Delayed diagnosis of hand injury leads to successful £45,000 settlement

Gavin Allard in our Clinical Negligence team supported a client in securing a £45,000 settlement after a hand injury was not properly assessed, resulting in long-term functional impairment and the need for complex reconstructive surgery.

Our client sustained a deep laceration to her hand following a fall onto a broken glass bottle. She attended an urgent treatment centre where the wound was explored, glass fragments were removed, and the injury was sutured.

Despite this treatment, our client went on to experience ongoing symptoms, including numbness, reduced function and loss of thumb movement. Further investigations later confirmed that there had been a division of a tendon and injury to the median nerve, which had not been identified or treated at the time of the initial attendance.

As a result, our client faced ongoing disability, difficulties with dexterity and the prospect of complex, staged reconstructive surgery.

Following instructions, we undertook a detailed review of the medical records and obtained expert evidence from a consultant hand surgeon to assess the cause and extent of the injury.

The defendant admitted breach of duty, but causation remained in dispute. We obtained further expert evidence and built a robust case to demonstrate the link between the initial treatment and our client’s subsequent injury and ongoing symptoms.

We prepared a detailed schedule of loss and engaged in negotiations with the defendant, making a formal Part 36 offer to resolve the matter. Through careful handling of the claim and strategic negotiation, we were able to progress the case to settlement without the need to issue court proceedings.

Following negotiations, the claim was successfully settled for £45,000, alongside recovery of the claimant’s legal costs.

The settlement provides our client with financial compensation for the injuries sustained and the ongoing impact on her daily life, while avoiding the stress and expense of court proceedings.

Gavin Allard specialises in clinical negligence and personal injury matters, including complex claims involving serious physical injuries and psychological trauma. If you would like to discuss a potential claim, or have a general query about a personal injury matter, please contact Gavin at Thomson Snell & Passmore in confidence. We offer no win no fee agreements on the vast majority of our personal injury claims.