The NHS are about to ban personal injury firms from advertising in hospitals. This is how they intend on driving down the number of negligence claims being made against doctors.
Never mind looking to improve services or provide relief for overworked staff. The Health Secretary sees this as the best way to save the NHS money.
Ok, so this may reduce the number of claims made against negligent doctors. However, it will not reduce the number of instances where negligence occurs. It just means that when the medical professional responsible for your care messes up, they will have some protection.
Lawyers out of NHS hospitals
The chief executive of NHS England, Simon Stevens, wants ‘lawyers out of hospital and doctors out of court.’ However, wouldn’t it be to everyone’s benefit if they achieve this through improving the quality of service and ensuring that negligence reduces, rather than try to pull a blanket over the eyes of a patient who suffers because of said negligence?
The Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, claims the presence of personal injury law firms in the NHS is concerning. Not nearly as concerning as the state of the NHS and the number of cases there have been over the past two years because patients are being let down.
He emphasises that some are using extremely aggressive tactics to win new business. If this is case, punish the minority rather than the majority. To put it from a personal injury firm’s perspective, it makes sense to advertise in hospitals. This is where vulnerable people, suffering because of the negligence of others are most likely to be.
Agenda against personal injury
As a patient or even a personal injury victim outside the hospital environment this is not a good move. IF you suffer an injury because of a reckless driver, a negligent boss or even a careless doctor, then surely you want the option to get justice and compensation for your injury?
This is just the latest in a long line of restrictions that the government are introducing to the personal injury sector. The agenda seems to be to rid of personal injury claims for good.
There is also a suggestion by these claims that the NHS is not in control of who advertises in their hospitals. It gives the very wrong impression of personal injury lawyers sneaking into the hospital and advertising against their wills.
This is simply not the case. Hospitals give permission for the personal injury firms to use their advertising screens and seem only to happy to receive a fee for this. It is almost as if they are dismissing responsibility for this, a practice that seems deeply rooted, the higher up you go in the organisation.
For the most part, the legal firms do not even advertise their clinical negligence work. It is written into the contract that the NHS prepare for the advertising firm. What this represents is a deliberate attempt to pull the wool over everybody’s eyes as to the reasons for such high claim numbers in the NHS.
You can claim
Any such ban will not take away the right or ability to claim for your injury. You can still seek legal help for your injury, regardless of where or how it happens.
For free advice on whether you can claim, call us on 01695 722222. You can also follow the link to request a call back. Alternatively, you can do it all online by visiting the personal injury section of our website.