Suffering a slipped disc can be a life-changing injury; it might have left you with permanent mobility issues or continuous back pain. If this has happened to you, continue reading to learn how much compensation for a slipped disc injury you could be eligible for.
Key Takeaways
- You could make a No Win No Fee claim with a solicitor from our panel if you’ve suffered a slipped disc in an accident that wasn’t your fault.
- In successful compensation claims, your award could consider the physical, psychological and financial impacts of your accident.
- A solicitor from our panel could help you gather evidence to support your claim.
- Typically, most claims must be made within 3 years of the accident.
- You could claim on behalf of someone else.
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To speak with one of our advisors and discuss your case, you can reach us by:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7826
- Filling out our online form
- Using our live chat
Jump To A Section
- How Much Compensation For A Slipped Disc Injury Could I Claim?
- What Other Factors Will Determine The Amount Of Slipped Disc Compensation?
- Can I Make A Compensation Claim For A Herniated Disc?
- What Accidents Could Lead To A Herniated Or Slipped Disc Being Sustained?
- Slipped Disc Injury Compensation Claim Case Study
- How Can I Support A Slipped Disc Injury Claim?
- Is There A Time Limit To Claiming Compensation For A Slipped Disc Injury?
- How Can An Advisor Help With Slipped Or Herniated Disc Claims?
- More Information
How Much Compensation For A Slipped Disc Injury Could I Claim?
The amount of compensation you could be eligible for in a successful herniated disc compensation claim depends on factors such as the severity of your injuries as well as your expected recovery time.
As well as this, in successful compensation claims, your settlement can be made up of two different heads of loss or parts. These are known as general and special damages.
General damages is the part of the compensation awarded for the intangible impacts of your injuries, such as the pain, suffering and any loss of amenity caused. If your daily life has been impacted due to your accident, this will be assessed as part of your general damages.
Special damages, however, are a head of loss for the financial effects of your injuries. For example, if you have been left unable to work, then this will be considered.
When your compensation is being calculated, the professionals responsible can make reference to frameworks such as the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document details injury types and compensation brackets to help assist when valuing your claim.
Our table below shows suggestive figures taken from the JCG to give you an estimate of the type of compensation you might receive. Please note these are guidelines only, and the top entry has not been taken from the JCG.
| Injury | Notes | Compensation Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Multiple Serious Injuries and Special Damages | A number of serious injuries as well as special damages such as costs of care | Up to £500,000+ |
| Back Injury Severe (i) | Cases of damage to the spinal cord and nerve roots causing severe pain and disability | £111,150 - £196,450 |
| Severe (ii) | Cases of nerve root damage leading to a loss of sensation, restricted mobility, loss of bladder and bowel function | £90,510 - £107,910 |
| Severe (iii) | Cases of disc lesions or fractures of discs | £47,320 - £85,100 |
| Moderate (i) | Cases where a slipped intervertebral disc requires surgery; or damage to an intervertebral disc with nerve root irritation and reduced mobility. | £33,880 - £47,320 |
| Moderate (ii) | The precise figure will depend upon a number of factors including the severity of the injury as well as the degree of pain experienced | £15,260 - £33,880 |
| Minor (i) | Individuals will have a full recovery or a recovery between two and five years | £9,630 - £15,260 |
| Minor (ii) | Claimants will have a full recovery takes places without surgery within a period of about one to two years | £5,310 - £9,630 |
| Minor (iii) | Individuals will have full recovery takes place without surgery between three months and one year | £2,990 - £5,310 |
| Minor (iv) | People will have experienced a full recovery is made within three months | Up to £2,990 |
What Other Factors Will Determine The Amount Of Slipped Disc Compensation?
As we briefly explored above, there is a range of factors taken into consideration when your compensation is being calculated. We already discussed how your general damages might be calculated, but your special damages are valued slightly differently.
Special damages can include the aftermath of your injuries. What we mean by this is that if you now require mobility aids such as wheelchairs or adaptations to your home, your special damages can assess these costs and consider them in your final settlement.
We understand that experiencing a severe or even moderate back injury can cause a financial burden, and claiming special damages could help ease this.
Your claim for special damages can include:
- Loss of earnings – whether this be current or future earnings
- Travel expenses – if you’ve had to travel to the hospital or legal appointments
- Medical expense – reconstructive surgeries, prescriptions or counselling costs
- Costs of care – professional care can be costly, so you could potentially claim these expenses back
It’s important to note that in order to claim back these financial losses, you must hold evidence which proves that your injuries have caused this economic impact.
