Medication Error Compensation Claims Solicitors

Can I make a no win no fee claim for a medication error?

Yes, our medical negligence solicitors provide our legal services on a no win no fee basis, which means you can claim with the peace of mind that you are at no financial risk if your claim is unsuccessful.

No win no fee agreements are also known as Conditional Fee Agreements (CFA). When a no win no fee agreement is set up, your solicitor will take an insurance policy out on your behalf. The policy protects you against any costs incurred relating to your claim. These costs could include legal fees, medical reports, court, and other expenses.

Our solicitors will explain how the policy works and what fee may be paid if your claim is successful.

How do I know if I have a prescription and medication error claim?

To successfully claim compensation for an illness caused by a prescription or medication error, you will have to prove that those involved in prescribing or dispensing the drug to you were negligent and that you suffered harm or injury as a direct result.

Speak to our experienced, expert clinical negligence claim solicitors to find out your legal rights to claim compensation if you have suffered from prescription errors for your medication. Our specialists will be able to explain your rights based on the unique circumstances of your situation.

What types of medication errors can I claim compensation for?

Our specialist solicitors have helped thousands of patients claim for medical negligence. Medication errors can occur in a number of healthcare environments, including both NHS and private hospitals, GP surgeries and pharmacies.

The most common examples of prescription and medication errors include, but are not limited to:

Claims for the wrong medication being prescribed

Compensation claims can be made if the incorrect medication has been given to the patient and this has caused harm. Claims could also be made if a prescribed medication conflicts with another medication, causing adverse side effects.

Claims can also be made if one medication is substituted for another without due diligence or consultation, and this has led to the patient’s condition worsening.

Claims for the incorrect dosage being prescribed

If you have been prescribed the wrong dosage, you may be able to claim. This could include if the dosage was too high or too low, or if you were advised to take it at an incorrect frequency.

Claims for medication being prescribed for too long

Claims can be made if your healthcare provider fails to monitor your response to the medication and your dosage adequately through regular check-ups and appointments.

Claims for dispensing errors

You may have a right to claim compensation if there were errors made in dispensing your medication.

Examples may include instances where your GP, doctor, or pharmacist substitutes your medication for an alternative, accidentally gives you someone else’s medication, or makes errors leading to the wrong medication being administered, such as clerical errors like illegible handwriting, mislabelling, or mistakes made when preparing your medication.

Claims for errors made when medication is administered

You may be able to claim if you have been incorrectly advised how to take the medicine, including the time of day, frequency and for how long.

Claims for medication that causes an allergic reaction

Compensation may be available to individuals who have suffered an allergic reaction due to a medication error caused by the medical professional’s failure to consider their medical history or potential interactions with existing medications.

Unfortunately, prescription errors can lead to severe circumstances such as life-altering health conditions or even, in the most tragic of circumstances, death.

Can I claim compensation if a doctor or nurse makes a medication error in a hospital?

Yes, you may be able to claim compensation if you suffered as a result of a doctor or nurse making an error in administering your medication while you were in hospital.

Examples of medication errors made in hospitals include:

• A doctor prescribing a medication that is incorrect for your condition, or has an adverse effect when taken in combination with an existing medication. This can sometimes occur if the doctor has not considered your current and past medical history and may not have sought a second opinion from a colleague
• A nurse forgetting to administer medication at the correct time of day or the correct number of times per day.

Can I claim compensation if a pharmacist gives me the wrong medication?

Yes, it is likely you will be able to claim compensation if a pharmacy has given you the wrong medication or provided an incorrect dosage and this has led to you becoming ill or making an existing condition worse.

Prescription errors in pharmacies can occur if a doctor’s prescription is not interpreted correctly or if the medication is mislabeled. Sometimes a substitute medication is provided by error, which is not appropriate for the patient, and this can lead to medical complications.

How much compensation can I claim for a medication error?

Compensation amounts you can claim for medication errors in the UK can start at £1,500 and go up to millions of pounds.

The amount of compensation you may receive will depend on how severely the error has impacted your life.

As each prescription or medication error claim is unique, it is very difficult to estimate the value of your claim without knowing the specifics of your case.

Our experienced medical negligence solicitors will be able to advise you more clearly on what your claim might be worth during an initial consultation about your claim.

However, the more severe your illness or injury may be and the long-term implications it may have on your life, the more compensation you may receive.

The level of compensation you may receive will depend on several factors, including:

• The severity and type of injury you have suffered
• The level of pain and suffering you have experienced and may continue to experience
• Your medical costs to date, the cost of ongoing medical treatment, and the care you may need
• Your loss of earnings, including future earnings
• The unique circumstances of your case.

The intention of awarding financial compensation is to put the claimant back in the position they would have been had the medication error never occurred. It is not to punish the healthcare provider.

How is compensation calculated for a prescription error claim?

Compensation amounts for prescription medication errors are calculated by combining the compensation you may be legally entitled to for both general and special damages.

General damages amounts relate to the pain and suffering you may have experienced, while special damages relate to the effects the injuries may have on your life.

Special damages include any reasonable financial losses or “out-of-pocket” expenses. The amount of claimable special damages is particularly significant for those who have suffered serious illness, as they may need extended medical assistance.

