How To Make A PTSD Claim

By Danielle Graves. Last Updated 30th November. Do you suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)? Was this caused by third-party negligence? If so, you may be entitled to make a PTSD claim.

PTSD can be a debilitating mental illness and can prevent you from doing everyday activities. It can detrimentally impact your physical and mental health. In some cases, you may be left to deal with symptoms permanently with a poor prognosis for recovery.

PTSD claim guide

If you’d like to know whether you can claim PTSD compensation, we encourage you to talk to our advisors today. They can help understand whether you have a strong foundation for your case and may put you in touch with our panel of expert No Win No Fee lawyers. Get in touch with our advisors today by:

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Can I Make A PTSD Claim?
Symptoms And Treatment Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
What Could Cause PTSD?
How To Prove A PTSD Compensation Claim
PTSD Claim Calculator
Claim PTSD Compensation Using A No Win No Fee Solicitor
More Resources About How To Claim PTSD Compensation

Can I Make A PTSD Claim?

According to the NHS, PTSD is an anxiety disorder caused by an event that was traumatic or stressful. It involves the individual mentally reliving the triggering event. Severe PTSD may cause problems with sleep and concentration that have a subsequent impact on the person’s ability to cope with daily life.

A PTSD claim is any personal injury claim whereby another party’s negligence has resulted in you sustaining post-traumatic stress disorder. Negligence describes the act of an individual breaching their duty of care, meaning they failed in their responsibility towards your safety. This means that you may be able to claim if you’ve suffered a physical or psychological injury caused by negligence.

There are a number of different pieces of legislation that outline the duty of care you’re owed. For example:

Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA)- This states that your employer must take reasonably practicable steps to ensure your safety in the workplace.
Road Traffic Act 1988 (RTA)- This outlines the duty of care that all road users owe one another to prevent accidents that cause injury on the road.
Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 (OLA)- This Act states that the party in control of a space is responsible for the safety of those who use the space for the intended purpose.

As such, in order to claim PTSD compensation, you would need to prove that:

The third-party in question had a duty of care towards you
Their actions or inactions caused them to breach this duty of care
This breach of their duty caused your injury.

If you’re able to prove that negligence caused your injury, you may be able to make a successful PTSD claim. Contact us for free using the details above to see if you’re eligible to claim compensation for PTSD.

Is There A Time Limit For A PTSD Compensation Claim?

Under the Limitation Act 1980, there is usually a three-year time period to make personal injury claims. This three-year period would typically begin on the date the harm occurred and the same is true with a PTSD injury claim. Even if the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder developed a few weeks after the accident, the point in time in which it was caused can be pinpointed.

The time limit can vary for children (under the age of 18) who have developed PTSD following an accident. A person cannot legally represent themselves in a civil claim until they turn 18. At that point, the 3-year clock begins to tick, giving them until their 21st birthday.

A claim for PTSD can be made on behalf of a child before they turn 18. It simply requires a litigation friend to be appointed by the court so that decisions can be made for them. This is something that our panel of solicitors can help you with.

A person who lacks the mental capacity to claim can also claim compensation for PTSD. A litigation friend can make a claim on their behalf. If they regain mental capacity and the claim has yet to be made, they would then have three years to make a claim for PTSD.

If you have questions about how long you might have to make a PTSD claim or would like to check your eligibility to work with a solicitor from our panel, you can contact our advisors.

Symptoms And Treatment Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

As part of your claim for PTSD, you can be compensated for what impact the symptoms have on your lifestyle. According to the NHS, the specific symptoms of PTSD can widely vary between injured parties, however, they generally include:

Re-experiencing. This is when the injured party involuntarily recalls the traumatic incident in vivid detail. It includes flashbacks, nightmares, and repetitive and distressing images.
Avoidance. This can include attempting to push memories away, avoiding certain people and places, not talking about your experience or trying not to feel anything at all (emotional numbing). These symptoms can lead to isolation and withdrawal, which can be included in awarded compensation for PTSD.
Hyperarousal. This means feeling on edge or finding it difficult to relax. It can lead to irritability, angry outbursts, insomnia and difficulty concentrating.

Your PTSD compensation may also recover costs related to its treatment. According to the NHS, treatment for PTSD could include talking therapies as well as medication.

To discuss your PTSD compensation claim and receive free advice, you can contact our advisory team.

What Could Cause PTSD?

As previously stated, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a mental disorder that can arise after a traumatic event. There are many circumstances in which you could experience trauma that could lead to PTSD. Psychological injuries can have a great impact on your quality of life which is why you have every right to see if you’re able to claim.

In order for you to be eligible to claim, it is essential that you prove your PTSD was caused by a third party breaching their duty of care, directly resulting in your injury. Below are examples of how PTSD claims could be caused by third-party negligence.

Accidents At Work

Accidents can take place in the workplace that can lead to PTSD; if your employer’s negligence led to your injury then you may have a valid claim.

For example, your employer could fail to maintain equipment, machinery and tools to an adequate standard, which endangers workers. A broken emergency stop button could result in a crush injury to your arm. You could develop PTSD due to suffering this serious injury.

In order to claim for workplace accidents, you would need evidence showing that your employer’s negligence caused your injury.

Road Traffic Accidents

On the road, all road users owe one another a duty of care. This is set out in the RTA, and the Highway Code outlines the steps that should be taken to ensure the safety of other drivers, passengers, riders and pedestrians.

