Torn Achilles tendon compensation
If your Achilles tendon is torn after an accident caused by a third party, you may wish to seek legal advice. This guide provides information you could require regarding when making a compensation claim for your torn Achilles tendon injury. It includes an example case study for a £17,000 compensation payout on a torn Achilles tendon injury. And it also discusses care claims, general and special damages, compensation calculators and No Win No Fee.
Ahead of reading this guide, remember that you can talk to our friendly team anytime. Our panel of personal injury solicitors could then handle your torn Achilles tendon claim for compensation. To get in touch, telephone us on 0800 408 7825, use our Live Chat tool or complete our online form. Don’t forget that our advisors are available to speak 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
You can use the headings below to visit a section of your choice.
Choose A Section
- A Guide To Compensation For Torn Achilles Tendon
- What Is An Achilles Tendon Injury?
- Financial Effects From Achilles Tendon Tears
- How Can You Tear Your Achilles Tendon?
- Additional Care Claim Settlements
- How Lawyers Calculate Claims For Compensation
- Case Study: £17,000 Achilles Tendon Injury Compensation
- Free Estimates From Specialists
- No Win No Fee Breakdown
- Where Are The Best Personal Injury Lawyers?
- Talk With An Advisor
- Additional Advice
A Guide To Compensation For Torn Achilles Tendon
You may be able to claim compensation for your torn Achilles tendon injury if those who had a responsibility for your health and well being failed in their duty. We’ll explain the criteria for this process, as well as:
- An analysis of an Achilles tendon injury
- Financial losses
- Care claims
- General damages and special damages
- A case study of a £17,000 compensation payout
- Compensation calculators
- No Win No Fee
There is a personal injury claims time limit if you’re claiming compensation for your torn Achilles tendon injury. You would have 3 years to make a compensation claim for your torn Achilles tendon from the date that it happened or the date of knowledge. But for a child (someone aged under 18) or a victim who lacks the mental capacity to claim, a close relative or another appointed representative could be their litigation friend to process the claim on their behalf.
If no claim is made then when the child turns 18 or when the victim is capable of representing themselves, though, the 3-year clock would begin. You can learn more about this by speaking to our specialist team.
What Is An Achilles Tendon Injury?
The Achilles tendon is a large cord linking the calf muscle and heel bone together. An injury to the Achilles tendon could mean that you can’t place much weight on your foot. For serious tears, you might find it very hard attempting to move the leg. That scenario would likely result in you requiring surgery, with a recovery time of many months, if not longer.
To make a torn Achilles tendon claim for compensation, the following 3 criteria must be met:
- A third party owed you a duty of care
- But a breach of that duty of care happened
- And the result of that was an injury such as an Achilles tendon tear.
Below we are going to look at three main areas where you are owed a duty of care;
The first concerns employer’s liability (EL), which would be covering workplace accidents. Now, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 states that employers should go as far as reasonably possible to uphold the health, safety and wellbeing of all employees. If you slip trip or fall at work due to your employer’s negligence causing an Achilles injury, an accident at work of this nature could indicate a duty of care breach. And that could lead to a torn Achilles tendon at work claim.
The second is a public liability (PL), and this handles accidents in a public place. According to the Occupiers Liability Act 1957, there is a duty of care to avoid accidents in public places. If you’re injured in a public place via a torn Achilles tendon, due to a duty of care being breached it could result in a public injury claim, a public accident claim or a public liability claim. Public liability insurance may prove to be a crucial factor.
And the final scene is for a road traffic accident (RTA). The Highway Code notes the duty of care for road users to show all road users. But you could potentially tear your Achilles tendon from a crash or collision. If you are injured because another road user acted in a negligent way you may be able to claim for the injuries you have suffered as well as financial losses. And if your torn Achilles is one of multiple injuries, it could pave the way for you to file a multiple injury claim.
Financial Effects From Achilles Tendon Tears
There could be a financial fallout due to you tearing your Achilles tendon. That could include lost income, significant medical expenses, increased public transport usage and professional physiotherapy. The costs for all of these do add up. And they form the basis for your special damages claim for compensation after your torn Achilles tendon injury. Call us today to chat about the financial effects of your injury.
How Can You Tear Your Achilles Tendon?
There were approximately 693,000 workplace accidents in 2019/20, an Achilles tendon injury could happen in the workplace. As for accidents in public places, a fall in a public space may lead to you suffering a torn Achilles.
Then we have Achilles tendon tears suffered on the road. Perhaps Achilles tendons were amongst the 180,000 driver injuries in 2016 or the 17,550 cyclist injuries in 2018. You can talk to us anytime for advice on making a torn Achilles tendon claim for compensation.
Additional Care Claim Settlements
There are two heads of loss that can be claimed for in a compensation claim. the first being general damages and the second being special damages. Within the special damages claim you can include the cost of any care you received. It could include:
- Additional support from family members and friends
- Professional nursing
- Cleaning, gardening, dog-walking and other home services
Use our 24/7 Live Chat to ask any questions about care claim settlements.
