NHS faces paying out £4.3billion in legal fees to settle clinical negligence claims, newly-released figures show
- The NHS receives more than 10,000 compensation claims each year
- The Department of Health has pledged to tackle the ‘unsustainable rise’
- Solicitors have said patients sue because medical authorities do not listen
The NHS faces paying £4.3billion in legal fees to settle clinical negligence claims.
The figure, which includes unsettled claims and estimates of future claims, was secured via Freedom of Information requests by the BBC.
The NHS receives more than 10,000 compensation claims each year.
The NHS receives more than 10,000 compensation claims each year (file image)
Legal bodies said the cost is driven by failures in safety and a culture in which patients’ concerns are not listened to.
The Department of Health has pledged to tackle the ‘unsustainable rise’ in the cost of clinical negligence.
Health bosses have been trying for years to tackle what they describe as a ‘compensation culture’ in the NHS.
The Department of Health has pledged to tackle the ‘unsustainable rise’ in the cost of clinical negligence (file image)
But solicitors said patients sue because medical authorities do not listen.
Suzanne White, of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, said: ‘What they want is to find out what went wrong.’
Dr Christine Tomkin, of the Medical Defence Union, which supports doctors at risk of litigation, said: ‘We are awarding compensation in sums of money higher than almost anywhere in the world.’