This article contains information about the parties who can bring a fatal accident claim. It will focus on the fatal accident claims process, how the Fatal Accident Act 1976 allows certain dependents to able to make a claim for financial losses, and the time limits that must not be exceeded if you are looking to make a fatal accident claim.
Fatal accident claims may be sought if you lost a loved one to an incident that was caused by a third party’s negligence. This means the third party owed your loved one a duty of care at the time of their death, and this duty was breached in a way that brought about their death.
Read on to find out more information about the groups of people who could make fatal accident claims. You can also get in touch with our advisers to discuss the potential claim by:
- Calling 0800 073 8801
- Filling in our online contact form with your query
- Contacting us via the chat box below
Select A Section
- What Are Dependants In Fatal Accident Claims?
- Types Of Dependency
- Who Can Bring A Fatal Accident Claim?
- What Compensation Is Awarded?
- Talk To Our Specialist Team About Who Can Bring A Fatal Accident Claim
What Are Dependants In Fatal Accident Claims?
The question of who can bring a fatal accident claim is covered by two pieces of legislation:
- The Law Reform Miscellaneous Provisions Act 1934 (LRMPA) allows the deceased’s estate to claim on behalf of the deceased for the pain and suffering they experienced. The estate can also make a claim on behalf of the dependants. However, if this does not happen within the first six months following the date of death, the dependants can then make their own claim.
- The Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (FAA) allows qualifying relatives to claim for the impact the death had upon them. This claim can be made after 6 months have passed and only if the estate has not made a claim under the LRMPA.
When making a fatal accident claim under the FAA, you must show that you were dependent upon the deceased party. In this instance, ‘dependency’ means that you were in some way reliant upon the deceased. Read on to find out more about fatal accidents and the types of dependency that might be relevant to the potential fatal accident claim.
How Common Are Fatal Accidents?
Fatal accidents can occur in several ways, including but not limited to:
- Road traffic accidents involving drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians
- Fatal accidents at work
- Instances of medical negligence
- Certain accidents that occur in a public place
Accident statistics collected by The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) show that 145 fatal injuries occurred to workers in the year 2020/21. Meanwhile, provisional estimates made available by the Department for Transportation show that an estimated 1,390 road fatalities occurred year ending June 21.
If you’re unsure whether you’re one of the people who can bring a fatal accident claim, get in touch with our advisers today.
Types Of Dependency
When seeking compensation through a fatal accident claim, solicitors not only have to show that the death occurred because of a third party’s negligence, such a fatal accident at work, but also that the family they left behind had some kind of dependency upon them.
Fatal accident claims could consider several types of dependency, such as:
- Loss of financial dependency – pursued when dependents can show a reasonable expectation that they would have continued to benefit from the deceased’s finances.
- Loss of service dependency – sought when the deceased performed a service or task that their loved ones must now seek elsewhere.
- Loss of consortium dependency – pursued in an attempt to provide financial compensation for the loss of a familial relationship, which can include love, companionship and affection.
If you’re not certain what kind of dependency applies for a fatal accident claim, contact our advisers using the information below.
Who Can Bring A Fatal Accident Claim?
The FAA, in particular, goes into detail about who can bring a fatal accident claim. Essentially, the person or persons submitting the claim must fall into one of the FAA’s definitions for a dependent.
You may expect that only a current spouse or civil partner can claim for a fatal accident, but this isn’t true. Some of the people who can claim under the FAA’s definitions are:
- Husband or wife, or civil partner of the deceased
- Ex-husband or ex-wife, or former civil partner of the deceased
- A partner who was living with the deceased as a spouse
- Child of the deceased or thought of as their child
- Stepchild of the deceased
- The sibling, aunt or uncle of the deceased
- The parents of a child
This is by no means a comprehensive list of those who can bring a fatal accident claim. If you’ve suffered a loss and believe it was caused by third-party negligence, get in touch with our advisers today to discuss your circumstances. If your case is valid, they could connect you with one of our lawyers to work on your case.
What Compensation Can Be Awarded?
Firstly we are going to look at what the deceased estate can claim on behalf of the claimant for the pain and suffering they experienced before their death.
When preparing a fatal injuries claim, solicitors can use the Judicial College Guidelines JCG for help. The JCG provides compensation brackets for injuries and illnesses along with their severities as guidance to legal professionals when calculating damages. We have used some of their brackets to create the table below. The first entry is not part of the JCG.
The table below shows some of the injuries that could be claimed.
| Injury Type | JCG Compensation | Further Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fatality with add-on claims | Up to £550,000 and over | Takes into account the deceased’s pain and suffering, and the losses that affect their dependants |
| Tetraplegia (a) | £324,600 to £403,990 | Takes in account issues such as life expectancy, level of pain, and ability to communicate, affect on senses. |
| Paraplegia (b) | £219,070 to £284,260 | Takes into account the level of pain, depression, life expectancy, independence and potential worsening paralysis |
| Very Severe Brain Damage (a) | £282,010 to £403,990 | Takes into account level of response to environment, ability to communicate and organ function, and level of care required |
| Severe Psychiatric Damage (a) | £54,830 to £115,730 | Takes into account the subsequent ability to handle life and work/education, the effect on relationships and future vulnerability |
| Injuries Resulting in Death – Full Awareness | £12,540 to £23,810 | Lung damage or severe burns, for a short time there is full awareness, followed by in and out of consciousness and death within 3months. |
However, other factors are taken into consideration and may affect the compensation amount. For more information about who can bring a fatal injury claim, get in touch with our advisers today.
What Is The Statutory Bereavement Award?
The FAA sets out a particular type of compensation known as the Statutory Bereavement Award. This may be awarded specifically to:
- The spouse or civil partner of the deceased
- The parents of a child under 18
- The parents of a child if they were not married.
At the time this article was written, the statutory bereavement award stands at £15,120.
What Compensation Can Be Awarded For Loss Of Dependency?
If you are classed as a dependant and have lost out financially or will suffer a loss of service and consortium, you can be awarded compensation to cover this. Our team can tell you if you qualify for payments of loss of earnings to cover the financial loss or require other compensation to cover loss of service, so please call today.
Talk To Our Specialist Team About Who Can Bring A Fatal Accident Claim
If you believe you are someone who can bring a fatal accident claim, you may wish to hire a solicitor to help you navigate the process. In particular, a No Win No Fee agreement may offer a solution if you’re worried about the cost of hiring a lawyer.
Numerous types of No Win No Fee agreements exist, but our solicitors can offer their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This type of agreement means that you won’t have to pay a solicitor’s fees if the claim fails, or during the claims process. Instead, you will pay a small percentage of your compensation if your claim succeeds, and this amount is capped by law.
For more information, you can get in touch with our advisers by:
- Calling 0800 073 8801
- Filling in our online contact form with your query
- Contacting us via the chat box below
Related Information On Who Can Bring A Fatal Accident Claim
Below we’ve included more of our guides that you may find useful:
Death Caused By Dangerous Driving – Information on claims for a fatal traffic accident
Fatal Motorcycle Accidents – Click here to learn more about claims for fatal motorcycle accidents
Fatal Care Home Death – A guide on claims for a fatal care home death due to negligence
You may also find the links below useful:
Reporting Accidents At Work – A resource for reporting accidents that occur in the workplace
Reporting a Road Traffic Accident – Some information about how to report road traffic accidents
We hope this guide has provided some useful information about who can bring a fatal accident claim. If you have any more questions, please get in touch using the details above.