You could be involved in a car accident if a drunk driver was travelling down the wrong side of the road. As a result, you’re involved in a head-on road traffic accident that injures you mentally. Anxiety, stress and PTSD from the car accident could greatly impact your quality of life which is why it’s important to know you may be able to claim.

Accidents In A Public Place

In public places, you are owed a duty of care by the occupier, which is the person in charge of the space. They should ensure your safety by reducing and removing hazards and making visitors aware of a hazard that cannot be reduced or removed.

For example, you could have an accident in a shop due to a broken railing. As a result, you slip and fall to the ground and sustain a psychological injury as well as physical injuries as a result.

Contact our advisors today if you have any questions about making PTSD compensation claims, or to see if you’re eligible to claim yourself.

Military Accidents And PTSD

The NHS lists war and conflict as one of the causes of PTSD. As we discussed above, your employer has a legal obligation to take reasonable and practicable steps to ensure your health, safety and welfare. All employers, including the military, owe their employees this same duty of care. If they’ve breached this and you suffered an injury as a result, you could be eligible for PTSD compensation.

Other causes of PTSD include workplace exposure to traumatic events. This leaves other workers at risk of developing PTSD, including frontline emergency workers. If your employer did not take reasonable steps to ensure your health and welfare, you could be eligible to make a PTSD compensation claim if you develop a mental health injury.

To discuss whether you are eligible to claim for PTSD due to military service, please speak to a member of our advisory team. If you are eligible to seek compensation for PTSD, you could be connected to one of the No Win No Fee solicitors from our panel.

How To Prove A PTSD Compensation Claim

If you are making a personal injury claim for PTSD compensation, you will need to submit compelling evidence. Your evidence needs to prove the nature of your PTSD as well as who was liable for the accident that caused it.

Here are a few examples of items that could support a PTSD compensation claim:

A copy of your medical records: these can help illustrate the nature of your mental health injury as well as any other injuries you are including in your claim for PTSD, plus the impact they are expected to have on your life and what treatment you required.
Witness contact information: If anyone saw the incident that caused your PTSD, you can make a note of their contact information so they can provide a statement at a later date.
Video footage. If the incident was caught on video, such as CCTV, or a mobile phone, this footage can support your compensation claim.

If you would like help obtaining evidence that could support your claim for compensation for PTSD, please contact our advisory team on the details above.

PTSD Claim Calculator

As part of a successful PTSD claim, you will receive general damages and may receive special damages. The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) publishes potential brackets of compensation amounts for general damages encompassing the pain and suffering caused by your injury. The amount awarded from PTSD claims can depend on the type of injury sustained and how severe it is.

The below table shows possible brackets for PTSD compensation amounts published from the latest edition of the JCG.

Injury	Compensation	Notes
Multiple serious illnesses and injuries along with financial losses	Up to £1,000,000+	Settlements may include compensation for life altering mental health symptoms and/or severe physical injuries along with financial losses, such as lost wages and therapy costs.
Paraplegia	£219,070 to £284,260	Awards given for paraplegia consider the extent of pain, independence, depression, age and life expectancy.
Leg Injuries - Loss of both legs (i)	£240,790 to £282,010	The injured party has lost both legs either above the knee or one leg is lost above the knee at a high level with the other below the knee.
Moderate brain damage (i)	£150,110 to £219,070	Injured parties in this category experience a moderate to severe intellectual deficit, changes to their personality with an impact on sight, speech and senses and a significant epilepsy risk and no employment prospects.
Severe general psychological damage (a)	£54,830 to £115,730	The injured person will have severe problems with mulitple factors including coping skills, employability, education and relationships.
Moderately severe general psychological damage (b)	£19,070 to £54,830	Substantial problems, but a more optimistic prognosis than applies in more serious cases.
Moderate general psychological damage (c)	£5,860 to £19,070	Where there may be some problems with above factors, however the prognosis will be good and improvement will be expected or have been made.
Severe anxiety disorder (a)	£59,860 to £100,670	Preventing the injured person from working at all or anywhere close to pre-trauma level. All aspects of the life will be detrimentally impacted.
Moderately severe anxiety disorder (b)	£23,150 to £59,860	The injured person has a slightly better prognosis than in more serious cases and minor recovery with some help, however there may be disabilities in the immediate future.
Moderate anxiety disorder (c)	£8,180 to £23,150	Where the individual has had a largely full recovery, but persisting symptoms will be majorly disabling.

On the other hand, special damages cover the costs that you have incurred over the course of your injury and recovery period from a psychological injury. Some examples of these damages include:

Loss of earnings and future income
Child care costs
Travel between medical appointments
Domestic costs i.e. gardening, cleaning and cooking

For more information about post-traumatic stress disorder compensation payouts and to see what your psychological injury could be worth, please contact us for free using the above details.

Claim PTSD Compensation Using A No Win No Fee Solicitor

Our advisors can help with any questions you have about claiming for a psychological injury. They can help understand how strong your case is and may connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel.

No Win No Fee is a term that encapsulates a number of different kinds of legal arrangements including Conditional Fee Agreements. This is a way for you to hire a solicitor’s services without paying hiring costs. Plus, if your claim for post-traumatic stress disorder is unsuccessful then you do not have to pay for their services.

Lawyers who work on this basis are paid via a success fee, which is a small amount of your compensation that they take if your claim is a success. It’s subject to a legal cap, preventing overcharging.

Get in touch with our advisors today to learn more about potential PTSD compensation payouts and to discuss claiming for a psychological injury by: