When making a claim for compensation, you can claim for the care and assistance given to you by your friends and family. Care and assistance can be claimed for as long as it is above the standard care which is usually expected; meaning it would have to be more than the usually household chores.
Examples of care and assistance:
- Feeding and Cooking you because you cannot do it yourself.
- Personal hygiene and assisting when getting washed or dressed because you cannot do it yourself.
- Taking the individual to and from medical appointments or for treatment etc.
- Carrying out general household tasks such as cleaning, shopping and childcare duties
A claim can also be made for the expenses experienced by those caring for you. Those caring for you may incur petrol and parking costs when taking you to and from your appointments, or may incur costs for shopping when helping with your household chores.
Care and assistance can be accounted for and added to the total amount of compensation received by the injured person. The person providing the care and assistance cannot bring a claim on their own behalf.
Care and assistance is calculated on an hourly rate and is calculated by looking at the time spent looking after the injured person. The cost of care is calculated by looking at the cost of the professional care rates in your local area. Obviously the rate is then lowered so not to include the profit added by those providing care professionally. The average hourly rate of care and assistance which can be claimed is around £6.50. You will need to inform us of the number of hours you family and friends have spent caring for you, this will then be given a hourly rate and we will work out an financial total for the care provided.
If you have been receiving care and assistance professionally as a result of accident, we would need to look at the invoices, and the expenses incurred, to which may be able to claim back on your behalf.