At Mooneerams Solicitors, we only handle personal injury claims. Most of these involve physical injuries, like broken bones, head and spinal injuries, burns, scarring, back injuries, neck injuries and a host of other types of bodily injury.
It’s understandable and often imperative that in the immediate aftermath of an accident, the injured party focuses on seeking medical help for their physical injuries.
But what about the psychological effects of accidents or incidents caused by someone else’s negligence? Why don’t we hear so much about them? After all, psychological injuries are no lesser injuries than broken arms or legs, and they often take longer to recover from, too.
Why are the psychological effects of being involved in an accident often ignored?
When someone suffers a catastrophic life-changing injury due to an accident, it soon becomes apparent that they are suffering from psychological trauma as well. If someone suffers life-changing physical injuries, it stands to reason they are likely to suffer psychologically, too.
However, when a person suffers less severe injuries, the psychological effects may not be so apparent.
Even the injured party may not recognise the symptoms of anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as being anything other than the ‘normal shock and shaking up’ expected after being involved in a road accident or a slip, trip and fall accident.
As a result, the person affected may dismiss the symptoms of serious mental health conditions, such as anxiety or PTSD, as something that will simply go away given time.
The truth is that psychological illness will not, of its own volition, disappear. Instead, the symptoms usually get worse, and without appropriate medical treatment, so does the person’s ability to cope with everyday life.
A study by the British Medical Journal found there was a high prevalence of psychological disorders in hospital A&E patients admitted for treatment as a result of physical injury sustained in an accident. The study also failed to identify any relationship between the severity of the bodily injury and the psychological injury. In other words, the physical injury doesn’t have to be serious for psychological issues to develop.
It’s often the case that those who suffer both physical and psychological injuries in an accident recover from their physical injury before they do from their psychological condition. Medical research found that a year after suffering the bodily injury, as many as two-thirds of people surveyed reported that they were still suffering from diagnosed depression or anxiety.
What types of psychological injuries are most common after accidents
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a serious mental health condition and can develop from being involved in a traumatic event, such as a road traffic accident, an accident at work or even from what may seem an innocuous slip, trip and fall accident. It can also be caused by witnessing a distressing event.
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Adjustment disorder
- Depression adjustment disorder
- Phobias
- Flashbacks or nightmares
- Anxiety
- Insomnia
- Suicidal thoughts
What are the common symptoms of psychological illness?
- Trouble sleeping
- Nightmares
- Misuse of alcohol or drugs
- Hypervigilance: being overly alert
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Feelings of despair and lack of hope
- Worrying constantly
- Loss of interest in everyday activities
- Difficulty completing daily tasks
What types of accidents or incidents cause psychological injuries?
- Road traffic accident
- Accident at work
- Assaults at work
- Accidents in public places
- Assault in a bar or nightclub
- Care home neglect
- Serious or catastrophic accident
- Medical negligence
How are psychological illnesses diagnosed?
Psychological injuries are diagnosed using structured methods that involve mental health professionals and various assessments.
Initial Assessment
The diagnosis of psychological injuries usually starts with an initial assessment, which may involve:
- General Practitioner (GP) consultation: Often the first point of contact, GPs can perform preliminary assessments and refer patients to specialists.
- Screening questionnaires: Tools like the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) or the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) are used to assess the severity of symptoms.
Consultation with a Specialist
Mental health professionals, such as clinical psychologists or psychiatrists, will conduct more in-depth assessments with the patient to assess the type and level of psychological injury affecting the patient.
Can I claim compensation for psychological injuries?
You can claim for psychological injuries in the same way you can claim for physical injuries following an accident or incident caused by the negligence of another party.
Accordingly, you must prove the accident or incident in question caused the psychological injury and that another party was responsible.
You will need to demonstrate that:
- The party you blame for the accident owned you a duty of care
- They breached that duty of care
- There was a direct link between the breach and your psychological injury
To prove all this may involve getting witness statements, reviewing CCTV footage, and obtaining expert opinions on industry standards and practices. What kind of evidence will be required depends on the type of incident involved.
Should I get a personal injury solicitor to handle my psychological injury claim?
The prospect of trying to pursue your own psychological injury claim can be daunting. Psychological injury claims can be hard to prove as insurers will not readily accept these claims without staunch medical evidence to support them.
If there was ever a case for getting an experienced personal injury solicitor to handle a compensation case, it’s when you want to pursue a psychological injury claim.
Mooneerams Solicitors only handles personal injury claims and specialises in complex injury cases such as psychological injury claims. Using a top firm of personal injury solicitors like Mooneerams doesn’t have to be costly in terms of legal fees. Mooneerams handles most psychological injury cases using No Win No Fee arrangements, so you only pay them a fee (which is capped) if you win your case. If you don’t win, you don’t pay anything.
Getting medical evidence to support your psychological injury claim
To prove your injury claim, your solicitor will arrange for you to undergo a ‘medico-legal’ examination or assessment with an expert psychologist or psychiatrist who will then prepare a report on the type and extent of psychological injury you have suffered.
The medical expert will also explain any link between your psychological and physical injuries and prove how and why the accident or incident caused your injuries. Crucially, they will express their views on the possible long-term effects of your injuries and the pain and suffering you have experienced.
Can I claim compensation for both physical and psychological injuries in the same claim proceedings?
You can claim for both physical and psychological injuries caused by the same accident or incident. If you suffered no physical injury in the accident but suffered psychological injuries, you can claim for that alone.
How much compensation will I get for a psychological injury?
It is difficult and dangerous to second guess the level of compensation you will receive in any personal injury claim. It is difficult because psychological or psychiatric injuries are very personal to the individual sufferer. Such conditions will never affect two people in the same way. It’s dangerous for the same reason because relying on guideline figures without the full facts can lead to disappointment if the sum awarded is much less than you thought!
The amount of compensation you receive in any injury claim depends on:
- The severity of your symptoms
- The impact of the symptoms on your daily life
- Whether your symptoms have prevented you from working
- The long-term prognosis for your psychological injury
The Judicial College Guidelines indicate the general damages (compensation) you could get for pain, suffering and loss of amenity in a successful psychological injury claim. The figures quoted are only guideline awards for psychiatric damage generally and for PTSD.
Psychiatric Damage Generally
| Severe | £66000 to £141,240 |
| Moderately Severe | £23,270 to £66,920 |
| Moderate | £7,150 to £23,270 |
| Less Severe | £1,880 to £7,150 |
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
| Severe | £73,050 to £122,850 |
| Moderately Severe | £28,250 to £73,050 |
| Moderate | £9,980 to £28,250 |
| Less Severe | £4,820 to £9,980 |
In addition to general damages for pain and suffering, your claim may include special damages for loss of earnings, the cost of private medical treatment or consultations, travel expenses (to visit medical professionals), care costs and any other losses you suffer due to your psychological injury.
Contact Mooneerams Solicitors
Mooneerams head office is in Cardiff, but we have satellite offices in Aberdare, Bridgend, Bristol, Caerphilly, Cardiff Bay, London, Merthyr Tydfil, Newport, Pontypridd and Swansea.
Contact us now on 029 2048 3615 if you would like to discuss the possibility of making a psychological injury claim following an accident or incident caused by another party. All calls to us are confidential and you will not need to take the matter any further unless you wish to do so.
