Ambulance delay compensation claims

What are ambulance delays?

Ambulance delays are when an ambulance does not arrive as quickly as it should for the level of the medical emergency. It also includes, for example:

• delays in reaching a hospital
• transfer between hospitals
• being admitted into A&E. 

What are the causes of ambulance delays?

Ambulance delays can occur for several reasons. These could be due to:

• NHS pressure in terms of staff
• lack of adequate  funding for the NHS
• lack of staff training
• lack of resources, such as equipment

How long is acceptable to wait for an ambulance? 

The time that it is acceptable to wait for an ambulance in a medical emergency depends on the medical circumstances. Due to pressure on the NHS an ambulance wait time can be just a few minutes or could be as long as a few hours. The more serious the medical emergency, the sooner a paramedic and ambulance should arrive. 

It is unacceptable to wait longer than you should for the categorisation of your medical condition. So when it is a serious medical emergency and for example, categorised as not serious resulting in a long wait time, this is unacceptable. This can lead to significant harm to your health. 

What are the risks of an ambulance or paramedic arriving late?

It is essential that an ambulance or paramedic reaches you quickly in a medical emergency. They are often the first medically trained person to help you with your health condition, so how they act can have a massive impact on you. The paramedics will need to assess your consciousness and make decisions regarding actions to take. 

Arriving late can have serious consequences on your health such as serious long-term injuries and can in some circumstances even be fatal. 

Are ambulance delays negligent?

An ambulance delay could be considered medical negligence when the treatment the paramedic provides falls below a medically accepted standard of care.

You will need to prove your ambulance delay was medically negligent if you are seeking ambulance delay compensation. You will also need to prove that the treatment you received from the paramedics resulted in an adverse effect on your health, compared to if they had given the right care. 

Can I claim against the ambulance service for compensation?

When you experience an ambulance delay or do not receive adequate care from a paramedic, you may be able to claim against the ambulance service for compensation. You can claim for an ambulance delay for the following reasons:

• a significant delay in an ambulance getting to you 
• an ambulance not reaching you after you make an emergency call
• the paramedics not giving you emergency treatment
• the paramedics failing to give you the right treatment
• the paramedics not getting your symptoms right and making the right observations
• misdiagnosis by paramedics 
• delayed diagnosis by paramedics
• A&E delaying the acceptance of a patient from the paramedic
• delay in transfer to a hospital which can correctly treat your condition
• the paramedics not taking you to hospital when they should have 
• missed fractures
• using too much force with patients 
• dropping patients

Claiming compensation for a delayed ambulance can provide the financial help you need such as for:

• private medical treatment
• care workers
• specialist equipment
• financial losses
• your pain and suffering.

What type of injury or illness can I claim for?

There are a variety of injuries and illnesses you may be able to claim for as a result of an ambulance delay. For example:

• stroke misdiagnosis
• cauda equina syndrome misdiagnosis
• brain injury negligence
• sepsis negligence
• head or spinal injuries
• heart attacks
• strokes
• serious bleeding
• meningitis
• sepsis
• asthma attacks
• anaphylaxis
• serious allergic reactions
• cardiac arrest
• aneurysms
• blood clots such as Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
• Pulmonary Embolism (PE)
• long-term disability
• amputation
• PTSD
• damage to essential organs
• death

How much compensation could I receive?

Before you start a delayed ambulance compensation claim, you will likely wonder how much you can claim. As with any personal injury claim the amount of compensation you can claim will depend on different factors. This includes

• how the ambulance delay affected your health
• financial loss from your injury
• expected future financial loss due to your health
• the pain the ambulance delay caused you. 

The compensation you receive can be a mixture of:

• financial losses and expenses 
• general compensation such as that which did not cover financial loss such as lifestyle changes and pain

Will making a claim affect any current benefits I receive?

Making a compensation claim for a delayed ambulance like any compensation claim can affect your current benefits This is because the payout can be counted as an asset. 

