In these difficult financial times, most public sector services are spread thin. There’s an insane amount of potholes littering our roads as local authorises cannot keep up with the sheer volume of defects popping up in the road; school classrooms are become increasingly overcrowded; and people are being let down by NHS care professionals.

Now I want it to be known that I’m not ‘having a go’ at the majority of NHS staff who work unsociable hours and under significant amounts of pressure to provide the level of care that is expected of them. They’re fighting an uphill battle to keep on top of trying to put everyone’s needs first. I’ve been hospitalised, and during the six days in total I was there, it was clear to see how difficult it was for the nursing staff to keep up with the demand from patients.

But sadly, with falls in the level of expected care, comes an increase in the amount of people pursuing claims for compensation against the NHS. We live in an age now where people are much more confident about voicing their opinions when they feel the level of care received has been below standard. Complaints and claims against the NHS are therefore on the increase‘.
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Cosmetic surgery in general is a common thing for people to undertake. Breast implants in particular are very common nowadays, with prices in the region of £5,000 from the private sector. All invasive surgery carries with it potential risks, and breast implant claims come with the same risks most surgery comes with. But aside from the inherent risks, you are putting yourself in danger of suffering due to negligence.

With the PIP breast implant scandal still ongoing, we learned a great deal about just how unregulated the cosmetic surgery industry is here in the UK. A total of around 40,000 women in the UK alone are thought to have received the implants privately, which were filled with none medical grade standard silicon and are likely to rupture. Apparently, for almost a decade nobody knew that the PIP Company were putting people’s lives in danger.

So when you go for cosmetic surgery, there are serious risks and unknowns that you should always consider. How do you know that the implants you are being given are safe? How do you know that your surgeon is going to do a good job? Given the poor regulation in the industry, at present, you don’t. So what happens when things go wrong?
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We take on a lot of claims involving accidents in and around swimming pools. The combination of water and a hard surface can usually lead to people suffering some potentially serious injuries. Fractures are extremely common in these sorts of circumstances.

So if you do have an accident involving a swimming pool, can you claim, and who is responsible?

Generally speaking these claims fall within the realm of the Occupiers Liability Act. This stipulates that the occupier of a premises has an underlying duty to take all reasonable steps to prevent injury from occurring on the premises they are in control of. So if it is a swimming pool in a leisure centre, then the owners of the leisure centre have the responsibility. If it’s in a hotel, then the hotel owners have the responsibility.

Slipping is an obvious hazard. It’s difficult to control this kind of thing given that water is bound to end up on the floor nearby a pool. Normally signs will be deployed to warn people of the danger of slipping and to warn people never to run. Mats could be used between doorways (say between the changing rooms and the pool area) to also help combat the problem. If you slip over in a swimming pool , whether you have a claim or not boils down to whether the owners can prove they have taken all reasonable steps to prevent the accident. To win a claim, we still must prove negligence and breach of law.
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Given how difficult it is to secure a mortgage in this tremendous credit crunch we’ve been suffering from for what feels like an eternity, a lot of people nowadays, particularly the younger generations, are renting. Granted, when you think about it, it’s kind of a waste of money as your hard earned cash isn’t being invested in anything. But there are a few bonuses to the renting game.

When you rent, the responsibility for a lot of factors to do with the property fall on your landlord. Whilst it is probably part of the agreed terms in your contract that you are responsible for the upkeep of furniture and certain fittings, things like utilities comes down to your landlord (aside from paying for them!)

This means that there is a duty on your landlord to PAT test any portable electrical items that come as part of the agreed let, and sockets, fuses, generators, and anything else electrical related falls within their responsibility. It’s prudent for your landlord to therefore have a system of inspection and maintenance in place. This can be a simple callout on a regular enough basis for an electrician to come out and inspect the premises.
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Tens of thousands of UK residents choose to have cosmetic surgery every year. The industry is fairly unregulated, as we came to understand from the PIP breast augmentation scandal from 2012. Each year thousands of people end up turning to lawyers because they want to make a claim for compensation for cosmetic surgery gone wrong.

In this article, we’re going to talk about nose surgery (rhinoplasty) compensation claims.

I can understand why some people may want to have a nose job. The nose is one of the most prominent parts of the face, and ultimately an ugly or badly distinguished nose can literally transform a good looking person in to a not so good looking person. It seems obvious that the end result is not always what people are after; cast your memory back to Michael Jackson’s nose, or take a look at Lil’ Kim’s.  But with any cosmetic surgery procedure, things can so easily go wrong.

Here are some classic examples of problems that can be caused by cosmetic surgery negligence:
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The above terms, liposculpture and liposuction, essentially mean the same thing. We are of course talking about a medical procedure whereby fat is suctioned from the body. The fat is removed from the area between the skin and muscular area of the body. This is ordinarily a cosmetic procedure to improve a person’s appearance, usually around the stomach area. Some medical professionals use the two terms to mean slightly different things. For example liposuction is used to remove excess fat and liposculpture is used to remove a lesser amount of fat and is more concentrated in reshaping the fat to improve appearance. Others say the term “liposculpture” is used as a marketing term and that both procedures refer to the same thing.

Before undertaking any form of surgery, your surgeon should explain in full any potential risks or side effects that may occur. When opting for surgery you should always be making an informed decision. No surgical procedure is risk free and sometimes the potential risks could become a reality. So when it comes to making a claim, it really comes down to whether an actual mistake has been made either practically, or arising from advice given to you about potential risks of the procedure.
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Many cancer claims arise as a result of a misdiagnosis or wrongful diagnosis. Cancer is of course a very serious, potentially life threatening condition in any event. Diagnosis and early diagnosis is often key in the patient making a full and complete recovery. Any delay in diagnosis could have huge consequential effects for the patient and his or her family.

When life is at stake, claiming compensation is probably not something you think of. But if you have wrongfully suffered as a result of a wrong diagnosis or there has been undue delay in your treatment, then you may have a genuine claim for compensation.

There are a number of situations which could give rise to a compensation claim, and a claim could fall within the realm of a normal personal injury claim or a clinical negligence claim.
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We live in a world where appearance is everything. We also live in a world where science and medicine have developed to such an extent that suffering from even the most severe injuries can still lead to surgeons putting you in a position with a fairly good quality of life (I’ve had my knee pretty much entirely reconstructed; rewind a hundred years ago, I’d have had it amputated!)

So when you combine the need for looking great with the technology we have today, cosmetic surgery is now increasingly popular amongst anyone with enough of a disposable income to afford it. It is now so readily available that it isn’t just the celebs that are having work doesn’t to look as good as possible. In fact, many people take out loans or use credit to be able to afford cosmetic surgery.
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When you go under the knife to have cosmetic surgery your surgeon or his/her team should fully explain all of the risks with the procedure. You will no doubt be aware that every operation carries all kinds of inherent risks. There are general risks of pain, chronic pain, scarring, infection etc that are fairly common in most procedures. Even the general risks, which apply to probably all operations can develop and lead to significant injuries and even death. Unfortunately all operations, however minor, carry an element of risk. You do have the right to be notified of the risks in full and the likelihood of the risk actually occurring. Even with cosmetic surgery, you may be entitled to make a claim should things go wrong. This is a specialised area of law and it is therefore essential that you speak to a legal specialist that deals in this kind of work.

Many of these types of claims are often to do with botox or beauty treatment. However claims could be made in respect of any cosmetic surgery should things go wrong; despite the fact the procedure is cosmetic. If you are not happy with the cosmetic surgery or you have been left in undue pain or you have been left with injuries, or if you were not correctly advised about any potential risks / side effects, you may have a genuine claim for compensation.
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In recent years, the number of horror stories about the quality of nursing home and nursing care workers has been explosive. I’ve seen loads of TV programs and read loads of articles about nursing care staff who just don’t seem to care at all about the patients, and even staff stealing and mistreating those in need of the care.

It’s a scary thought – especially for anyone with friends or relatives in a care home.

As a firm of specialist personal injury lawyers, we deal with all sorts of different claims for compensation. We represent victims for compensation against the NHS or private care homes if the care provided is inadequate or negligent. Common examples are failing to properly care for people, such as neglecting basic food, water, and sanitation needs, which can cause a range of health complications to already vulnerable people. Another example could be failing to properly medicate residents, which could lead to existing health problems getting worse.
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