Deafness and Hearing Loss Claims

Hearing loss can have a major impact on your life, affecting your ability to work and live a full lifestyle, as well as damaging your confidence and emotional wellbeing. If you or a loved one have suffered hearing loss as the result of medical negligence, claiming compensation may be able to go some way towards helping you or your loved one to deal with the consequences and to be able to move on.

These types of claims can be highly complicated, with a high standard of evidence required to secure compensation. It is therefore essential to have specialist legal representation from the outset to ensure no vital details are missed and allow the strongest possible case to be put together for you.

Wolferstans’ medical negligence solicitors have strong experience in hearing loss claims related to medical negligence, having secured substantial compensation for our clients over the years. We have the expertise to ensure every angle is explored and all the right evidence collected, giving you the best chance of a fair outcome.

We can also offer you the benefit of our exceptional skill in non-confrontational dispute resolution, meaning we will typically be able to resolve your claim without the need for court action. This not only allows you to avoid the stress of a court hearing, it is also usually a faster and less expensive way to achieve compensation.

Our team can provide a highly accurate valuation for your claim, giving you a clear idea of what level of compensation you may be entitled to and helping you to avoid the risk of settling for less than your claim’s true potential value.

We offer a free initial no obligation consultation during which we will be able to tell you if you have a claim worth investigating further.

To arrange your consultation please contact the new client team on 01752 292204.

Our deafness and hearing loss claims service

We work with clients throughout England and Wales to claim compensation for hearing loss caused by medical negligence, including claims related to:

Negligent surgery to treat glue ear or other conditions of the ear
Delay in diagnosing or treating meningitis
Delay in diagnosing and treating glue ear
Delay in diagnosing or treating cholesteatoma
Delay in diagnosing and treating otosclerosis
Failure to monitor levels of Gentamicin (an antibiotic often used to fight infection in new-born babies)
Negligent treatment of ear infections, leading to hearing loss
Failure to identify and treat abnormal growths and tumours leading to hearing loss

How deafness and hearing loss claims work

Our clinical negligence lawyers aim to make the process of claiming compensation for hearing loss as simple and stress-free as we can, giving you all the sensitive, practical help and support you need.

A typical claim for hearing loss due to medical negligence will involve:

Building your case e.g. applying for medical records, collecting witness evidence and consulting independent medical experts.
Contacting the relevant healthcare provider with the details of your claim.
Ensuring the defendant responds to your claim in a timely fashion.
Assessing the defendant’s response and advising you of your options.
Negotiating with the defendant and/or using alternative dispute resolution (ADR), such as mediation or independent evaluation, to secure a suitable settlement.
Submitting your claim to the relevant court and representing you at a court hearing where required to resolve the matter.

Find out more about the process of making a clinical negligence claim.

Funding a deafness and hearing loss compensation claim

Worries about the cost of a medical negligence claim should not put you off pursuing hearing loss compensation if you believe you have grounds for a claim. As long as we believe your claim has a reasonable chance of success, we can help you find the right way to fund it to match your circumstances.

Typically we work with the majority of clients using conditional fee agreements. Also known as ‘no win, no fee’ hearing loss claims, this approach allows you to start a claim without needing to contribute towards your legal costs and expenses at the outset.

With a conditional fee agreement, you only need to pay towards your legal costs if your claim is successful and compensation is secured. The size of your financial contribution will then be determined based on a percentage of the compensation you receive.

Other funding options include legal expenses insurance, which may be offered with your home insurance policy, as well as with some bank accounts and credit cards.

To discuss your options for covering the cost of claiming compensation for deafness or hearing loss due to medical negligence, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Find out more about funding a medical negligence claim.

Our expertise in deafness and hearing loss claims

Our clinical negligence lawyers have many years of experience dealing with hearing loss claims. We have recovered substantial damages for a wide range of clients under even the most difficult of circumstances, so know exactly what is needed for a successful claim.

Wolferstans is accredited by the Law Society for Clinical Negligence, recognising our particular expertise in this area. We are also Lexcel accredited by the Law Society for excellence in legal practice management and client care.

Various members of our medical negligence team are also on the Law Society and AvMA (Action against Medical Accidents) Specialist Clinical Negligence Panels and have been accredited by APIL (Association of Personal Injury Lawyers) as Clinical Negligence Specialists and Brain Injury Specialists.

Common questions about deafness and hearing loss claims

There are strict time limits for claiming medical negligence compensation for hearing loss. Knowing which time limit applies to your situation and whether it has expired can be very complicated, so seeking expert legal advice is a must.

Under most circumstances, you will have 3 years to bring a claim for medical negligence that has affected your own hearing. This time limit may be counted from when the negligence occurred or when you found out about it/that it had affected your hearing, with this depending on the situation.

If you need to claim compensation for someone under the age of 18 whose hearing was damaged due to medical negligence, you will have until they turn 18 to make a claim.
If wish to claim yourself for damage to your hearing that occurred when you were under 18, you will have 3 years to do so, starting from your 18th birthday.
If you need to claim for hearing loss suffered by someone without the mental capacity to bring a claim, there is usually no time limit for you to do so.

You can typically claim two types of damages for hearing loss due to medical negligence:

Special damages – Covering specific financial losses incurred up to the date of settlement e.g. treatment costs, buying special equipment and loss of earnings due to time off work.

General damages – Covering non-financial losses e.g. compensation for pain and suffering and lifestyle changes, plus likely future financial losses e.g. on going support and treatment, having to change careers etc.

Most hearing loss claims can be resolved with an out-of-court settlement, either through negotiation or alternative dispute resolution. This allows you to avoid the stress and uncertainty of a court hearing, as well as usually being a much faster and less expensive way to resolve a medical negligence claim.

However, if court action is required, we will ensure you have all the help and support you need, as well as the very best representation available to ensure you claim has the strongest chance of success.

Further information about deafness and hearing loss claims

For more information about compensation claims for deafness due to medical negligence and all types of medical negligence claims, please take a look at our news, blogs and our series of helpful leaflets covering specific issues.

Start a hearing loss claim with us today

To arrange a free initial no obligation consultation and find out more about starting a deafness or hearing loss claim: