It's difficult to put a value on a person's health, and a serious illness or injury can often be life-altering for the individual concerned. At times like these, the patient may put a lot of their faith in the medical profession and will trust that the doctor or surgeon can help them to get back on the road to recovery. However, professionals can occasionally make a mistake, advise the wrong course of treatment or otherwise cause the situation to become worse. Their actions may cause the suffering patient to lose a lot more work, rack up a great deal more expenditure and agonise about the future. Surely, their insurance company should pay dearly for this type of negligence, but could this be a lengthy and drawn-out procedure?

Being Prepared

Unfortunately, this type of process is rarely simple and may indeed drag on for months, if not years. Nevertheless, this is not a reason to back down and accept what has happened, as, after all, you may have to rely on compensation to help pay for your long-term recovery. You do need to understand how the process works and what could be involved.

Establishing a Case

To begin with, your solicitor will need to begin gathering evidence to put forward a case that supports a claim. They will need to determine exactly what has happened and show with conviction that the injury or damage was caused by negligence. They will need copies of all the relevant clinical information and may need to bring in an expert to give an impartial opinion on the situation. Don't expect this process to be streamlined, as the hospital or facility may well take time to come forward.

Detailing the Injuries

Once you have ascertained that there is an arguable claim, your solicitor will need to carefully describe the extent of the damage or injury caused. This will involve a full examination by an impartial doctor, who will be able to advise how these injuries could affect your life in the future. It can sometimes take weeks or months to set up this type of examination, however.

Arbitration

You may need to start court proceedings in order to focus the attention of the insurance company. There may well follow a process of arbitration to see if you can negotiate a settlement. These negotiations can also take months to unfold, but hopefully they will help you to achieve your outcome.

Before the Court

If not, the full case will have to go before the court and need to be scheduled well in advance. All parties involved have to coordinate their time so that they can give evidence. Once again, you might have to wait for up to a year for that date.

Help in Your Corner

Even though this can be a lengthy process, it's important that you proceed as strongly as possible. You need support from a compensation lawyer at every stage so you can shortcut as much of the process as you can.