Claims for special damages could include, but may not be limited to:

• Any loss of income or pension
• Any costs associated with your rehabilitation or ongoing medical treatment
• Any costs related to adaptations you may need to make to your home
• Any costs for the care you may have or will need to receive, even if a family member or friend provides this
• Any out-of-pocket expenses you or anyone who has cared for you may have incurred.

What is the time limit to make a medication error claim?

You have up to three years to start your claim from when the medication error took place when you first became aware that the medication you received caused your illness or made an existing condition worse.

However, there are some exceptions to the three-year limit. These include:

• Children have up to three years from the date of their 18th birthday to start a claim
• If a person is unable to claim due to limited mental capacity, the three-year time limit does not apply and may only start if their condition improves to a point where they are able to claim for themselves.

The three-year time limit to claim compensation in the UK is known as the statute of limitations. It applies to all types of medical negligence claims.

We recommend you start your claim as soon as possible, as this can help us collect all the evidence we need to present the strongest case.

Can I claim for a medication or prescription error if I was treated through private healthcare?

Yes, you can make a claim for if your medication error was made by a private healthcare provider.

Just as when you receive treatment from the NHS, private healthcare providers owe their patients a duty of care. If this duty is breached or falls below the expected standard and leads to an injury, illness or medical condition, you have a right to make a claim against the private healthcare provider.

What do I need to prove to be successful when making a medication error claim?

A successful claim for a medication error will need to prove that the standard of care you received fell below the reasonably expected acceptable standards and that the healthcare professional was negligent, and this caused your illness or your condition to worsen.

To do this, our medical negligence solicitors will examine four key areas relating to the medical care you received.

Duty of care

All healthcare professionals are legally required to provide a “reasonable” level of care to their patients. The first step is to discover if the level of care you received fell below the accepted standard.

Breach of duty

Proving that the medical professional failed to provide the legally required level of duty of care.

Causation

Proving that the actions of the healthcare professional were the cause of your condition or injury.

Damages

Providing evidence that the negligence has negatively affected your life.

What information do I need to provide to start a medication error claim?

While discussing your claim with our specialist medical negligence solicitors, we will ask for information you can provide to support your case.

Usually this will include your medical records, especially in relation to the medication you received, and a statement from you explaining a timeline of events, and the effects the medication had.

Don’t worry if you don’t have all of this information. Our experienced solicitors can collect this information on your behalf.

How long does a claim for a medication error take?

Medical negligence claims, including medication and prescription error claims, can be highly complex and typically may take up to 18 months or more to settle.

While there is no defined time frame for such cases, it is usual that more complex claims will take longer due to the additional factors involved.

When you speak with our specialist medical negligence solicitors, we can advise you on how long your claim may take and what the process of making a claim will involve.

Do I have to go to court to make a medication error claim?

According to NHS Resolution, 81% of medical negligence claims, which include medication error claims, were settled outside court in 2023/24.

Using the Ministry of Justice’s Pre-Action Protocol for the Resolution of Clinical Disputes, settling through negotiation and other non-confrontational dispute resolution methods is usually possible.

This means claims can typically be resolved faster and at a lower cost to you while allowing you to avoid the need to attend a court hearing.

How often do medication errors occur?

A BMJ study in 2020 estimated that more than 237 million medication errors are made every year in England.

From available evidence and studies published up to October 2018, the researchers estimated the figure could cost the NHS over £98 million.

The study “calculated the number of opportunities for medication error by stage and setting–primary care, care homes, hospitals and at the point of discharge using published statistics on the annual number of medicines dispensed and used, bed occupancy data, and numbers of care home residents, for the whole of England for one calendar year.

Errors are made at every stage of the process, with over half (54%) made at the point of administration and around 1 in 5 made during prescribing (21%). Dispensing accounts for 16% of the total.

Error rates are lowest in primary care, but because of the sector’s size, these account for nearly 4 out of every 10 (38%). Error rates are highest in care homes (42%), despite covering fewer patients than the other sectors. Around 1 in 5 medication errors are made in hospitals.

The researchers estimated that nearly 3 out of 4 medication errors (72%) are minor, while around 1 in 4 (just under 26%) have the potential to cause moderate harm; just 2% could potentially result in serious harm.

Around a third (34%) of potentially harmful medication errors are made during prescribing in primary care.

For the worst-case scenario, which assumes a hospital stay of 14 days for each incident and the need for a broad range of NHS services, the estimates come in at £1.6 billion and 22,303 lives, respectively, each year.

The researchers point out that there were simply no UK medication error data available for certain stages of the medication process or for any stage of the process in care homes.”

Why choose Wolferstans to make your claim?

Our team of dedicated, specialist medical negligence solicitors have decades of experience helping clients to claim compensation under even the most challenging circumstances.

With a proven track record of successful claims, often achieved without needing you to attend court, we can make claiming medical negligence compensation as simple and effective as possible.

Wolferstans is Lexcel accredited, reflecting the excellence of our practice management and client care. We are also accredited by the Law Society for Clinical Negligence in recognition of the particular strength of our work in this area.

Our team includes members of a wide range of organisations related to their specific expertise in the area of medical negligence, including:

Headway – the brain injury association
The Spinal Injuries Association
The Brain Injury Group
APIL (Association of Personal Injury Lawyers)
AvMA (Association Against Medical Accidents)
Specific team members have been accredited by the Law Society, AvMA, and APIL as Clinical Negligence Specialists and by APIL as Brain Injury Specialists.