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A paramedic negligence claim arises when substandard emergency care (like misdiagnosis, unnecessary delays, or poor treatment) causes or worsens harm that should’ve been avoided.
Key Takeaways
- Paramedics are trained medical professionals who provide emergency care, typically outside of hospitals. This means that, most commonly, paramedics are members of ambulance crews.
- You might be eligible for medical negligence compensation if paramedics failed to give you a reasonable standard of care, and you suffered harm directly from this.
- Ambulance wait times in the UK vary by call urgency (Categories 1-4).
- Examples of paramedic medical negligence can include failing to identify or act upon serious symptoms, avoidable delays in assessment or treatment, or negligent medication administration errors.
- Paramedic negligence claims can be made against the NHS and against private healthcare providers.
- When ambulances don’t respond quickly or provide the correct care, the consequences can be very severe.
We rely on paramedics in medical emergencies. So, if mistakes have been made, it could be the difference between life and death. If you have been harmed because a paramedic was negligent, our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors can help you claim compensation for your suffering. Contact us today for a free claim eligibility check:
- Call 0333 0000729.
- Visit our Contact Us page.
- Message an advisor directly in the live chat box on the screen.
Jump To A Section
- Can I Make A Paramedic Negligence Claim?
- What Are Some Examples Of Paramedic Medical Negligence?
- How Much Compensation Can I Claim For Paramedic Negligence?
- What Will I Need To Prove Paramedic Negligence?
- Is There A Time Limit For Paramedical Medical Negligence Claims?
- Why Make A Paramedic Negligence Claim With Legal Helpline
- More Information
Can I Make A Paramedic Negligence Claim?
Yes, you can make a paramedic negligence claim if you suffered avoidable harm because a paramedic’s care fell below a reasonable standard.
To be eligible for compensation, you must prove:
- A paramedic owed you a duty of care.
- This duty of care was breached due to negligent actions/inactions.
- You sustained avoidable harm as a direct result of this breach.
All medical professionals, including paramedics, owe a duty of care to every person they treat. This means that they must always provide a standard of care that meets the acceptable standards. Therefore, it is considered a breach of duty if a paramedic provides substandard care.
Am I Able To Claim Against An NHS Paramedic?
Yes, you can claim against an NHS paramedic if their substandard care caused you avoidable harm.
The NHS Resolution is the body that manages medical negligence claims against NHS organisations. This body provides expertise to the NHS to resolve disputes and concerns fairly.
So, if you are looking to claim paramedic negligence compensation against the NHS, you don’t have to worry about taking money away from the main NHS funding.
How Can I Claim Against A Paramedic For A Private Company?
You can claim against a paramedic who works for a private company by contacting a specialist solicitor to help you, that’s if it’s proven that a private paramedic was negligent and caused you avoidable harm.
While the process for claiming against a private healthcare provider is similar to that of the NHS, the compensation typically paid by their insurance providers.
If you have suffered harm and believe it’s because an NHS or private paramedic was negligent, please contact us today. We can give you a quick and free claim eligibility check.
What Are Some Examples Of Paramedic Medical Negligence?
Some examples of medical negligence include failing to recognise vital symptoms, delays in care and treatment, medication errors, poor documentation/communication, and improper handling/force, all leading to worse patient outcomes and avoidable harm.
Below are some specific examples of when and how a paramedic could potentially provide substandard care:
Failure To Recognise Serious Symptoms
- Not identifying obvious signs of a heart attack or stroke, such as weakness on one side, trouble speaking, or severe chest pain.
- Misjudging the seriousness of chest pain due to poor training.
- Failing to act on breathing difficulties due to inexperience.
Misdiagnosis Or Incorrect Assessment
- Failing to carry out appropriate observations, such as pulse rate and oxygen saturation, in order to correctly diagnose.
- Failing to take a proper patient history or perform appropriate physical examinations.
- Incorrectly reading results from emergency equipment, such as an ECG, which can lead to missing critical cardiac events.
Delays In Attending A Patient
Unreasonable delays occur when:
- The wrong priority level is given.
- An ambulance is wrongly diverted.
- Crews failing to respond urgently to life-threatening symptoms.
