to be launched. This begins from the date of the accident. There are exemptions to this standard time limit, for instance:
- Minors cannot activate a personal injury claim themselves until they reach the age of 18, whereupon the three-year time limit starts.
- Claimants lacking the sufficient mental capacity to manage their own affairs are not subject to claim time limitations. Instead, the three-year limit commences from any date that mental capacity returns.
Alternatively, both these groups of claimants can have a personal injury claim activated immediately on their behalf at any point by a litigation friend.
How Long It Can Take To Get Compensation
There is no set timeframe for how long it takes for a personal injury claim to settle. Certain factors can delay the outcome, such as:
- How long it takes to receive witness statements or medical reports from experts.
- Whether there is a dispute about liability.
- If the claim has to go to court.
- The time it takes to agree on the compensation amount.
A solicitor from our panel could help navigate these potential obstacles and take care of all the communication with the other side. Call to discuss the eligibility of your claim or to ask any questions about how a hand injury compensation calculator could help you.
How Our Team Can Help You
Helping to move the claim along promptly is just one of the ways a solicitor from our panel could help. Other ways an expert solicitor from our panel could help you include:
- Help to collect supporting evidence.
- Negotiate a compensation settlement that accounts for your general and special damages.
- Ensuring your claim is filed within the time limit.
- Communicating with the defending party.
Additionally, the solicitors on our panel can offer these services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), which is a version of a No Win No Fee contract. This typically means:
- No solicitor service fees to pay get started.
- No service fees going forward.
- Nothing to pay for their work if the claim fails.
Only a small percentage of the compensation is owed to the solicitors if the claim settles in your favour. This ‘success fee’ is a legally limited percentage that your solicitor will take directly from your compensation.
So whether it is a minor injury or something more serious, contact our advisors to see how a solicitor from our panel could help you make a personal injury claim:
- Call us on 0800 408 7826
- Use the live chat option to connect.
- Contact us online
More Information
Additional guides by us:
- Here is guidance on claims for emotional pain and suffering after injury.
- See if you could be eligible to claim a broken forearm.
- Learn when you could claim for a wrist injury after an accident that was not your fault.
External information:
- This resource from the NHS looks at hand pain.
- See if you could be eligible to receive Statutory Sick Pay from Gov.UK.
- Learn when to call 999 from the NHS.
Thank you for reading this guide on how a hand injury compensation calculator could help you.