If a relative has suffered a catastrophic brain injury, it can be difficult for you to come to terms with what may be a life long injury. Brain damage can affect the injured person’s personality and they may be left with any number of physical disabilities or psychological problems. In today’s blog entry I am going to look at some of the brain injuries that may occur in a non-fault accident as well as the amounts of compensation these injuries attract in court. In tomorrow’s entry, I will look at some of the other financial implications of a brain damage injury, and how to recover compensation for these as well.
Factors Determining Level of Compensation
A court will decide the level of compensation to be paid out to a person with brain damage based on a number of factors. The compensation is paid out for a vast number of different types of brain damage, from serious damage which renders a person barely able to communicate or follow basic commands, right through to a minor head injury where the victim recovers within a few weeks of the accident.
It is worth pointing out that an accident which leaves the victim in a coma, or a persistent vegetative state will actually attract a lower level of compensation than one in which the victim is left with some awareness of his or her situation. The reasoning behind this is that in accidents where a person dies within a short period of time or is left in a persistent vegetative state, they often have had no knowledge of their situation, and have remained unconscious from the moment of the accident. In the eyes of the court, this lack of awareness means that the person has not been suffering, even though they have been left with serious injuries.
Cases where a person has some awareness of their injuries, and may be able to communicate on a basic level such as by blinking their eyelids, will attract the higher level of compensation because they can be said to be suffering. This suffering could be physical, through not being able to move, or mental, through not being able to communicate with friends and family. This top level of brain damage compensation is around £250,000.
The next level of compensation covers moderate brain damage injuries. These are injuries where a person may still have problems with concentration, memory, speech and sight, but where they are not dependent on full time specialist care, and may have some prospects of employment typically attract a lower amount of compensation. Towards the more severe end, where a person would have significant personality changes and where they would be unable to find employment, compensation is in the region of £100,000 to £150,000. More moderate cases where a person may be able to hold down a part time job, for example, will attract compensation in the region of £30,000 to £60,000.
As with all brain injury compensation claims, each case is different, and the compensation you could expect to be awarded relies on many factors, including your age, whether you had any pre-existing injuries and whether you were in employment at the time of your accident. Your brain injury lawyer will be able to advise you on your particular claim, once medical evidence has been obtained from the relevant specialists. The figures in this article are for indicative purposes and are based on the Judicial Studies Board Guidelines for compensation.
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