What is Legionnaires disease?
Legionnaires disease is a very bad type of pneumonia. It is a type of lung infection caused by a bacterium called legionella. Sometimes the disease is so bad it can cause death.
What are the early signs and symptoms?
Legionnaires disease usually starts to develop from two to ten days after a person has been exposed to the bacteria. The early signs and symptoms of Legionnaires disease include:
- headaches
- a very high fever, sometimes over 40 c
- muscle aches and pains
Other symptoms of Legionnaires disease include:
- coughing, including coughing blood
- shortness of breath
- vomiting
- diarrhoea
- tiredness
- mental changes
- headaches
- abdominal pain
- pneumonia
- confusion
What are the common causes of legionnaires disease?
Legionnaires disease is caused by breathing in droplets of contaminated water. The contaminated water contains very dangerous levels of legionella pneumophila bacteria and once in the lungs, these droplets multiply. You can also get legionnaires disease by drinking contaminated water.
Where might I contract Legionnaires disease?
There are various places where you might contract legionnaires disease. For example, legionnaires disease can be contracted in a workplace where the water pipes or water systems are poorly maintained. Common places to contract legionnaires disease are in buildings which are shared by many people. For example, you can contract legionnaires disease in:
- hotels
- hospitals
- cruise ships
- nursing homes
- offices
The contaminated water droplets can also be found in, for example:
- hot tubs
- pools
- air conditioning systems
- cooling towers
- evaporative condensers
- whirlpool spas
- gyms
- taps and showers which are not often used
- humidifiers
- hot water tanks and heaters
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View profileMeet the teamHow can Legionnaires disease infections be prevented?
Legionnaires disease infections can be prevented by ensuring water pipes and water systems are kept clean. For example, employers can do this in their workplaces. Employers can help prevent legionnaires disease infections by abiding by the Health and Safety laws in place specifically for this disease. For example by:
- carrying out regular risk assessments
- ensuring water temperatures are set at certain levels
- fixing faulty systems immediately
- ensuring staff are trained about the disease and given information
What are the potential health risks?
There are many potential health risks with legionnaires disease, and sadly this includes death. A serious potential health risk with Legionnaires disease is that a person develops pneumonia. Legionnaires disease can affect other parts of the body, causing serious health risks such as:
- wound infections
- abnormal kidney functions or acute kidney failure
- abnormal liver functions
- abnormal electrolyte levels
- affecting the heart
- septic shock
- respiratory failure
Can I make a Legionnaires disease compensation claim?
Can I make a Legionnaires disease compensation claim?
You might be able to make a Legionnaires disease compensation claim if you have suffered from Legionnaires disease and it was not your fault. For example, if your employer was at fault or they or someone else was negligent. You may be able to make a legionnaire disease compensation claim through your employer if they fail to carry out their legal duty to keep you safe at work and as a result, you get legionnaires disease.
Claiming legionnaires disease is not limited to claiming against your employer. Instead, you may be able to make a claim where:
- it was the fault of another
- that person or body has a legal duty of care towards you
- they act negligently so break their duty of care
Can I claim against a hotel or restaurant?
Can I claim against a hotel or restaurant?
You can potentially make a claim for legionnaires disease against a hotel or restaurant. Hotels, for example, have a responsibility towards your health so if they are at fault, you may be able to make a compensation claim.
You could also potentially make a legionnaire compensation claim from:
- your landlord
- a local council
- someone who owns a private business
Am I able to claim it if I contracted Legionnaires abroad?
Am I able to claim it if I contracted Legionnaires abroad?
If you contract legionnaires disease whilst abroad travelling, for example, if you travel abroad on a package holiday there are laws which protect you. In this instance, you may be able to make a compensation claim from your tour operator. If it was not a package holiday as such, an insurer may be able to pay your claim.
Can I make a Legionnaires compensation claim against my employer?
Can I make a Legionnaires compensation claim against my employer?
You may be able to make a Legionnaires disease compensation claim against your employer if your employer was at fault in terms of you contracting the disease. This is because your employer has a legal duty of care towards you in terms of your health and safety. They must do all that is reasonable to keep you well and safe. In terms of legionnaires disease, they are under further legal obligations to protect you from contracting this. If your employer is negligent, they breach their legal duties and you may win compensation.
