Chest Injury Compensation Claims

The scariest part of a chest injury is wondering whether it has caused any internal damage that is not immediately visible. The rib cage protects two vital organs – the heart and the lungs. Any injury to the chest could potentially injure these organs causing irreversible damage. Severe chest injuries can be fatal.

If your chest injury was caused by somebody else, you should speak to a personal injury solicitor about your right to pursue a chest injury compensation claim.

Common Causes Of Chest Injury Claims

The ribs are quite fragile and any accident in which there is direct impact to the chest could result in severe injuries to the region. Some of the more common causes of chest injury claims include:

• Road traffic accidents –motorcycle riders and car drivers are susceptible to severe chest injuries in road accidents
• Crushing to the rib cage – this can happen due to several reasons from being hit by a heavy vehicle to a heavy object falling from great height
• Incidents involving fire
• Crane or forklift accidents on building sites
• Chest related illnesses arising from exposure to toxic fumes or asbestos
• Industrial accidents
• Slips, trips or falls
• Being assaulted
• Being stabbed
• Falling down the stairs
• Falling from a ladder or scaffolding
• Sporting accidents – commonly seen in high impact sports such as rugby and boxing

Types Of Chest Injuries

Chest injuries can be divided into two categories – injuries caused by direct external trauma to the chest and physiological injuries that affect the organs within the chest cavity without any external injuries. Physiological chest injuries are usually caused due to exposure to toxic materials.

Fractured Ribs

Fractured ribs are the most common type of chest injury caused by direct external impact to the chest. Any accident or assault can result in your ribs getting fractured. This can be particularly painful, making it difficult for you to move or even breathe deeply. The excruciating pain of a fractured rib can make it challenging to perform the simplest task until the rib has healed completely.

If your chest injury is due to injured ribs then you may also like to refer to our rib injury claims page.

Collapsed Lung

Collapsed lung or pneumothorax is another type of chest injury caused by direct impact to the upper body between the neck and abdomen. A broken rib or a puncture wound in the chest region can cause the space between the lung and chest wall to fill with air. The build-up of air in the pleural space exerts pressure on the lungs, causing it to collapse. This can be very painful and also leads to shortness of breath.

Blunt and Penetrating Traumatic Injuries

Both of these are types of chest injuries sustained after forceful impact with an object or surface. Impact with a blunt object or surface such as a table, machinery or wall is known as a blunt traumatic injury. An injury caused by an object that penetrates the chest area, such as a knife or bullet, is called a penetrating traumatic injury. Both, blunt and penetrating traumatic injuries are very serious and can result in a several different medical complications.

Industrial Related Chest Injuries

Industrial related chest injuries are typically physiological in nature. They are caused as a result of short or long term exposure to various toxic materials in the workplace. Exposure to asbestos is the most common type of industrial related chest injury but it’s not the only one. Exposure to toxic materials in the workplace can cause a wide range of chest injuries including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD, mesothelioma, emphysema, and chronic lung disease. All of these have long-term consequences.

If your chest injury has been caused by the industry you work or were working in you may like to red our page on industrial injury claims.

What To Do If You Have Sustained Chest Injuries

Most chest injuries take a long time to heal completely. In the interim, you may not be able to do the things you used to do earlier, impacting your ability to work and your overall quality of life. The extended period of illness may affect your family too.

The physical, emotionally and financial consequences of a chest injury can be crippling. A compensation settlement can help to ease some of the stress so you can focus on taking the time you need to recover. To understand your chances of winning compensation, you should speak with a personal injury solicitor for expert advice.

Making A Chest Injury Compensation Claim

The most important thing to know is that in most cases there are no upfront fees involved in having a personal injury solicitor handle your chest injury compensation claim. Filing a chest injury claim through a personal injury solicitor is straightforward. Here’s how it works with us:

You can call us free on 0800 6524 881 for a free, no-obligation consultation, or use the Call Back form on this page to have us call you at a convenient time. During this consultation, the advisor or solicitor will review your case.

If it’s found that your injuries were caused by somebody else’s negligence or mistake and that you are within your rights to file a chest injury compensation claim, we will offer to represent you and also help to fund your case in the form of a No Win No Fee contract. Essentially, this contract states that we agree to represent you and cover all legal costs without asking for any upfront fees. According to the terms of the No Win No Fee contract, if your chest injury claim is unsuccessful, you don’t have to pay any legal fees at all. You only pay if your claim is successful. The fee on a successful would be deducted directly from the compensation and is calculated simple as an agreed percentage.

How Much Compensation For A Chest Injury?

How much compensation for a chest injury you might receive will depend on various factors such as how severe the injury is and the prognosis for your recovery. No two chest injury claims are the same so there is no one set amount. However there are advised compensation guidelines with regards to general damages for various injuries according to how severe they are. You can use the compensation calculator below to view these.

If you think you have a chest injury compensation claim and would like advice from a personal injury solicitor then please claim your free consultation today.