Amputation Claims

Reviewed by
Peter Rigby, Director of Medical Neglience

We've got your amputation claim covered

Amputation Claims

There are 5000 people in need of a lower limb amputation every year in the UK. Most of these will be from accidents or injuries, such as road traffic accidents or injuries at work. There are, however, some people who have to undergo an amputation due to medical negligence, where there has been a breach of care leading to an avoidable amputation. If this has happened to you then our expert solicitors can help.

Making an Amputation Claim

An amputation can have a serious impact on your life, your loved ones and your independence. Although compensation can’t erase a life-changing injury, it can be the beginning to getting you and your family the support that you deserve.

Our experienced specialist medical negligence team is here to guide and support you on the journey to claiming compensation and will help you to understand:

  • If you have a claim for amputation negligence 
  • How and why your treatment resulted in an amputation 
  • The evidence you will need to support your claim
  • How much compensation you get for losing a limb and/or a finger

We're the highest-rated No Win No Fee medical negligence solictors on Trustpilot



What is an amputation claim?

Medical professionals have a duty of care, if that duty of care was breached and an amputation occurred as a direct result of that breach, this is medical negligence and you are able to make an amputation claim. An amputation claim is a claim for medical negligence after an amputation that did not need to happen. If your amputation injury could have been avoided with improved medical care and correct diagnosis, you can contact us and find out if you have a claim for compensation. 

Types of amputation claims

Every amputation claim will be different. Typically, amputations are divided into upper and lower limb amputation types. 

Upper limb amputation: this refers to any limb or area on the upper part of your body, ie, your arms, hands or fingers. There are several types of upper limb amputation according to the amputation site. For example, a shoulder disarticulation removes the arm above the shoulder, whereas a partial hand amputation means you would still have use of your wrist. The degree of amputation may be taken into account when calculating your compensation claim.

Lower limb amputation: this is the amputation of your legs, feet or toes and, again, includes different types of amputation depending on where the limbs were amputated. It can be as far up as the hip or be a digit amputation where toes have been removed. The severity of the injury is relevant in determining the impact on your life and that of your loved ones. 

Any amputation can be catastrophic and devastating. Which is why we assess every detail and pursue the maximum amount for your injury. 

Diabetes and amputation

Diabetes accounts for more lower limb amputations in the UK than any other cause. This is mainly due to diabetic foot ulcers and foot infections. Foot ulcers are a common side effect of diabetes and patients should be well-informed about foot care, and have examinations where necessary. Any failure to examine the feet correctly, which leads to amputation could be considered medical negligence. You may also have experienced a diabetes misdiagnosis. Our friendly and understanding solicitors can help you understand if you have a claim and how you can proceed.

How do I know if I can make a claim?

It costs nothing to find out if you have a claim for amputation negligence. Our lawyers were able to secure compensation for an 82 year old patient who had a leg amputated after a delayed diagnosis of gangrene. This is one example and there are many circumstances we come across where an amputation could have been avoided. The most common cases we see include:

  • Surgical errors, such as damage to a major artery where blood flow was unable to be restored
  • Misdiagnosis of diabetes leading to a loss of circulation and, consequently, the loss of a limb
  • Misdiagnosis of cancer where the cancer has spread to other body parts which have had to then be amputated to remove the cancer
  • Delayed diagnosis of other conditions and illnesses such as vascular disease and meningitis
  • Untreated or mistreated infections such as sepsis
  • Incorrect fracture treatment leading to tissue damage
  • Poor aftercare after a surgical procedure

This list is not exhaustive and amputation can happen for many reasons. Which is why the best way to find out if you can make a claim is to contact specialist medical negligence lawyers who understand your case and can help with your claim.

What can I expect when making a diabetes claim?

Though no amount of compensation can excuse or change a life-altering event such as the loss of a limb, there are ways that settlements can support you and your family. Successful amputation claims can help you to make each day a little bit easier and you can usually expect to receive compensation to pay for:

  • Ongoing treatment, care and rehabilitation
  • Advanced prosthetic limbs
  • Resources to adapt your home as necessary to prioritise your safety and comfort
  • Loss of earnings
  • Counselling

Our client was awarded £450,000 after medical negligence led to the amputation of her foot. Although final figures will always vary according to the individual circumstances, it is important to secure compensation for the mental, physical and economic impact suffered.

Why choose Patient Claim Line for your amputation claim?

We have more than 100 solicitors based all over the UK. They are a team of medical lawyers specialising solely in medical negligence and misdiagnosis claims. We understand every aspect of medical negligence and have taken on thousands of cases just like yours.

When processing your legal claim, your solicitor will be on hand throughout the journey. We have strong relationships with professionals across all key touch points; empowering you to rebuild your independence through ongoing rehabilitation support, home adaptations, emotional support and counselling. 

No Win No Fee Amputation Claims

From the very beginning, when you make an initial call, you pay absolutely nothing to us until your case is settled. There are no upfront fees, your initial consultation is completely free with no obligation and, if we are able to proceed with your acse, we do so on a  no win, no fee basis. Tackling the enormous changes to your life after amputation is a difficult and long road. Our no win no fee promise exists to make your compensation claim as stress free and simple as possible so you can start looking to the future.

Amputation claims FAQs

 

  • Your contact details

    Details of your claim

    Don't worry about including all details at this stage. Our experts will ask for any further information they require when they contact you.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Meet the team

Peter Rigby

Peter Rigby
Director of Medical Negligence Serious Injury

Peter leads the Medical Negligence Serious Injury department, which now boasts some of our most knowledgeable, dedicated and hardworking team members.

