A Guide To Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Compensation – How Do I Claim? – Am I Eligible To Claim?

By Lewis Lennon. Last Updated 11th August 2023. Often described as the silent killer, there is no denying that carbon monoxide poisoning does a lot of damage to many people every year. If you have been harmed because of carbon monoxide poisoning, you are likely to be entitled to compensation. 

You can also claim on the behalf of someone else if they are no longer in a position to claim themselves because they have either passed away or their injuries are so severe as to prevent them from representing themselves. Carbon monoxide is a dangerous gas. If it is breathed in, the consequences can be dire. Claims tend to range from mild forms of exposure to very severe cases and death in some incidences. It doesn’t matter what has happened, if you have suffered an injury and it was not your fault, it is your right to pursue a claim. 

Here at Advice.co.uk, we have experience in helping people to get the compensation they deserve. You can call us ON 0161 696 9685 to find out everything you need to know regarding claims for carbon monoxide poisoning. However, before you do so, make sure you continue reading to find out everything you need to know.

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A Guide To Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Claims

Carbon monoxide poisoning-compensation claims guide

Carbon monoxide poisoning-compensation claims guide

“Can I claim for carbon monoxide poisoning?” 

This is a question we often get asked, and through this guide, we try to answer it, as well as many more queries. We understand that a claim like this can be very stressful and traumatic, especially if you or someone you love has suffered severe consequences because of what has happened. In the sections that follow, we will take a look at carbon monoxide poisoning in more depth. This includes details on the signs of carbon monoxide poisoning, as well as carbon monoxide poisoning treatment. We will also look at the claim’s process in further detail, including information on the service that we provide. If you have any queries by the time you finish reading this guide, please do not hesitate to give us a call for more information.

What Is Carbon Monoxide Poisoning?

This happens due to breathing in this dangerous and poisonous gas. What makes this gas so dangerous is the fact that it does not have any smell or taste, so you often cannot tell that you have breathed it in. That’s how it’s earned the name ‘silent killer’. Death can be a consequence if you have been exposed to a large amount of carbon monoxide. When you breath in carbon monoxide, it goes into your bloodstream, where it combines with hemoglobin. If you are unaware of what this is, it is a section of your blood cells (red ones) that have the job of getting oxygen around your body. Carboxyhaemoglobin is formed whenever hemoglobin mixes with carbon monoxide. When this is formed, it means oxygen can’t be carried around by the blood any longer, so cells and tissues begin to deteriorate and die because there is no oxygen.

Compensation For Carbon Monoxide Poisoning – How Is It Calculated?

Compensation for carbon monoxide poisoning is usually divided into two heads of claim:

  • General damages account for the pain, suffering or loss of amenity caused by your physical or psychological injuries.
  • Special damages cover any monetary losses or out-of-pocket expenses incurred as a result of your carbon monoxide poisoning injuries.

When valuing general damages, legal professionals may refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG). This document provides guideline compensation amounts for various types of harm. We have provided some of the amounts listed in the 16th JCG in the table below. Please only use this table as a guide.

InjurySeverityAward
Mental Anguish£4,670
Poisoning/toxicosisSevere£38,430 to £52,500
Brain damageLess severe£15,320 to £43,060
Brain damageModerate£90,720 to £150,110
Brain damageVery severe£282,010 to £403,990
DeathFull awareness£12,540 to £23,810

Special damages could also be awarded to compensate you for the financial losses you have experienced due to your injury or illness.

Special damages may be awarded for the following: 

  • A loss of earnings – if you suffer brain damage from carbon monoxide poisoning, you may be unable to return to work whilst you recover. If your earning capacity is affected, use a pay slip as evidence of this harm.
  • Prescription fees – you may need a prescription for medicine to alleviate symptoms of toxicosis. If you pay for this, keep a receipt of the prescription to prove this expense.
  • Travel expenses – your injuries can result in repeat visits to your GP or hospital. Any money spent on travelling to and from your appointments could be included in your claim for special damages as long as you keep hold of any travel receipts i.e. a train or bus ticket.

Get in touch if you would like to be connected with an expert No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel. Using their specialist knowledge and years of experience, they’ll be able to offer a more accurate insight into the value of your carbon monoxide poisoning claim.

Statistics For Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

According to the Department of Health publications, every year, around 4,000 people are sent to A&E because of carbon monoxide poisoning. This also results in 50 deaths per annum, as well as 200 people being sent to the hospital. What makes these statistics even more upsetting is the fact that these deaths and injuries could have been avoided.

Carbon Monoxide Effects

As outlined by the NHS, carbon monoxide poisoning can result in you becoming seriously ill if you were to breathe it in. Following a carbon monoxide leak, you could find yourself experiencing the following symptoms:

  • Feeling dizzy, sick or weak
  • Suffering from headaches
  • Feeling confused
  • Chest pain
  • Muscle pain
  • Shortness of breath

Carbon monoxide effects depend on how long you are exposed to the gas. If you spend a long time in a room where there are dangerous carbon monoxide levels, the impact could be fatal.

You are advised to get urgent medical help should you become aware that you are suffering from a carbon monoxide leak. You should always prioritise your treatment, but any medical reports could also be good evidence for a claim.

For further advice on what evidence you might obtain to support a personal injury claim, speak to our advisors at any time.

Common Causes Of CO Poisoning

Carbon monoxide is created whenever fuels, like wood, coal, oil, and gas, fail to burn. The smoke from cigarettes, running cars, and burning charcoal all produce carbon monoxide gas. Wood, coal, oil, and gas are all fuel sources that are utilised in a lot of household appliances, for example, open fires, central heating, cookers, boilers, water heaters and gas fires. If household appliances are not maintained or installed properly, this can result in accidental exposure to carbon monoxide. Other potential causes include smoking shisha pipes indoors, paint fumes, blocked or faulty car exhausts, burning fuel in an unventilated space or enclosed space, and blocked chimneys.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Exposure Caused By A Faulty Boiler

One of the main causes of carbon monoxide poisoning is a faulty boiler. Poorly maintained or old boilers can produce carbon monoxide gases. This fact is why it’s critical that you get a Gas Safe engineer to come to your home once per year to make sure your boiler operates safely. If you have not done this, and you have suffered carbon monoxide poisoning, you may find that you are unable to pursue a carbon monoxide poisoning claim. If you are able to claim, you may only get a lower amount to reflect your responsibility in not maintaining the boiler. Nevertheless, if there is a fault or damage with the boiler, you may not only have grounds against the boiler manufacturer if the boiler is new, but you can hold your Gas Safe engineer liable for failing to notice that the boiler was broken.

In The UK, Who Pays If Gas Leaks In The House?

In a rental property, the responsibility of paying for repairs to utilities such as gas rests with the landlord. The tenant often has no legal requirement to pay for repairs such as these. Gas safety checks should also be carried out on a regular basis to make sure the property is suitable to be lived in.

When there is a gas leak in a house, who pays in the UK can become less simple if you own your own home. There are a few factors that need to be considered, such as if negligence has caused the gas leak. For example, you may have had a new boiler fitted and it was not done properly.

To find out more, get in touch with our advisors today.

How Is Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Treated?

If you think you have had exposure to dangerous levels of carbon monoxide, it is imperative that you seek advice from your GP at the earliest opportunity. Your symptoms will determine whether or not you have this, and a blood test will often be used to confirm. If you have been diagnosed with mild carbon monoxide poisoning, you probably won’t need any treatment. Anything over this is usually treated with standard or hyperbaric oxygen therapy.

What Are The Long-Term Effects Of CO Poisoning?

There can be serious complications for anyone who has had significant and prolonged exposure to carbon monoxide, including heart problems and brain damage. Death can also be a consequence in severe cases. Other effects of severe carbon monoxide poisoning include loss of consciousness, seizures, chest pains, and breathlessness. Roughly between 10 and 15% of individuals who have severe carbon monoxide poisoning end up developing long-term complications.

Fatal Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

If you have lost a loved one because of carbon monoxide poisoning, you can claim on their behalf. This is the case if you were related or dependent on the deceased. As well as general damages, you can claim for funeral expenses, a bereavement award, and punitive damages.

Who Could Be Liable For My CO Poisoning Illness?