Will my job be at risk if I file a claim?
Will my job be at risk if I file a claim?
If you make a compensation claim against your employer, you might worry that your job will be at risk. However, your employer has a legal duty to ensure that you are safe when you work and are not allowed to sack you just because you make a compensation claim. If they do, we suggest you speak to an employment lawyer as you could make an employment claim against them.
Can I claim Legionnaire's compensation on a family member's behalf?
Can I claim Legionnaire's compensation on a family member's behalf?
Unfortunately, legionnaire disease has a 10% mortality rate so you may have lost a loved one due to the disease. However, it can be possible to make a legionnaire compensation claim on a family member's behalf. You can also potentially make a legionnaires compensation claim on behalf of your:
- child
- someone who does not have the mental capacity to do so.
How much compensation might I get for contracting Legionnaires disease?
How much compensation might I get for contracting Legionnaires disease?
You may wonder how much compensation you might get for contracting legionnaires disease. Well, there is no set amount you can receive. Instead, it depends on your circumstances. How much personal injury compensation you might get depends on, for example:
- the extent of the effect of the disease on you, such as on your everyday life
- the amount of earnings lost
- changes you have had to make to your everyday life
- any medical expenses you have had to pay
For example, if legionnaire disease seriously affects you, you may get compensation of around £24,950 up to £48,080. However, if the disease affects you in a minor way, you might get compensation from around £4,240 to £15,860.
How is Legionnaires disease compensation calculated?
How is Legionnaires disease compensation calculated?
Legionnaires disease compensation is calculated according to how the disease has affected your life. This includes general damage for your pain and the way you suffered as well as special damages which cover financial issues such as financial loss and expenses made.
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What would the compensation be used for?
Claiming compensation for legionnaires disease can mean you have money to use for a range of things. For example, you can use it to:
- cover lost earnings
- pay your expenses for travel for medical reasons
- treatment you need as a result of the diseases.
Can I make a no-win fee Legionnaires disease claim?
You may be able to make a compensation claim for legionnaires disease with us at National Accident Helpline on a no-win no-fee basis. No-win no-fee means you take no financial risk when you make an injury and accident claim as you don't pay any upfront fees.
How long do I have to start my claim?
As with any personal injury claim, there is a specific timeframe you must make your legionnaires disease compensation injury claim in. This is three years from the date you contracted legionnaires disease. Or you can make it within three years of the date of knowledge. This is the date you realise that you contracted legionnaires disease.
How long do Legionnaires disease compensation claims take to settle?
There is no specific time taken to process a personal injury claim process and this is the same for a legionnaires disease compensation claim. Instead, each compensation claim will depend on various issues such as, for example:
- the length of time it takes to gather all the evidence
- whether or not the other party admits they are at fault
- how complicated is your claim is
Will I have to go to court?
Many people worry when they make a personal injury claim, that they will have to go to court. However, it is unusual for a compensation claim to reach court even though you may receive a court date as part of the claim process. This is because the other party may admit liability beforehand, so agree they are at fault. Typically, only 5% of our personal injury claims reach court.
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View profileMeet the teamHow can National Accident Helpline's Legionnaires disease lawyers help?
Our specialised solicitors have expertise in legionnaires disease compensation claims so are best placed to get you the compensation you may be due.
Let us at National Accident Helpline help you by calling today. Or request a call back here if it's easier. You may be curious, like many others are, about how much compensation we may be able to help you get. So, we let you calculate your potential compensation online with our helpful compensation calculator.
How do I start my compensation claim?
Starting the compensation claims process with National Accident Helpline means simply giving us a call about your potential compensation claim. Our call handlers will listen to your story about how you contracted legionnaires disease. They are sympathetic and experienced in many compensation claims and will then pass you to our specialist solicitors to complete your claim. At National Accident Helpline, we want your claim process to be as easy as possible as we understand life has recently been difficult due to contracting legionnaires disease.
You may be owed personal injury compensation if someone was negligent in causing your legionnaires disease. So give us a call now on to start making your compensation claim. If you prefer, you can ask us to give you a call back here.