Blot clot compensation claims

If you’ve suffered from DVT or a blood clot due to medical negligence, you could be eligible to make a blood clot compensation claim on a no win no fee basis.

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Blood Clot Claims

Blood clots are alarmingly common in the population. Usually, venous thromboembolism (VTE) will develop in the deep veins of the legs and pelvis; for that reason, it is commonly known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

If DVT is not properly diagnosed and treated, the clot can break free and travel to the lungs, causing a pulmonary embolism, which might be fatal. Blood clots can also form in the abdomen, arms, brain or heart and might have severe long-term impacts.

In England, thousands of deaths are directly attributed to VTE each year. One in twenty people is expected to develop a thrombosis during their lifetime, and more than half of all cases are associated with prior hospitalisation.

At least two-thirds of hospital-associated thromboses are preventable through appropriate risk assessment and treatment.

If you or a loved one suffered a blood clot injury due to misdiagnosis or medical negligence, you might be entitled to make a blood clot claim. To find out if you have a valid claim, enter your details into our online claim form or call 0800 470 0474 to speak to a legal adviser.

Find out if you can claim

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By submitting this form you agree to be contacted by our partners. Find out how we handle your data in our privacy policy. With no win no fee you typically pay 25% of your compensation if your claim is successful, but the fee can vary. Termination fees may apply if you fail to co-operate with your solicitor.

Table of Contents

What are blood clots?

Blood clotting is an essential physiological process for preventing excessive bleeding when a blood vessel is injured. A blood clot is a gel-like mass of blood that will cover the injured area; platelets will clump together at the injured site to stop the bleeding. After the injury has healed, the body will naturally dissolve the clot.

Sometimes, though, a blood clot will form where it shouldn’t have, or it will not dissolve on its own. It can develop in arteries or veins and might remain in one spot or move within the body, posing potentially serious health threats.

An immobile blood clot is called thrombosis. Venous thrombosis will lead to congestion of the affected body part by restricting the return of blood to the heart. Arterial thrombosis interferes with the blood supply, causing damage to the affected tissue.

If a piece of an arterial or venous thrombus breaks, it can move through the body and lodge somewhere else as an embolism or thromboembolism. Most complications arise when a venous thromboembolism (VTE) enters the lungs and gets stuck there. An embolism can stop the blood flow and have serious, even fatal, consequences.

According to thrombosis statistics, VTE is a leading cause of death and disability in the UK, with 1 in 4 people dying from causes related to blood clots. Venous thromboembolism is the number one cause of preventable deaths in hospitals. Mandatory risk assessments introduced since 2007 led to a 20.8% decrease in post-discharge VTE deaths in England.

If you suffered due to a blood clot because of medical negligence or misdiagnosis, you might be entitled to claim blood clot compensation. To find out if you can make a claim, call 0800 470 0474 for a free consultation with a legal adviser or enter your details to request a call back.

How are blood clots caused?

Blood clots form when certain parts of the blood thicken after coming into contact with certain substances in the skin or blood vessel walls, leading to the formation of a semisolid mass. Usually, this is a normal physiological response to vessel injury, but sometimes clots can form without a trigger.

Cholesterol plaques can trigger the same response; if a plaque breaks open, this will start the clotting process, which might cause a heart attack or stroke.

A blood clot could also form if there’s a slow blood flow, causing it to pool in the heart or blood vessels and increasing the chance of platelets sticking together.

Certain conditions and risk factors increase the chance of a blood clot forming without a trigger:

prolonged sitting or bed rest
pregnancy
obesity
smoking
severe trauma
oral contraceptives and certain other medications
a family history of blood clots
certain cancers
some types of surgery
certain infections and autoimmune disorders
high blood pressure or cholesterol
age (the risk increases for people over 60)

It is important to take preventive measures based on your risk factors and to recognise the symptoms of a blood clot, which vary depending on where it might occur:

Abdomen: severe pain, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea
Arms or legs: sudden or gradual pain, tenderness, swelling, redness or warmth
Brain: difficulty speaking, weakness of the face, arms or legs, dizziness, vision problems, a sudden and severe headache
Heart or lungs: severe chest pain, shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, racing heart, fever

Blood clots can be detected and diagnosed by blood tests, ultrasound, CT scan, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), VQ scans.

If you feel your blood clot injury could have been prevented, you might be able to make a blood clot negligence claim.

To find out if you have a valid blood clot claim, enter your details into our online claim form or call 0800 470 0474 to speak to a legal adviser.

Can I make a blood clot claim?

If you suffered unnecessarily due to a blood clot because of medical negligence or misdiagnosis, you could be entitled to make a blood clot claim.

If your doctor fails to detect a blood clot or treat it properly, this could lead to severe and long-lasting injuries, which might require high financial costs. An experienced solicitor can help you claim blood clot compensation to help with your expenses.

You might qualify to make a blood clot claim if your injury:

happened in the last three years
somebody else owed you a duty of care
they breached their duty by acting negligently

The three-year limitation date for making a claim can vary in certain situations:

When claiming on behalf of children, you can claim for blood clot compensation until they turn 18. They will have another three years, until their 21st birthday, to start a claim on their own.
There is no limitation date to start a claim on behalf of a victim that lacks intellectual ability. The three-year countdown will begin if they regain mental capacity.

If you are thinking about making a blood clot injury claim, a solicitor can help you understand if someone else might be responsible for your suffering. You can speak to a trained legal adviser by calling 0800 470 0474 for a free consultation.

