GP negligence claims
Trusted legal support for patients affected by mistakes or failings in GP care.
General practitioners (GPs) are responsible for providing routine healthcare to their registered patients, arranging tests and investigations, and referring to specialist doctors when a patient is showing signs or symptoms of a potentially serious illness.
Increasingly, GPs are required to make quick decisions about their patients’ diagnoses, referral needs and treatment. When delays or mistakes by a GP or their practice staff results in serious harm to a patient, we can help the patient obtain the compensation they need to manage their disability and its consequences through a GP negligence claim.
- Nationally recognised medical negligence specialists with decades of experience
- Access to leading medical experts and rehabilitation professionals
- Proven track record of securing life-changing compensation for families
- Dedicated support from initial enquiry through to settlement
- No upfront costs and claim through a no win no fee agreement
GP negligence claims
Brain injury negligence
Cancer negligence
Diabetic amputation claims
Cauda equina syndrome
Tuberculosis
Sepsis negligence
Meningitis claims
Cardiac and heart negligence
Starting your GP negligence claim
For more than 30 years, Boyes Turner’s medical negligence solicitors have guided severely injured patients through the claims process to secure the compensation and specialist support that they need to manage their disability and rebuild their lives.
You can contact us by telephone or by email for free, confidential advice from a medical negligence solicitor. We will ask you to tell us briefly about your injury and your medical care, and advise you about your time limits and whether we can help you investigate your claim. Once our investigations confirm you have grounds for a claim, we will notify the GP who was responsible for your care (usually represented by NHS Resolution) on your behalf and invite them to respond, giving them an opportunity to admit liability (responsibility for your injuries) before court proceedings are issued.
If liability is admitted, we will obtain a judgment from the court and apply for a substantial interim payment to meet your needs arising from your injury and disability. If the GP or their legal representatives at NHS Resolution deny liability, we will advise you about the best way to proceed your claim. This may involve issuing court proceedings or inviting NHS Resolution to enter into settlement negotiations or mediation.
No win, no fee
No hidden or upfront costs. Clear, straightforward advice. Nothing to pay unless your claim is successful.
Over 30 years’ experience
We have helped thousands of clients claim compensation.
Fully regulated
Authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.
GP negligence claims FAQs
What is a GP or general practitioner?
A general practitioner or GP is a community-based doctor who advises and treats people for minor and chronic illnesses. GPs provide routine healthcare to their registered patients and are often the first doctor that patients consult when they have healthcare problems which need referral to hospital or to a specialist for treatment. GP healthcare is also known as primary care.
What is the GP's role in a patient's healthcare?
An important part of the GP’s role is recognising when a patient is experiencing symptoms or showing signs of a serious illness that cannot be treated by the GP. It is their responsibility to arrange for the patient to be seen by the right type of hospital doctor or surgeon, within the correct timescale for the injury – e.g. urgently or routinely – and to provide accurate information to the hospital specialist about why they think the patient needs their help. They may also refer the patient to a hospital for tests or investigations, such as x-rays or scans.
In emergency situations, a GP may call an ambulance to take the patient directly to hospital or tell the patient’s family to take them immediately to A&E. Where a GP sends a patient directly to hospital, they will often advise the hospital of their concerns about the patient’s health and the reason for emergency admission or treatment.
When a patient leaves hospital, the GP receives information from the hospital about the patient’s treatment and ongoing needs. They may be responsible for following up the patient, explaining test results to them, ordering future tests, or prescribing medicines. Even after a patient has been seen in hospital, the GP may need to refer the patient back to hospital if, in their professional opinion, the patient needs further specialist treatment.
What is GP negligence?
General practitioners must ensure that the healthcare treatment, advice, and services they provide to their patients meet acceptable standards of care. They are also responsible for the actions of the practice staff they employ, such as nurses or nurse practitioners, locum doctors or receptionists.
When GP care fails to meet these standards and their negligent mistakes cause serious injury to a patient, the patient can claim compensation for their injury and its financial consequences via a GP negligence claim.
What mistakes can lead to a GP negligence claim?
A patient may have a claim against a GP if they suffer avoidable serious injury which was caused by one or more of the following mistakes in their GP care:
- failing to examine a patient and note their medical history and symptoms;
- failing to consider their medical history or other conditions when making a diagnosis;
- delay or failure to recognise and act on red flag warning signs and symptoms;
- delay or failure to refer a patient to hospital or for specialist review, tests or treatment;
- failure to order necessary tests and investigations;
- communication, follow up and safety-netting advice errors;
- medication and prescribing errors;
- treatment errors.
What injuries can lead to GP negligence compensation claims?
Our medical negligence solicitors recover outstanding compensation settlements for clients who have suffered serious, permanent disability as a result of GP negligence. Our clients’ GP negligence claims often involve negligent treatment which has led to severe disability from the following conditions:
- cauda equina syndrome (CES) or spinal cord/nerve compression;
- infection, such as tuberculosis (TB), meningitis, sepsis, and encephalitis;
- diabetic complications, including foot problems leading to amputation;
- venous thromboembolism (VTE) and ischaemia;
- cancer;
- head or brain injury, brain haemorrhage and aneurysm;
- cardiac (heart) problems;
- fetal anti-convulsant syndrome (FACS) or valproate injury.
