How To Make A Hand Injury Claim

This guide will explain the process of making a hand injury claim. Hand injuries can vary in severity and disrupt your quality of life. If your injuries were caused due to a breach of duty of care, you might be entitled to compensation.

To make a personal injury claim, you must prove you were injured due to third-party negligence. We will explain what evidence can support your case and how much compensation you may be entitled to.

Our advisors can answer any questions you may have regarding starting a hand injury claim. If we believe your claim has a good chance of success, we may be able to connect you with a No Win No Fee lawyer to start the claims process. To reach our team, use the following contact details:

hand injury claim

Hand injury claim guide

Choose A Section

  1. Guidance On Making Hand Injury Claims
  2. Calculating Compensation For An Injured Hand Claim
  3. What Is A Hand Injury?
  4. What Evidence Could Lead To You Winning Hand Injury Claims?
  5. Why Should I Appoint A No Win No Fee Lawyer?
  6. More Information On Making Hand Injury Claims

Guidance On Making Hand Injury Claims

In order to make a hand injury claim, you must be able to prove the following:

  • You were owed a duty of care
  • This was breached
  • As a result of this breach, you were injured 

Providing evidence is important to prove the duty of care you were owed was breached. You can also use evidence to show how badly you were injured. We will explore examples of evidence further on in this article.

Injuries in the hand can vary from cuts and bruises to broken bones. The NHS offers support and advice on managing hand pain. You can suffer from hand injuries at work, in road traffic accidents and in public places. We will explore the legislation that is in place to keep you safe in these environments. 

Hand injury settlements will vary in each case depending on the unique factors of your case. Contact us today to see how much your hand injury claim could be worth. Our advisors are available 24/7 to answer your questions.

Calculating Compensation For An Injured Hand Claim

There are potentially two heads of compensation you can receive in a personal injury claim. These are:

  • General damages, which compensate you for the physical and emotional pain and suffering you suffered because of your injuries. 
  • Special damages, which reimburse you for any financial losses. e.g. travel costs, loss of wages and medical bills as a result of your injuries.

You cannot claim for special damages without also claiming for general damages. This is because if you’re not awarded general damages, your injuries are not deemed to have been a result of third-party negligence. Therefore, the costs associated with your injuries are not either. 

The Judicial College Guidelines (JCG) display compensation brackets for injury compensation. Legal professionals use the JCG to value claims. We’ve included some information from the JCG that may relate to your case.

InjuryCompensationDescription
Total or Effective Loss of Both Hands£140,660 - £201,490Serious injury resulting in extensive damage to both hands, rendering them almost useless.
Serious Damage to Both Hands£55,820 - £84,570Injuries causing permanent disability and significant loss of function.
Total or Effective Loss of One Hand£96,160 - £109,650For example, where the hand was crushed and required surgical amputation or the fingers and most of the palm were amputated traumatically. 
Amputation of Index, Middle and/or Ring Fingers£61,910 - £90,750Injuries resulting in an inability to use hand and an exceedingly weak grip.
Serious Hand Injury£29,000 - £61,910Injuries will have reduced the hand to 50% capacity. Can include losing several fingers to traumatic amputation and having them sewn back on.
Severe Finger FracturesUp to £36,740Can lead to partial amputations, resulting in deformity, impaired grip and disturbance of sensation.
Less Serious Hand Injury£14,450 - £29,000Severe crushing of the hand, resulting in impaired function with no need for surgery.
Moderate Hand Injury£5,720 - £13,280Crushed hands, penetrating wounds and soft tissue damage, resulting in permanent disability.
Total and Partial Loss of Index Finger£12,170 - £18,740This bracket also covers injuries to the index finger that result in disfigurement and impaired grip.
Fractured Index Finger£9,110 - £12,240Injuries where the fracture has mended quickly, but impairment of grip remains. There is also residual pain.

Please note that the information shown is a guideline. Our advisors may be able to provide you with an estimate for your hand injury claim if you get in touch.

What Is A Hand Injury?

You could be entitled to compensation if your injuries were caused due to a breach of duty of care. There are a number of different scenarios in which a duty of care applies. 

The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 states that your employer owes you a duty of care to take all reasonable steps to ensure your safety. If they fail to train staff, don’t provide PPE or neglect to maintain good housekeeping, you can be injured. For example, you may be hit by a moving object because of a lack of machinery maintenance or injure yourself in a manual handling accident due to a lack of training.

All road users owe each other a duty of care. To prevent road traffic accidents, all road users should follow the rules and guidance in the Highway Code. Furthermore, the Road Traffic Act 1988 establishes the duty of care that road users owe one another. Failure to upkeep this duty of care can result in accidents ranging from relatively minor to fatal car accidents. For example, road users should ensure that they follow road signs and markings, obey the speed limit and don’t drive under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. 

The relevant party in control of a public place (such as the local council or owner of a shop) owes you a duty of care. This is outlined in the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957. They should take steps to remove or reduce hazard that poses a risk to members of the public. Injuries can occur in restaurants, swimming pools and street pavements if risks aren’t assessed, and steps aren’t taken to manage hazards. 

For more information on whether you have a valid hand injury claim, speak with an advisor today.

What Evidence Could Lead To You Winning Hand Injury Claims?

Your first priority after sustaining your injuries should be to receive medical attention. This could improve your chances of recovery and provide you with supporting medical evidence for your hand injury claim. For example, hospital reports, doctors’ notes and prescriptions could all be used to support your case.

Without evidence, you may not succeed in claiming a hand injury settlement. Examples of relevant evidence can include:

  • CCTV footage of the accident
  • The record of the accident in the accident report book (if your accident happened at work)
  • The contact details of witnesses that can support your claim with a statement
  • Photographs of the scene of the accident and of your injuries as they heal

You may be required to attend an independent medical assessment to further support your claim. This can validate the severity of your injuries and increase your settlement total. A personal injury lawyer from our panel can help you organise this in your local area if you choose to work with them. 

We also recommend that you seek legal advice in anticipation of making a hand injury claim. Our team can offer you free legal advice with no pressure to continue your claim with us.

Why Should I Appoint A No Win No Fee Lawyer?

If you would like to work with a lawyer on your claim but are concerned about the cost, you might benefit from a No Win No Fee agreement. A popular form of this kind of arrangement is a Conditional Fee Agreement. 

Claiming with a Conditional Fee Agreement in place allows you the benefits of legal representation without any upfront fees. There is also nothing to pay for the duration of your claim. 

In the event that you’re successful in being awarded a hand injury settlement, your lawyer will require a small percentage of your reward as a success fee. All the conditions of a No Win No Fee agreement will be disclosed to you by your lawyer before you agree to anything. 

If you lose your claim, then you don’t have to pay your lawyer for the work they have done. This kind of arrangement means that you will never be asked to make large ongoing payments to your lawyer with no guarantee of a settlement.

Contact our team today to speak to a No Win No Fee lawyer. If our advisors believe your claim has a chance of success, we can put you through to a lawyer from our panel.

Get Advice On Making Hand Injury Claims

To start your hand injury claim, contact our team using the following contact details:

More Information On Making Hand Injury Claims

We’ve included some external links that may be useful:

The NHS offer support and guidance for coping with a broken arm or wrist. 

The Department for Transport produced a report on road casualties in Great Britain in 2020.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) offers advice on preventing workplace accidents. They also provide statistics on injuries at work.

For more information on personal injury claims, see the following links to more of our articles:

Thank you for reading our guide on making hand injury claims. We hope it has helped.

Writer Jess Angel

Publisher Fern Stewart