Failure To Provide Basic Emergency Treatment
- Not giving oxygen when required due to lack of proper supervision.
- Not administering emergency medication.
- Failing to perform CPR when indicated due to lack of training.
Improper Manual Handling
- Dropping a patient with a spinal or head injury when moving them.
- Trying to move a patient who’s had a fall manually and without the proper equipment, such as a hoist.
- Manually lifting a patient despite there being a “no lifting” policy (except for in life-threatening situations), which was ignored due to rushing.
Medication Errors
- Giving the incorrect dosage of a medication due to carelessness.
- Failing to check for known allergies, which can lead to an allergic reaction and anaphylaxis.
- Administering the wrong medication due to misidentification (similar names/packaging).
Failure To Transport The Patient To Hospital
- Leaving a patient at home when hospital assessment was needed.
- Dismissing a patient’s self-reported symptoms to the point where they are reluctant to seek further help.
- Miscategorising an emergency as a low-priority incident, leading to the refusal to transfer a patient who genuinely needs emergency treatment.
Poor Communication
- Failing to communicate important information to A&E due to fatigue.
- Not informing hospital staff of symptoms, observations, or known drug allergies.
- Lack of informed consent – failing to accurately explain a procedure or its risks.
If you have suffered avoidable harm because a paramedic was negligent, please contact us to find out whether you can begin a paramedic negligence claim today.
How Much Compensation Can I Claim For Paramedic Negligence?
Paramedic negligence compensation claims payouts in the UK are typically made up of two parts – general damages (payouts covering the physical and psychological effects of avoidable harm), and special damages (payouts covering the financial losses that have resulted from avoidable harm).
These payouts can vary greatly, from a few thousand pounds for minor issues to up to £1,000,000+ for life-changing pain and suffering.
General damages covers impacts such as:
- The severity of the avoidable harm’s pain.
- How long it’s expected to take to recover from the avoidable harm.
- How quality of life has changed due to the avoidable harm.
The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) and independent medical reports can be used to value general damages. The JCG is a publication that has guideline compensation ranges for different types of harm.
The table below contains guideline compensation ranges from the JCG (as well as our own figure for the top multiple injuries entry). These are just some examples of what types of avoidable harm can potentially be suffered after negligent paramedic care:
| Avoidable harm | Guideline compensation ranges | Severity + notes |
|---|---|---|
| More than one severe type of harm with special damages | Up to £1,000,000+ | Suffering more than one severe type of harm with financial losses such as private treatment costs, lost earnings, and medication costs. |
| Paralysis | £396,140 to £493,000 | Tetraplegia (a) - factors such as effect on senses and pain will determine this award. |
| £267,340 to £346,890 | Paraplegia (b) - factors such as sexual dysfunction and life expectancy will determine this award. | |
| Brain damage | £344,150 to £493,000 | Very severe (a) - cases such as 'locked-in' syndrome, where there 's very severe cognitive and physical disability. |
| £183,190 to £267,340 | Moderate (c)(i) - a moderate to severe personality change, intellectual deficit, and effect on senses. | |
| Kidney | £206,730 to £256,780 | Loss or serious and permanent damage (a) - to both kidneys. |
| Up to £78,080 | Significant risk of future Urinary Tract Infection (a) - or other complete loss of natural kidney function. | |
| Chest | £122,850 to £183,190 | Serious heart damage and/or total removal of one lung (a) - with permanent scarring and prolonged pain and suffering. |
| £80,240 to £122,850 | Traumatic injury to heart, lungs and/or chest (b) - leading to permanent damage and impaired function, a reduced life expectancy, and physical disability. |
Please note that none of these figures can be guaranteed as all paramedic negligence claims are unique. To receive a personalised evaluation, please contact us today and chat about your circumstances.
Can A Paramedic Negligence Claim Compensate For Other Damages?
Yes, under special damages, a paramedic negligence claim can also compensate you for the financial losses you’ve incurred alongside general damages.
Some types of reimbursable financial losses that could result from avoidable harm include:
- Loss of income if time off work to recover is needed.
- Private medical care costs to treat the avoidable harm.
- Over-the-counter painkiller and antibiotic costs.