Who pays the compensation for GP negligence?
Most medical negligence claims against a GP are now defended or settled in the same way as NHS hospital negligence claims, by the NHS’s defence organisation, NHS Resolution.
NHS Resolution’s Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice (CNSGP) covers GPs for any compensation they are ordered to pay to an injured patient as settlement for a negligence claim. Medical negligence claims against anyone employed by the GP’s practice to provide NHS medical services are also covered under the CNSGP scheme and are defended in the same way by NHS Resolution.
Occasionally, a GP may be represented in a claim by their own defence organisation (claims insurer), such as when the claim arises from private (non-NHS) care.
Where more than one GP in the same practice was negligent, for example, where the patient saw several doctors about their symptoms before their medical condition was diagnosed, we identify and notify the defence organisation for each GP, to ensure that our client receives their full compensation. In all medical negligence cases, we investigate our clients’ medical care carefully and thoroughly and advise our clients about which doctor(s) or healthcare organisation(s) should be named as defendant(s) to provide the best possible outcome for their claim.
Making a GP negligence claim
We understand how daunting it can feel to take the first step. Our specialist medical negligence solicitors are here to guide you through every stage.
Getting in touch
Call us or complete our online enquiry form for free, confidential advice from a specialist GP negligence solicitor. We will listen to your concerns, explain your options, and advise whether we can investigate if mistakes or delays in your GP care caused avoidable harm.
Your GP negligence claim
Our solicitors will review your medical records, instruct independent experts, and investigate whether your GP provided appropriate assessment, diagnosis, treatment or referral. Where negligence is identified, we can build a strong claim and, where appropriate, seek an interim payment to help meet immediate care and rehabilitation needs.
Securing compensation
Contact us
If you would like advice regarding a serious injury or illness affecting you or a loved one, please complete the form and one of our experts will be in touch as soon as possible.
Rather give us a call:
Kevin had diabetes and a history of foot problems, including reduced sensation (neuropathy) and ulceration. This meant that he was at increased risk of losing his feet from complications when he suffered a minor injury. His amputation followed multiple missed opportunities by practitioners at his GP surgery and a hospital radiology (x-ray) department to refer him for specialist foot care and to diagnose his condition.
Kevin’s claim included compensation for his pain and suffering, partial loss of earnings, extra care, increased accommodation costs, equipment, and therapies. Prior to settlement, interim payments paid for bespoke prosthetic limbs, including a water activity limb, enabling him to return to his former hobby of kayaking.
I couldn’t have wished for a better partner. The journey with Julie was interesting! The team that was assembled certainly knew their stuff, which meant I got all the necessary support to keep going. Thank you all.
Our GP negligence claims
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£1.75 million settlement for cauda equina syndrome (CES) after negligent safety netting and treatment delays
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£1,330,000 settlement for patient with cauda equina syndrome (CES)
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£1.3 million settlement for below-knee amputee who did not receive multidisciplinary foot care
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£250,000 settlement in fatal claim after two GPs misdiagnose malignant melanoma as verruca
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£265,000 settlement for woman’s bereaved family after GP and hospital delayed diagnosis and treatment of cervical cancer
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£800,000 compensation settlement after GP fails to diagnose cauda equina syndrome
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£400,000 compensation recovered after delay in diagnosis of cauda equina syndrome
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Liability admission and £50,000 interim payment after delayed diagnosis of bowel cancer
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Settlement after delayed retinopathy treatment leads to severe sight loss
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Judgment for child who suffered a stroke after GP delays in treatment of neonatal infection
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Liability admission after ‘safety netting’ failure delays diagnosis after ‘red flag’ symptoms of cauda equina (CES)
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£70,000 settlement after negligent contraceptive prescription causes pulmonary embolism (PE)
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£750,000 settlement after GP and district nurses’ failure to refer for post-surgical infection leads to amputation
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Cauda equina syndrome: Judgment after out-of-hours doctor admits failing to examine patient
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Our clients receive the highest standards of advice and representation and are always treated with compassion, outstanding care and understanding of the physical, emotional, psychological and financial impact that life-changing injury can have upon their lives.
- We are nationally acclaimed for our claimant medical negligence expertise and the outstanding results we achieve for our clients.
- We are ranked as leading clinical negligence experts in the Chambers Directory and Legal 500 guides to the legal profession and are accredited for our specialist expertise by the Law Society, AvMA, and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL).
- Our integrated multidisciplinary team offers our clients a full range of specialist help with compensation, rehabilitation, SEN, deputyship, personal injury trusts and community care.
- We secure maximum compensation in claims for adults and children who have suffered catastrophic injury and severe disability, and provide practical support for their families.
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HSIB warns diagnosis and treatment of life-threatening conditions may be delayed by NHS communication failures
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Five of the most common claims that we see against GPs
Leading medical negligence solicitors for over 30 years
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