However, you can avoid your compensation claim affecting your benefits. This is where you put your financial payout in a Personal Trust within 52 weeks after receiving it. Whilst in the trust you can use the funds available. 

How long after the accident can I start my ambulance delay claim? 

If you have suffered an ambulance delay and want to make a claim, there is a time limit to when you can do so. 

As with all personal injury claims you must make your medical negligence claim within three years of the ambulance delay occurring. Alternatively, you can claim within three years of the date you found out that you experienced a delay or suspected it. This is the date of knowledge. 

However, if the delayed ambulance claim is for a child and you are making it for them, you can make it at any point until they turn 18 years old. Once they reach 18 years old as they are an adult they can make their own claim and like other adults have a further three years to do this. 

How long might a claim take to settle?

An ambulance delay claim can take different times to settle the claim due to differing circumstances. However, the average time is between 18 months to two years. Typical issues which affect the time it takes for your delayed ambulance claim to settle include:

• how badly the ambulance delay affected your health
• how long ago the delay was as it sometimes it takes time to see the full extent of the effect of the delayed ambulance
• if the person or organisation you claim was medical.ly negligent admits liability or not 

What do I need to support my claim?

When you decide to make a delayed paramedic or ambulance claim it is important that you gather sufficient evidence to support it. This allows you to prove that you deserve compensation for the ambulance delay as the NHS were negligent. 

The type of evidence you may collect can be:

• opinions from medical experts

• your medical health records
• Investigative reports such for the NHS trust which may have been responsible
• coroner's inquest report where sadly death has occurred
• witness statements

Can I make a no-win no fee ambulance delay claim?

If you experience an ambulance delay it can cause poor health, sometimes with long-term or devastating health consequences. Where the ambulance delay or paramedic treatment results are due to medical negligence you could make a no-win no fee basis with National Accident Helpline.

A no-win no-fee delayed ambulance compensation claim means that you pay nothing to make your claim. Therefore, there is no risk to you financially if the delayed ambulance was not medical negligence.

Can I make an ambulance negligence claim on behalf of a family member?

As well as being able to make a medical negligence compensation claim for yourself or your child, you may be able to make a delayed ambulance claim on behalf of someone else. You can do this where:

• the victim of a delayed ambulance claim has passed away and you make it three years from the date they passed away
• the person who experienced an ambulance delay does not have the mental capacity to claim

Will I need to go to court?

When people make a compensation claim such as a medical negligence claim they often ask if they need to go to court. You may similarly ask this for your delayed ambulance claim. 

As with all personal injury claims,  you will not necessarily need to go to court. Where you can avoid court, your claim may progress quickly. However, some claims need to go to court. Sometimes a date for court will be set, but if the other party admits liability before the court date, you will no longer need to go At National Accident Helpline, we pride ourselves on boasting a massive 95% of our personal injury claims as settled out of court. 

How can National Accident Helpline support me with my claim?

National Accident Helpline can support you with your compensation claim for a delayed ambulance. Our advisors are sympathetic towards the often terrible effects a delayed ambulance claim can have on our client's health. They are keen to help you with the compensation you fully deserve so will pass you onto our highly competent solicitors who will complete your claim.

Call now or if more convenient, request a call back here, you can even begin your claim online with National Accident Helpline. 

How do I start my ambulance or paramedic delay compensation claim?

Starting an ambulance or paramedic delay compensation claim with National Accident Helpline is simple. Either call us on or start the process online here.  You can also calculate your potential compensation online before you start it at any time during the process by using our compensation calculator. 

When you start your ambulance or paramedic claim with us, firstly our advisors who are highly experienced in medical negligence claims listen to what you sadly experienced. They will then pass you on to our excellent medical negligence solicitors who finalise your claim. It's as easy as that! We offer a stress-free compensation claim experience when you claim an ambulance delay or paramedic compensation claim. All that is left is for you to wait for the compensation you deserve. 

If you have had an ambulance or paramedic delay, you may be due compensation, so call us now on . We can help you to start making a compensation claim. You can request a call back here or even begin your claim online.