Your evidence could be:
- Payslips to show lost earnings
- Receipts for travel
- Medical invoices
- Receipts for costs of care
A solicitor from our panel could help you in compiling evidence, so please don’t worry if you’ve not yet got these documents together. Contact an advisor today to discuss how much compensation for a slipped disc injury you could be awarded.
Can I Make A Compensation Claim For A Herniated Disc?
You could claim compensation for a herniated disc as long as your case fulfils the requirements for negligence to be present. We can determine this by proving three components:
- Someone owed you a duty of care (we explore how this differs in different scenarios below)
- They breached this duty
- Their breach led to your slipped disc injuries
These three elements form the basis of all personal injury compensation claims, so if you have any questions about whether negligence is present in your case or not, you can contact our advisors today to explore this.
What Accidents Could Lead To A Herniated Or Slipped Disc Being Sustained?
Various accidents can unfortunately result in herniated or slipped discs, and the legal duty of care that is owed to you depends on where the accident occurs. Below, we explore who could be liable for your injuries and the legislation that governs this:
Road Traffic Accidents
The duty of care owed to you in road traffic accidents is established in both the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act 1988. Per both of these pieces of legislation, drivers should operate on roads in a way which minimises their risk of causing harm or damage to other road users, including pedestrians, cyclists and passengers.
Road traffic accidents can have detrimental impacts and can be a cause of slipped disc injuries. There are a number of ways in which a collision could cause back injuries, for example, if:
- A driver is speeding on the motorway, causing them to swerve lanes and cause a rear-end collision. Due to the impact, both your head and neck whip forcefully, resulting in a herniated disc in the upper back and whiplash injuries.
- Another road user is using their phone whilst driving, ultimately distracting them from assessing their surroundings. They then cause a side collision, throwing your torso forward. You suffer compression forces, as your spine takes most of the initial impact of the crash. Unfortunately, two discs in your lower spine are ruptured.
Accidents At Work
Whilst at work, your employer owes you a duty of care under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, to take all reasonable steps to ensure your health and safety in your workplace. This includes providing Personal Protective Equipment where necessary, and ensuring that machinery is kept in good, safe working order.
Examples of how you could suffer a slipped disc at work might be if:
- Your employer asks you to move some heavy boxes of stock, and you mention that you’ve not received any manual handling training. You then lift the heavy boxes, causing excessive pressure on the spine, thus leading to a disc herniation.
- There is uneven flooring in your workplace, which has been reported to your employer. Despite it being reported, there aren’t any signs signalling the hazard. As a result, you trip, and the sudden impact causes you to experience a slipped disc.
Public Liability
In public liability claims, the person or organisation responsible for the public or private land owes you a duty of care. Under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957, they shall take steps to ensure that visitors to their land are reasonably safe. This extends to providing a safe environment by regularly maintaining it, providing signage to show hazards and risk assessing their property.
You might suffer a herniated disc if, for example:
- You’re walking on a public pavement when you trip on a defective or broken pavestone. This has previously been reported to your local authority, and it hadn’t been cordoned off. You suffer a broken ankle and also experience a prolapsed disc.
- You are in a supermarket, and you go down an aisle and slip on a spillage on the floor. There are no wet floor signs, and the area hasn’t been sectioned off, so you were unaware of the hazard. As you slip, your spine takes the impact, resulting in a herniated disc injury.
The examples we have explored are not the only ways in which these types of injuries can be sustained. Please don’t worry if your claim specifics differ from those above. If we can satisfy the elements of negligence, you could claim with one of the solicitors from the panel at How Much Compensation.
If you’d like a chat about the validity of your claim, get in touch with an advisor today.
Slipped Disc Injury Compensation Claim Case Study
Below, we explore an illustrative case study of Miss Jordan, who experienced a slipped disc in an accident at work:
Miss Jordan, 26, works on a construction site as a labourer. There was scaffolding around the site, which had been overloaded with tools, causing a risk of falling from height. Miss Jordan expressed concerns about the overloading of the scaffolding to her site manager, who assured her that there was no risk working on the scaffolding.
As well as this, Miss Jordan was also not provided a hard hat to wear, or given adequate training to work on scaffolding. She also was not qualified to do so, which had been explicitly discussed with her employer. Despite this, she was still required to work with her colleagues on scaffolding.
One day, Miss Jordan went to the site as usual and was working on the scaffolding when suddenly it collapsed, as one of her colleagues witnessed. This was noted in the workplace accident report book.
Later that evening, Miss Jordan attended the A&E department in her local hospital as she was struggling with severe lower back pain, making it challenging for her to move. She was diagnosed with a slipped disc injury and advised to take time off work to recover. The doctors advised physiotherapy sessions to assist with her mobility issues.
Miss Jordan was left unable to work for 8 weeks, resulting in a significant loss of earnings. She was also unable to drive or walk properly without the help of physiotherapists.
One of her friends told her to speak to specialist personal injury solicitors, who later advised Miss Jordan that she had the basis to make a claim. After discussing the chain of events with Miss Jordan and her colleague, who acted as a witness, she won £20,000 in compensation, receiving £15,260 in general damages and £4,740 in special damages.
Speak to an advisor about the situation that caused your injury and how much compensation for a slipped disc injury you could receive.
How Can I Support A Slipped Disc Injury Claim?
Different forms of evidence can be used to support your slipped disc injury claim. This could be documentation that demonstrates how your injuries were sustained as a result of someone else’s negligence.
Your evidence might include:
- GP records or your medical record which can act as medical evidence to outline any treatments, diagnoses or prescriptions
- CCTV or dashcam footage if the accident was caught on camera
- Photographs of the scene of the accident or any visible injuries
- Contact details of anybody who might’ve witnessed the accident, to provide a witness statement later
- Any findings of an independent medical assessment (a solicitor from our panel could help arrange this)
By choosing to work with a solicitor from our panel, they could help you gather this evidence, as we understand it can feel daunting.
Contact an advisor today to learn more about how we can help you.
Is There A Time Limit To Claiming Compensation For A Slipped Disc Injury?
There is a limitation period to begin your compensation claim for a slipped disc injury, established by the Limitation Act 1980. Typically, claimants have 3 years from the date of the accident to start a claim.
There are, however, two exceptions to this limitation period; those who are under 18 at the time of the accident will have 3 years from the date of their 18th birthday, and those who are lacking mental capacity to make a claim will have their time limit paused. Their time limit would resume if a full recovery was made, and run from the date of the recovery.
In both of the above circumstances, a litigation friend could be used to manage the claim. This is a trusted loved one or adult who is able to claim on behalf of those unable to claim for themselves; it comes with a few responsibilities, including acting in the claimant’s best interests. This could either be applied for, or the courts have the power to appoint you to act in this role.
If you’d like to learn more about whether your claim would still fall within the limitation period or to discuss how our panel could help you apply to be a litigation friend, then please contact an advisor today.
How Can An Advisor Help With Slipped Or Herniated Disc Claims?
Our advisors here at How Much Compensation are friendly and knowledgeable. They are committed to providing you with a personalised service to ensure that you receive the best support for your case. Our advisors could connect you with a solicitor from our panel who could advocate for you to achieve a settlement that reflects the pain, suffering and financial losses caused by your accident.
The solicitors on our panel work on a No Win No Fee basis, through the use of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This can be beneficial to claimants because it means you have no upfront solicitors’ fees, nor do you have to pay to continue your claim or if your claim fails.
Whereas, if your claim is successful, then a small percentage of your compensation would be deductible from your compensation; this fee is limited under the Conditional Fee Agreements Order 2013 to ensure that you receive the majority of your compensation.
As well as the benefits of claiming through a CFA, by choosing to work with our panel at How Much Compensation, you can expect:
- Frequent updates about your claim
- Help with gathering supporting evidence
- Assistance in applying to be a litigation friend
- Decades of experience in personal injury claims
- Ensuring your claim is started within the permitted time limit
- Working closely with you to develop a recovery plan that suits your needs
- Advocating on your behalf to achieve a suitable settlement
- Arranging an independent medical assessment if needed
This isn’t all that our panel can help with. If you’re interested in starting your claim today, contact one of our advisors, who will be happy to assist you in any way they can, including an estimation of how much compensation for a slipped disc injury you could claim.
Contact How Much Compensation
To get in touch with our advisory team:
- Calling us on 0800 408 7826
- Filling out our online form
- Using our live chat
More Information
Why not read our other guides about:
- How to claim for a dog bite
- Crane incident claims
- How to claim hearing loss
Helpful External Resources
- When to report an incident at work, from the Health and Safety Executive
- How to claim for Statutory Sick Pay from GOV.UK
- When to call 999 from the NHS
Thank you for reading our how much compensation for a slipped disc injury guide today. Please speak to an advisor to get your compensation claim started.