Peter is dedicated to supporting victims of catastrophic medical negligence injuries and endeavours to provide a clear and coherent approach to claims. He recognises the effects serious injuries can have and therefore ensures his customers’ need for support is met. Peter also has a vast amount of experience working with customers who have been injured abroad and is able to act under international law to provide the best outcomes.

Read profile

Why Choose Patient Claim Line for your Medical Misdiagnosis claim?


Not just lawyers — medical negligence experts

Patient Claim Line was established in 2014 and consists of a team of medical lawyers specialising in medical negligence and misdiagnosis claims.

At Patient Claim Line we have more than 100 solicitors with combined experience of over 400 years and they will work on your behalf to achieve the best result possible for you.

It's not enough to use a solicitor who sometimes covers medical negligence. You need someone who knows this area through and through. That is what the solicitors here at Patient Claim Line do. They deal exclusively in this area of law and are experts in the field.


Meet the medical negligence team

Peter Rigby

Peter Rigby
Director of Medical Negligence Serious Injury

Peter leads the Medical Negligence Serious Injury department, which now boasts some of our most knowledgeable, dedicated and hardworking team members.

Peter is dedicated to supporting victims of catastrophic medical negligence injuries and endeavours to provide a clear and coherent approach to claims. He recognises the effects serious injuries can have and therefore ensures his customers’ need for support is met. Peter also has a vast amount of experience working with customers who have been injured abroad and is able to act under international law to provide the best outcomes.

Read profile
Christian Beadell

Christian Beadell
Head of Medical Negligence

Christian is Head of Medical Negligence at Patient Claim Line and has specialised in clinical negligence claims since qualifying in 1998; having dealt with a wide variety of claims throughout his career. He is also featured in the Legal 500 as a recommended claimant solicitor in the North West.

Christian qualified as a solicitor in 1998, specialising in clinical negligence. From 2010 onward he has had a particular interest in gynaecological and urogynaecological claims, having represented several hundred claimants in the George Rowland Litigation against the Liverpool Women’s and Aintree Hospitals. This investigated the treatment given to women in the Merseyside area over several decades, and in particular focused on the introduction and development of mesh into the UK in both the treatment of stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. The development of this area involved pursuing claims under a unique ADR protocol with the NHS and also looking to develop the current thinking on the valuation of compensation for complex urinary symptoms. He has successfully recovered hundreds of thousands of pounds in compensation on behalf of my clients.

Christian was also involved in setting up and chairing a Claimant Support Group for those involved in the Rowland litigation, which provided a discussion forum for the many women who were left isolated and damaged by negligent gynaecological treatment. He now co-ordinates the firm’s mesh claims and has delivered training and commented extensively on the medico-legal implications of urogynaecological / mesh complications. He is a member of APIL, Liverpool Law Society and Legal 500 recommended.

Read profile
Francesca Paul

Francesca Paul
Associate Solicitor

Francesca Paul is an Associate, Senior Solicitor and Team Leader within the Clinical Negligence Department.  She is one of the driving Solicitors in the Group Litigation Team dealing with this niche and specialist area of work that Fletchers undertakes.   

Francesca previously worked in Nottingham, dealing with Group Action work.  She now works at Fletchers, bringing with her those years of experience heading up a team of 10 people.  Francesca is involved in the early identification of potential new Group Litigation Work and analyses information from the collective pool of new enquiries into the business, of which there are hundreds per week looking for hot spots or recurrent issues which might suggest a potential pool of Claimants.   

One of the highlights for Francesca and her team is that they have successfully recovered over a million pounds in compensation for clients who have received treatment from a single orthopaedic surgeon who was operating in the Colchester area.  Her role requires a specific set of skills, patience and a forensic approach to detail whilst being able to see the wider picture.   

Francesca has previously acted for a claimant in a case that reached the Supreme Court in the case of NA v Nottinghamshire County Council. 

Read profile
Sion Wynne

Sion Wynne
Team Leader/Senior Solicitor

Sion is a team leader and senior solicitor with many years’ experience in dealing with a wide range of medical specialisms and different types of injuries. He is an experienced medical negligence solicitor and manages a team of lawyers within our department.

Sion joined Fletchers in 2018 as a Team Leader in the Medical Negligence Department. Throughout his 24 year legal career, he has specialised in conducting medical negligence claims on behalf of Claimants, previously working for other highly ranked leading firms in the field.

He has undertaken claims covering the full spectrum of medical specialisms, clinical settings, categories of defendant and types of negligent medical care and treatment.
These include high value and complex maximum severity cases, such as those involving limb amputations and permanent neurological injuries.

Sion is experienced at representing bereaved families at inquests and has a particular interest in fatal accident claims.

Read profile

Vincent's Story

"He's always there for us"

At the age of 2 we noticed our son Vincent had trouble with his hearing. We had this testing over a number of years and were repeatedly told there was nothing wrong.

Initially we thought this was a speech and language problem, this wasn't the case. It took 4 to 5 years of assessments, with the constant response that there was nothing wrong with his hearing. A different test was them carried on Vincent overnight where it was found he was profoundly deaf.

After years of frustration we were finally able to provide Vincent with the support he required and received an implant. This has enable Vincent to be able to hear. The support from our solicitors has enabled to to gain access to specialist which have supported Vincent in closing the gap in his speech he lost out on to his peers.

You don’t have to go through this alone – take the first step now