What is the spinal cord?
The spinal cord relays information between the brain and the rest of your body. This information lets your brain know what is happening inside and outside your body.
What is a spinal cord injury?
A spinal cord injury may be caused by damage directly to the spinal cord or vertebrae which are the bones surrounding the spinal cord. Injuries to the spinal cord can lead to temporary or permanent changes in its function. These changes can affect a person’s movement, functioning and sensations.
Spinal cord injury symptoms vary by severity and location, affecting control of arm, leg, or body movement. Bowel and bladder control can be affected as can breathing, heart rate and blood pressure.
What types of spinal injuries are there?
A spinal injury is termed medically as complete or incomplete.
A complete spinal cord injury involves damage across the whole width of the spinal cord which means a complete loss of function below the level of that injury.
Where the spinal cord is not damaged across its whole width, this is called an incomplete spinal cord injury and some sensation, feeling and movement will remain. Thankfully incomplete spinal cord injuries are by far the most common spinal injuries. Just as for complete spinal cord injuries, the nature and type of symptoms depends upon where the partial cord injury is suffered.
A solicitor who specialises in spinal injury claims will have the required understanding of the medical details to know how best to maximise your compensation claim.
What causes spinal cord injuries?
Spinal cord injuries can be caused by car accidents and serious falls. The facts are startling: every four hours someone is paralysed by a spinal cord injury.
Where a spinal cord injury is caused by an accident that wasn’t your fault, Rothera Bray can help to navigate the complexities of a claim for serious injury. We have the specialist knowledge and experience to understand your needs and secure the best possible outcome for you.
Who will be involved in my claim?
Your specialist solicitor will engage various experts to deal with your claim, both for rehabilitation and treatment but also as expert witnesses. The types and number of experts will vary depending upon the type and severity of the injury but you can routinely expect to be seen by the following:-
- Spinal injuries Consultant
- Neurologist
- Case Manager to assist the victim and the victim’s family in every aspect of post- accident life
- Care expert
- Occupational Therapist, dealing with aids and equipment
- Physiotherapist
- Architect to deal with accommodation requirements
- Assisted technology expert to identify equipment to maximise independence and quality of life
- Speech and language therapist
- Psychiatrist
- Psychologist
- Recreation Therapist
- Employment consultant
Not all of the above will always be required and, in some cases, more than this list will be required. Every spinal cord injury is serious and different and it cannot be dealt with in the same way as a minor personal injury claim which is why you need a specialist solicitor.
By knowing what to look for, what to investigate and instructing the relevant people to do so, every way in which a spinal injury may affect you throughout your life will be considered and built into your compensation claim.
How much compensation can I get for a spinal injury?
Spinal injury compensation claims can be many millions of pounds. However, the largest part of these multi million-pound claims is not compensation for the injury itself but for the financial consequences of it.
It often surprises people how little injuries are worth in English law. Even complete tetraplegia will rarely be worth more than £300,000 for the injury itself. The reason awards run into millions of pounds is because of the financial costs that the spinal injury gives rise to. These include:-
- The need for specialist housing, either by adaptation or building from scratch.
- Aids and equipment
- Care – the cost of hiring personal carers for life
- The cost of private therapy, including physio, speech therapy and occupational therapy
- Increased transport costs
- Loss of earnings
Living with a spinal cord injury
Our experience means we understand the challenges you face and will work with you to, where appropriate:
- Access rehabilitation and treatment to improve your outcome following an injury.
- Arrange for interim payments to relieve some of the financial burden before a settlement is reached.
- Arrange for expert evidence to be obtained so your claim accounts for your short- and long-term needs.
- If your injuries make your living arrangements unsuitable, we work with our property team to address this through your claim.
- If your injuries require a Deputy, we arrange specialist assessment and advice, including support from our Court of Protection Team.
Spinal cord injury experts
Our serious personal injury solicitors will be with you every step of the way to guide you through your claim. Keeping in touch with you and making sure you understand the current and next steps is a key part of our stance on client relationships.
If you or a loved one suffered a spinal cord injury in an accident that wasn’t your fault, call our specialist team at 03456 465 465 to discuss a claim.
Disclaimer: This blog is for information only and does not constitute legal advice. If you need legal advice please contact us on 03456 465 465 or email enquiries@rotherabray.co.uk to get tailored advice specific to your circumstances from our qualified lawyers.
