By Danielle Nicholson. Last Updated 3rd November 2023. Making a broken ankle claim would be on the basis that you were owed a duty of care. That those responsible for your safety breached this duty of care and ultimately caused a broken ankle. When you make a claim for compensation you may be eligible for two heads of loss. We will explain this further on in our guide.
Broken Ankle Claims Guide
You may be confused as to what this means for your particular situation. That’s why this guide aims to help you estimate your ankle injury claim and what the personal injury claims process entails. Whether you are looking into an accident at work claim, compensation for a road traffic accident you didn’t cause, or a public liability claim, this guide could be of use.
If you would like free legal advice on your potential broken ankle claim, call us on 0161 696 9685. A team member will discuss your case and, if you like, can put you in touch with a panel of solicitors we work with. You can also fill out our online contact form or use our instant chat feature.
Select a Section
- Case Study: £30,000 For A Broken Ankle Claim
- Am I Eligible To Receive Compensation For A Broken Ankle?
- Compensation For A Broken Ankle
- Broken Ankle Compensation Payout – Evidence You’ll Need
- How Do No Win No Fee Claims Work?
Case Study: £30,000 For A Broken Ankle Claim
Mr Jackson was an HGV driver who tirelessly worked 48-hour weeks. At the end of his week, he would do the weekly shop with his wife. The supermarket was near a train station and one evening, because Mr Jackson was tired of driving, they decided to take the train. They got their shopping and started down the eight steps that led from the car park to the station when a loose brick in the second step came undone and Mr Jackson fell to the bottom of the stairs.
He knew there was something very wrong because his right ankle was incredibly painful and he couldn’t walk on it. While they waited for a taxi, his wife took photos of the scene and her husband’s injuries. She also told staff inside the supermarket, who logged the accident and told her that those steps were on the supermarket’s premises.
Broken Ankle Compensation – Claim For A Broken Ankle
After noticing bruising and swelling on his ankle, Mr Jackson arranged for a GP appointment that later saw him referred to a hospital. An X-ray scan showed he had suffered a displaced but closed fracture that would require plates and pins. An assessment performed later informed him that he was likely to face problems with his injured ankle in the future and was at risk of developing osteoarthritis.
Mrs Jackson persuaded him to consult with a personal injury solicitor to see if he was eligible to make a claim for compensation for his broken ankle. Presenting the evidence they had collected at the scene of the accident, along with medical evidence of the injury, Mr Jackson and his solicitor began a claim against the supermarket’s occupier. The supermarket settled, awarding him £30,000 total in compensation for his broken ankle.
We have included a table with a breakdown of the compensation below.
| Type of Special Damages: | Includes: | How much?: |
|---|---|---|
| Travel Expenses | To and from appointments/treatment | Buses and wife’s petrol: £50 |
| Medications/Prescriptions | Prescriptions, treatment, physiotherapy, walking aids, etc. | Medication: £50 |
| Additional Care | Professional care at home, from family, childcare, etc. | Wife’s care: £365 (for initial weeks) |
| Future Loss | Loss of Earnings, future loss of earnings, potential future care. | £6000 |
As you can see the compensation addressed both the severity of his injury and the financial effects he had suffered. While this might not be an exact reflection of the average payout for a broken ankle in the UK, it is a reflection of the criteria that should be assessed when making a personal injury claim.
(Mr Jackson’s case study is merely an example derived from previous experiences of claims and valuations. It is for illustrative purposes only.)
Am I Eligible To Receive Compensation For A Broken Ankle?
The first step in making a personal injury claim for broken ankle compensation is establishing whether you were owed a duty of care. There are various daily situations where you could suffer an ankle injury while being owed a duty of care, including:
- A road traffic accident: Road users owe each other a duty of care to navigate the roads in a way that prevents damage and injury to themselves and others. To uphold this duty, they are expected to adhere to the Highway Code and the Road Traffic Act 1988.
- A public liability accident: While you are in a public place, such as a supermarket, car park, or salon, the controller of the space owes you a duty of care to ensure your reasonable safety. This is set out under the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.
- An accident at work: Your employer owes you a duty of care as set out in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HASAWA). This means that they are required to take all reasonable and practicable steps to ensure your safety while working.
In order to have good grounds to make a personal injury claim for your broken ankle, you must be able to prove that:
- You were owed a duty of care
- This duty of care was breached
- You were injured as a result
Please continue reading to learn about ankle injury settlement amounts in the UK and how compensation could be awarded in a successful claim.
Compensation For A Broken Ankle
Every personal injury claim will be assessed according to the individual circumstances involved. For this reason, it may not be helpful to provide an average payout for a broken ankle.
Legal professionals, when calculating general damages for a broken ankle, will take into consideration any medical evidence and can also use the Judicial College Guidelines. General damages cover the pain and suffering you experience as a result of your injuries.
The 16th edition, last updated in April 2022, features broken ankle compensation payout ranges based on the awards given in previous personal injury court cases. These ranges can be seen in the table below.
| Injury | Notes | Compensation Range |
|---|---|---|
| Very Severe Ankle Injuries | Extensive soft-tissue damage or a transmalleolar fracture that results in a deformity. | £50,060 to £69,700 |
| Severe Ankle Injuries | The ankle will require time in plaster or pins and plates need to be inserted which will result in ankle instability. | £31,310 to £50,060 |
| Moderate Ankle Injuries | Ligamentous tears or fractures that make it difficult to walk on uneven ground or for a long period of time. | £13,740 to £26,590 |
| Modest Ankle Injuries | Undisplaced fractures, ligamentous injuries or sprains. Whether a full recovery has been made will affect how much is awarded. | Up to £13,740 |
| Most Serious Achilles Tendon | Cramps and restricted ankle movement due to the severance of the tendon and the peroneus longus muscle. | In the region of £38,430 |
| Serious Achilles Tendon | Despite the tendon division being successfully repaired the person will still suffer with a limp and residual weakness. | £24,990 to £30,090 |
| Moderate Achilles Tendon | A significant injury or rupture to the tendon. The treatment received will affect how much you receive. | £12,590 to £21,070 |
| Minor Achilles Tendon | A turning of the ankle that causes damage to the tendon. | £7,270 to £12,590 |
You may also be entitled to special damages. Special damages can be difficult to work out in the beginning stages of a claim. This is because they cover financial loss, which includes ongoing financial loss accrued due to the injuries you sustained.
Other special damages in a broken ankle claim could be:
- Relevant travel expenses.
- Additional physiotherapy bills you incurred.
- Medication you paid for.
It’s important to note that the above figures do not represent the final settlement you might receive. Our legal advisors can give you a more accurate value for your ankle injury if you get in touch today.
Broken Ankle Compensation Payout – Evidence You’ll Need
If you wish to make a claim for an ankle injury caused by another’s negligence, it’s important to gather evidence of what occurred. Make sure you’ve sufficiently recovered from the injuries you’ve suffered before starting this process. If you are wondering what evidence could be gathered to support a broken ankle compensation claim, then this can depend on the circumstances of the incident that caused your ankle injury. Potential sources of evidence that could be considered may include:
- Photographs of your injuries and the scene where your accident occurred.
- CCTV footage of the accident that caused your injury if any is available.
- A copy of a medical report from the doctor/hospital that diagnosed and treated your ankle injury.
- Contact details of any witnesses.
For more advice on gathering evidence for a broken ankle claim or other aspects such as the average payout for a broken ankle in the UK, get in touch with our advisors at any time.
Time Limit For Broken Ankle Claims
As set out in the Limitation Act 1980, the time limit for beginning a personal injury claim for broken ankle compensation is three years. This time limit usually starts from the date of the accident that injured you.
In some circumstances, the time limit can work differently. For example, if a child has suffered an ankle injury, the three-year time limit is paused until the day of their 18th birthday. Before that day, a claim could be made on the child’s behalf by a court-appointed litigation friend. If a claim has not been made by their 18th birthday, they will have three years to start one.
If the injured party lacks the mental capacity to make a claim, the three-year time limit is indefinitely suspended. If this applies, a litigation friend could make a claim on the injured party’s behalf. If the injured party were to regain this mental capacity later, and a claim hasn’t already been made, then they’ll have three years to start a claim from the date of recovery.
Contact our advisors today to see whether you are within the time limit to make a claim for compensation for a broken ankle.
How Do No Win No Fee Claims Work?
If you are eligible to claim for a broken ankle, you might be interested in working with a solicitor. If so, one of the personal injury solicitors from our panel could support your claim. Our panel provide their services under the terms of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
Under this type of arrangement, your solicitor usually won’t ask you to make any upfront or ongoing payments for their services. They also won’t ask for a payment for their work on your case if your claim fails.
However, if the outcome of your claim is successful, your solicitor will subtract a success fee from your broken ankle compensation. This amount is a percentage that is limited by a legal cap.
If you would like to discuss your potential broken ankle compensation payout, speak with an advisor from our team. They can offer a free evaluation of your claim, and may be able to connect you with a solicitor from our panel.
To get in touch with an advisor:
- Fill in our ‘contact us’ form
- Call 0161 696 9685
- Use the live chat feature
More Resources And Guides On Broken Ankle Claims
- How to Make a Compensation Claim for Foot Injuries: Our guide on claiming for other foot injuries.
- Cycling UK’s Cycling Statistics: A booklet with a wealth of data on RTAs and cycling.
- Toe Injury Claims: Our guide to claiming after a toe injury that wasn’t your fault.
Thank you for reading our guide eon how to make a broken ankle claim. Contact our team to learn more.