How Lawyers Calculate Claims For Compensation
To make an accurate compensation calculation, a lawyer would ask you to undergo an independent medical evaluation. This forms a crucial part of the claims process. After all, a full medical check could prove that the accident directly contributed to your torn Achilles tendon. If not for the accident, you would be fine.
A medical evaluation could prove this due to the complete diagnosis and the projected recovery time. And these elements increase your chances of being appropriately compensated. At that point, you could receive your compensation calculation in the form of general damages and special damages.
General Damages
For general damages, the spotlight is on the major physical and mental impact of your torn Achilles tendon. General damages would be covering the pain, suffering and loss of amenity.
Special Damages
On the other hand, special damages handle the additional fallout of the accident. And they could include lost earnings, increased public transport usage, medical expenses and physiotherapy. So could professional nursing costs. To learn more about general damages and special damages, you can call us using the number at the top of this page.
Case Study: £17,000 Achilles Tendon Injury Compensation
Mr Broden, 31, works in a shopping centre in Woking. He lives with his partner, and they live in a bungalow on the outskirts of the town. Also, Mr Broden enjoys riding his motorcycle and attending cricket matches during his free time.
One evening, Mr Broden was helping his colleagues to prepare the shopping centre for a big sales weekend. He was beginning to climb a ladder to put up some signage when his name was called by his manager. Mr Broden tried to come down quickly, but the bottom rung was loose and gave way under his right foot. This meant that he slipped slightly as he came to the ground. And in doing so, Mr Broden placed his foot at an awkward angle on the floor. He immediately realised that he had hurt himself, and he was unable to put weight on his foot.
Mr Broden was taken to the hospital. After a lengthy evaluation, he was diagnosed with a torn Achilles tendon. It was a serious enough tear to require surgery. The operation mostly went well, though there were slight complications which delayed Mr Broden being able to return home. After that, it would take Mr Broden quite a few months to make a recovery.
The accident left Mr Broden very upset. But his biggest concern was that the ladder he was asked to use clearly wasn’t safe for proper usage and also he had not been trained how to use a ladder safely. He was thankful, though, that he was near the bottom of the ladder when it happened. He pondered how bad he could have been hurt had he been at the top of the ladder when he was called.
After seeking legal advice, Dan filed a compensation claim against his employers. He received £17,000 as an out-of-court settlement. This included £13,000 in general damages and £4,000 in special damages.
| Type Of Special Damages | Includes: | How Much? |
|---|---|---|
| Current Loss | Lost earnings from being unable to work | £3,600 |
| Physiotherapy | Professional rehabilitation costs to assist with his recovery | £300 |
| Public Transport | Costs of using public transport to & from the hospital | £100 |
The case of Mr Broden is purely an example. It is based on our past experiences of handling and valuing claims and serves to illustrate how accidents can happen and how they are valued.
Free Estimates From Specialists
Online personal injury claims calculators may only provide general estimates with a “one size fits all” approach to various injuries. We prefer, though, to learn everything that we can about you, your torn Achilles tendon injury and your general circumstances. Because that way, the compensation estimate you receive from our specialists would be much more accurate.
If you want a suitable compensation estimate for your torn Achilles tendon claim, call our team today.
No Win No Fee Breakdown
A No Win No Fee solicitor could provide several major benefits as you pursue a compensation claim for your torn Achilles tendon. And they include:
- Not having to pay any legal fees up-front
- Also not having to pay any legal fees during the case
- Meanwhile, your personal injury solicitor only takes a nominal amount (called a success fee and capped by law) if you receive compensation
So, you don’t pay anything to your No Win No Fee solicitor unless your case wins. And that could only be a good thing, right? Now, you can use our Live Chat anytime to discuss No Win No Fee.
Where Are The Best Personal Injury Lawyers?
The location of your solicitor is no longer an important issue, you are not required to use a local solicitor meaning you can choose a solicitor from anywhere in the country.
Our panel of No Win No Fee personal injury solicitors offer a nationwide service. They also bring many years of experience, lots of positive reviews, first-class credentials and a highly-successful track record.
Please call us today to receive your free consultation of no obligation.
Talk With An Advisor
With all that being said, we now want to hear from you. Indeed, our team could put you in touch with our panel of personal injury solicitors. And it’s at that stage when we could begin to handle your compensation claim for your torn Achilles tendon. You can use the following methods to start that conversation:
- Call 0800 408 7825
- Use our Live Chat
- Complete our online form
Our knowledgeable team is ready to speak to you 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Also, don’t forget that there is no obligation to proceed with your case.
Additional Advice
Thank you for checking out our guide on how to make a torn Achilles tendon claim. But if you require further information, though, you can take a look at the links below.
You can click here to read about the services that we provide in full.
Learn about what to do if you have an accident in a public place by clicking here.
To find out more about our No Win No Fee service, click here.
You can read the official NHS guidance about tendon injuries by clicking here.
To learn more about how to identify broken bones, click here.
Click here to read the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
Article by AR
Publisher LA