How will I know if my blood clot was caused by medical negligence?

There are many circumstances and risk factors that can cause a blood clot to form without having an injury. Even if a doctor looks after you reasonably, you may still develop a thrombosis.

In the UK, the annual incidence of venous thromboembolism is approximately 2 in 1000 people, while the incidence of pulmonary embolism is 7-8 per 10,000 people. Age is an important risk factor, with an incidence of 1 in 10,000 in people under 40 and 1 in 100 in people over 80.

Healthcare professionals must take all risk factors and specific conditions of a patient into consideration in order to prevent blood clots from developing.

In the case of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), the standard of care for a patient with planned surgery will require the doctor to:

Prescribe blood thinners if you have a high risk for DVT. Failure to do so would be seen as medical negligence in the UK
Avoid the use of a tourniquet
Advise you to get up and take walks as soon as possible after surgery
Use anti-embolism stockings or an intermittent pneumatic compression device
Take the necessary tests to diagnose a possible blood clot

You might have a valid blood clot negligence claim if:

A doctor did not properly assess your risk for developing blood clots
Your DTV was not diagnosed or treated on time
A pulmonary embolism was not diagnosed and treated on time
You did not receive clot-busting medication after developing a pulmonary embolism
You were unnecessarily administered thrombolytic therapy, which led to a stroke

If a general practitioner or hospital staff fail to take the necessary measure to prevent, detect and treat a blood clot, they might be held liable in a blood clot injury claim.

To receive compensation, you need to prove that a healthcare professional failed to provide a reasonable standard of care. A solicitor will explain the claiming process and what evidence you might need to build a strong case. For a free consultation with a legal adviser, call 0800 470 0474 or enter your details to receive a call back.

How do I start a blood clot negligence claim?

A medical professional might cause unnecessary harm to a patient by failing to diagnose, treat or prevent a blood clot. If you think your doctor caused you a blood clot injury by acting negligently, you might want to claim compensation.

Hiring an experienced medical negligence solicitor might be instrumental in securing a successful claim. This will save you a lot of time and effort, and you will be able to focus on your recovery. Furthermore, they have the necessary training and expertise to handle the legal proceedings and represent you in court if required.

If your case is solid, you can make a blood clot claim on a no win no fee basis*. This way, you won’t have to worry about any upfront fees or hidden charges. Additionally, even if you end up losing the claim, you won’t have to cover any legal expenses.

If you receive blood clot compensation, your solicitor will take a success fee that is agreed upon before starting your claim, which can’t exceed 25% of the compensation award.

It is advisable to gather as much evidence as you can to attest you received poor medical treatment. Your solicitor can assist you with collecting proof, talking with witnesses or getting official statements from medical professionals.

They will also arrange a free medical examination with a certified doctor to assess the severity of your injury and its long-term implications. The medical evaluation will serve to calculate a suitable compensation amount based on your suffering and the consequences on your personal and professional life.

If you feel you may have a valid blood clot claim, call 0800 470 0474 or request a call back to receive a free consultation with a legal adviser.

What compensation can I claim for a blood clot injury?

The compensation you might receive in a blood clot negligence claim depends on the type and severity of the injury you experienced and any financial losses you incurred.

The calculation for a suitable compensation award will take into consideration:

General damages:

physical pain and suffering
emotional distress
psychological trauma
loss of life quality
care and support needs
impacts on social life
reduced mobility
loss of companionship

Special damages:

medication and treatment costs
costs of surgery
travel expenses
hospitalisation and rehabilitation
lost wages, including future losses

Your solicitor will consider the many ways in which your blood clot injury impacted your life and your ability to work. They will calculate a suitable compensation amount and will try to reach a settlement with the responsible party.

If you have a complex negligence claim, your claim might go to court. If the value of your compensation exceeds £25,000, you might need to attend court; otherwise, your solicitor can represent you and handle all the legal aspects of your blood clot claim.

For an accurate estimate of how much compensation you might receive based on your unique situation, please enter your details into our online claim form or call 0800 470 0474 to speak to a legal adviser.

What evidence is needed to support my blood clot claim?

Blood clots are extremely common in the population. Without proper treatment, they can cause long-term complications and even death. In the UK, around 28,000 people are admitted to the emergency department every year because of a pulmonary embolism.

If you have a blood clot, early diagnosis and treatment are essential to prevent complications from developing. If you are considered at risk for blood clotting, your doctor should take the appropriate measures to keep a DVT from developing.

When having any of the blood clot symptoms mentioned above, a healthcare professional should use the proper diagnosis methods and make sure you receive the treatment you need.

If you still develop a blood clot injury after a medical assessment, this might be due to negligence or misdiagnosis. You might want to claim compensation for the unnecessary pain and suffering you endured.

To be able to make a blood clot claim, you must prove that a doctor’s negligence caused you preventable harm. A medico-legal expert, usually a vascular surgeon, will investigate your case and determine whether the consequences of your blood clot could have been avoided.

If they believe you were treated with reasonable care and a DVT could not have been prevented, it is unlikely that you would be eligible to claim.

To support your claim, you and your solicitor can gather supporting evidence suck as:

eyewitness accounts
official reports
statements from medical professionals
medical records
document your recovery process
keep track of all the expenses you incurred

To find out if you have a valid claim, you can call 0800 470 0474 or request a call back to receive a free consultation with a legal adviser. They can help you gather the evidence you need to claim blood clot compensation and answer any questions you might have.