Wrongful Death

A wrongful death is a fatality resulting from the negligence of another party which may involve a business entity, a company or an individual person. Every year, a large number of wrongful deaths take place in the UK and many cases are pursued in court. Each case differs from the other and the compensation amount that the relatives of the deceased receive depends upon the manner in which the victim died and the effect of the death on the family members financially. Some of the causes that can lead to wrongful death include:

Vehicle accidents: In such accidents including car collisions, airplane catastrophes, boat capsizing and pedestrian accidents, the drivers, owners or vehicle manufacturers fail to perform their responsibility to take care of other people’s safety, thus causing the victim’s death.

Using defective products: The manufacturers, distributors and designers of a product may be found responsible for a death if the victim died due to using their defective product.

Medical Negligence: Medical professionals have specific standards of care they are required to meet in caring for patients. Any negligence on their part in diagnosis, operating or other actions and inactions may lead to the victim’s death.

Work related accidents: It is the responsibility of the company owners to make their office and factory premises safe to work for their employees. If they fail to provide a hazard free environment to their employees, then they can be liable for their employee’s death while at work.

Animal attacks: Pet owners and public authorities are responsible for taking care that animals do not attack people, otherwise, a case can be pursued against them in case the animal’s behaviour causes a person’s death.

The relatives of the deceased person may pursue a compensation claim against the person or party responsible for their loved one’s death. The time period of court litigation can vary in each case and the compensation amount may depend upon the person’s manner of death, i.e. the time period between the accident and the person’s death and the physical, mental and emotional stress the person underwent before passing away. The compensation amount of your case may also depend upon how convincingly you place your case in court and the amount may increase to a great extent if the family members of the deceased person were financially dependant upon him or her.

In order to represent your case of wrongful death convincingly in the court, you need to instruct a professional, qualified and experienced Solicitor. Excalibur Solicitors are accident claims specialists who can assist you in pursuing a case for compensation following the wrongful death of a loved one. We act on a no win no fee basis, guaranteeing the client receives 100% of any compensation awarded.

Wrongful Death - The Causes

A wrongful death compensation claim is a claim pursued by the family of a deceased person when a loved one passes away owing to the negligence of another resulting in fatal accidents. Typically, the members of a victim’s family who are entitled to file a wrongful death compensation claim include the spouse, children, parents and grandparents of the victim.

Causes of Wrongful Death can include any of the following:

• Medical negligence
• Vehicle accidents
• Motorcycle accidents
• Pedestrian accidents
• Construction accidents
• Defective products
• Boating accidents
• Workplace accidents

Elements That Need To Be Established

If you have experienced the wrongful death of a relative, you will require a wrongful death Solicitor to help you in a compensation claim. There are certain elements that need to be established in a wrongful death compensation claim, namely:

• That the victim has died
• That the death was due to the negligence of another person or entity
• That the surviving members of the family are suffering monetarily because of that death & damages are covered under wrongful death law

Death by Medical Negligence

Medical negligence is the failure of a medical practitioner to perform in line with the established standards of care expected of such professionals. Regrettably sometimes death can be caused as a result of medical negligence. It is also known as clinical negligence and is a serious matter which can be compensated for. Death by medical negligence can give rise to compensation claims where the medical professional did not meet the standard of care expected of him/her.

When the claim is pursued with medical negligence Solicitors, the claimant is eligible for compensatory damages that include financial losses such as medical expenses and loss of wages. Medical negligence is a serious problem and should not be overlooked by people who have been affected by it.

Claiming For Wrongful Death

A claim for wrongful death is different from cases of negligence where no death is involved. Damages in cases of wrongful death can be claimed for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity the victim experienced in addition to financial losses family members sustain. In a wrongful death claim there are several points to prove, namely;

• The death was caused due to another party
• The responsible party acted negligently,
• The dependent family members have suffered financial losses due to the death.

A compensation claim should be pursued in good time, otherwise the court will not allow a claim to be initiated. Claims should be commenced within 3 years following death. It is advisable to contact Solicitors knowledgeable in this area of law in order to get the due compensation. Excalibur Solicitors will guide you through the claims process and ensure that you get the damages to which you are entitled.