What is professional negligence?
Throughout your life, now and then you may require help and advice from a professional. It is possible for a professional to make a mistake, after all, they are only human. However, a professional mistake can lead to serious financial consequences or possible health changes for you. This is referred to as professional negligence. Professional negligence is when a professional fails to perform their responsibilities to the required standard or breaches a duty of care.
For you to be able to put forward your claim, the professional person or business may have provided insufficient or incorrect advice. This can result in you suffering a loss, physical damage, or injury of their client.
Making a claim for professional negligence can be beneficial to you or your company. Receiving compensation for what you have endured because of professional negligence may not be able to repair the damage caused, but it can help you recover.
You can encounter professional negligence by the following professionals:
- Solicitors
- Barristers
- Engineers
- Architects
- Surveyors
- Accountants
- Financial advisors
- Banks
- Insurance Brokers
- Doctors and other medical professionals
- Other legal professionals
An example scenario for a medical negligence claim could be you have experienced a prescription error. This form of negligence can be divided into two categories: errors in prescribing the medication and errors in dispensing it. You may have been prescribed medication that contains an ingredient to which you are allergic; this would be considered a prescription error. A dispensing error could involve mixing up a patient's prescription with another patient. It is possible for both errors to be life-threatening or cause long term health issues.
There are many other scenarios that can be classed as professional negligence, you may have had a poorly prepared Will or received negligent advice from a financial advisor.
Can I claim on behalf of someone else?
There are several circumstances you can claim on behalf of someone else. An example for this is; you are a beneficiary and disappointed due to a poorly written Will or maybe someone has passed away and you’re claiming against a poorly drafted Will or Trust. If you want to claim on behalf of someone else, don’t hesitate to contact us we can advise you and help you understand if you are able to pursue the claim.
You should be aware there is a time frame for a professional negligence claim. You have six years from the date the act occurred or three years from the date you realised you have fallen victim to professional negligence.
Don’t hesitate to contact our dispute solicitors on 0161 798 9000 if you have a professional negligence claim, whether you want to start your claim or want advice before proceeding we are happy to help.