In order to be compensated special damages, you must keep all financial evidence such as payslips, receipts, invoices, and bank statements.
To learn more about how much compensation your paramedic negligence claim could potentially be worth, please contact us today. If connected with a specialist medical negligence solicitor from our panel, they can gather evidence to ensure that you receive the highest settlement possible.
What Will I Need To Prove Paramedic Negligence?
To prove paramedic negligence, you will need to show how a paramedic was negligent, and how you suffered avoidable harm from this.
Evidence that can prove this includes:
- Copies of your medical notes and records of the treatment you received and additional records from the treatment that was needed to correct the avoidable harm.
- Phone records of your 999 call, including the time the ambulance was called, and the time the ambulance arrived.
- Personal notes of your symptoms and mental state (in something like a diary).
- Contact details from anyone who rode in the ambulance or attended further medical appointments with you. Later on in the claims process, a solicitor can ask them to provide a witness statement.
- Photographs of the visible effects of the avoidable harm.
- Details of any medication you received from the paramedic, such as labels.
To discuss what proof of negligence you need, or to get help with collecting this proof from one of the specialist solicitors from our panel, please contact us today.
Is There A Time Limit For Paramedical Medical Negligence Claims?
Yes, there is a time limit for paramedical medical negligence claims, which is 3 years. This 3-year time limit runs from either the date you suffered avoidable harm, or the date you realised that paramedic negligence occurred (the ‘date of knowledge’), as outlined in the Limitation Act 1980.
This time limit applies to everyone except for those:
- Younger than 18.
- Who have insufficient mental capacity to make their own claim.
In these cases, the time limit changes. To learn about these changes, and how you could potentially make a paramedic negligence claim on someone else’s behalf, please ask us. Our dedicated guide on compensation claim time limits also discusses these changes in more detail.
Why Make A Paramedic Negligence Claim With Legal Helpline
You might benefit greatly by making a paramedic negligence claim with Legal Helpline, as our panel of expert No Win No Fee solicitors can work with you closely all throughout the claims process and do all of the complicated legal work on your behalf. They can:
- Present and gather your evidence, such as the phone records of your 999 call and witness statements.
- Use their years of legal training to negotiate and ensure that the paramedic negligence settlement you’re offered accurately covers all of the ways you’ve suffered from the avoidable harm.
- Keep you updated throughout the claims process.
- Provide court representation if the claim goes to court (which will be unlikely, as only a very small amount of medical negligence claims are heard in court).
- Work with you no matter where you are based in the country.
- Seek rehabilitation specialists that are best suited for your needs.
- Ensure that all the claims time limits are adhered to.
The specific No Win No Fee agreement in which these services are offered under is called a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This means:
- You won’t be charged upfront for your solicitor’s work.
- There are no ongoing charges at any point in the claims process for your solicitor’s work.
- If your paramedic negligence claim is unsuccessful, you don’t have to pay for your solicitor’s work at all.
- If your paramedic negligence claim is successful, your solicitor will keep a minor percentage of your compensation. This percentage (the ‘success fee’) is legally capped and disclosed with you before the claims process begins. This is to ensure that you keep the majority of your compensation and that there are no hidden fees.
If you would like a specialist solicitor from our panel to work with you on a No Win No Fee basis and help you claim paramedic negligence compensation, please contact us today.
Contact Our Advisors To Get Started
If you contact our advisors today, you can discover your claim eligibility for free with a quick discussion of your circumstances. If you are eligible for paramedic negligence compensation, let our specialist panel of solicitors help and guide you:
- Call 0333 0000729.
- Visit our Contact Us page.
- Message an advisor directly in the live chat box on the screen.
More Information
For more information on medical negligence claims, browse similar guides here:
- Learn about the Bolam test and how it may apply to a medical negligence claim.
- How to make a death by hospital negligence claim on behalf of a loved one.
- How to claim blood clot compensation.
Additionally, you might find these resources helpful:
- Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) – the standards of proficiency for paramedics.
- NHS – information on improving ambulance services.
- Gov.UK – how to get Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) for missing time off work.
We hope that this guide has helped you feel more assured in what your options are. Remember that our advisors are available 24/7, so can give you advice on how to make a paramedic negligence claim at any time.