The vast majority of legal cases involving carbon monoxide poisoning involve incidents within the household. This could mean you need to claim against your landlord or it could be a claim against a manufacturer of a certain appliance because it has not been operating properly. Common household appliances that can be responsible for this include the likes of boilers, central heating systems, gas fires, open fires, cookers, and water heaters. In addition to this, there can be incidents of employer negligence that causes carbon monoxide poisoning at work as well.

Claims For Carbon Monoxide Poisoning In The Home

If you have experienced carbon monoxide poisoning in the home, you could be legally entitled to bring a compensation claim against the following:

  • The individual or business that has installed the appliance if they did not install it properly
  • The individual or business that has carried out a safety inspection of faulty appliances if they failed to spot the fault
  • The council, housing association, or private landlord you rent your home from if they failed to ensure that the property was safe
  • The business that has installed or manufactured the carbon monoxide detector if it did not work correctly
  • The manufacturer of an appliance emitting the carbon monoxide gases if the appliance was faulty

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning Claims Against A Landlord

An up to date gas safety certificate is a legal requirement for all landlords. They must renew this certificate each year, and you must be provided with a copy. If the landlord fails to do this, he or she is actually going to be breaking the law. 

Your landlord must make sure that a carbon monoxide alarm is fitted in a room in the home that is partly or wholly utilised as living accommodation and has any sort of appliance that can burn fuel. This includes all open fires, including log burning stoves and coal stoves, but it does not include gas or oil burners. Whenever a new tenancy begins, these alarms must be checked. The same rules apply if you have been living in accommodation which is provided by a housing association or council.

Claims For Poisoning By Carbon Monoxide At Work

Carbon monoxide poisoning at work

Carbon monoxide poisoning at work

“Can you claim for carbon monoxide poisoning in the workplace?” 

Yes! You can also make a claim if you have experienced CO poisoning symptoms because of workplace negligence. All employers are required to adhere to the health and safety regulations that are in place in the UK. If they have not managed all gas appliances correctly, and you have suffered as a consequence, you would be eligible to claim compensation. All employers are expected to carry out risk assessments and to put provisions in place to ensure the safety of their employees. If they have failed in their duty to do this, you may have grounds for a payout. 

Please do not hesitate to give us a call for more information on this. A lot of people are fearful of making a claim against their employer because they worry about repercussions but this is something you should not fret about. It is illegal for your employer to take action against you, and if they do, you could pursue a separate claim under employment law. This is something we can help you with too. Call us today to find out more.

Time Limits To Claim For Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

One thing that is important to note is that there is a personal injury claims time limit on all cases. This is typically three years from the date of the accident. However, the trouble with carbon monoxide symptoms is that they do not often surface straight away, and so determining an accident date would be somewhat impossible. This is why you will have three years from the date you obtained knowledge of the problem, which in most cases is the date of your diagnosis. 

If your child has been injured because of carbon monoxide, you would be eligible to claim on their behalf. If you do not do this, your child will then have three years from the date of their 18th birthday to claim. The table below should clarify.

SituationLimit in Years from date specified
Working accident3 – from incident date
Road traffic3 – from incident date
Criminal injury2 – from incident date
Compensation after death3 – following incident date
A child's injury3 years from 18th birthday to launch if parents haven’t done so.

How To Begin A Claim For CO Poisoning

Making a carbon monoxide poisoning claim is a lot easier when you have Advice.co.uk by your side. Phone us today and we shall handle everything. We shall support you on what steps you need to take, as well as providing you with a free consultation so that we can answer any queries you may have while also asking some questions so that we can give you the best possible advice. We will connect you with an expert solicitor from our panel who is well-versed in pursuing these types of claims and will strive to ensure you recover as much compensation as possible.

No Win No Fee Claims For Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

One of the main reasons why our service has become so popular is because of our No Win No Fee approach. For those who are unaware of what this means, this states that you are only going to need to pay legal fees if there is compensation awarded at the end of the claim, so you are never going to find yourself in a worse financial position by making a claim, which is something a lot of people, understandably, worry about. 

There are no fees to pay when you commence a claim. No fees to pay during the claim. And if the case doesn’t succeed, you will have nothing to pay.

If your case does succeed, your solicitor may seek a small contribution toward their costs in the form of a percentage of your compensation. By law, the percentage they can take is capped. 

All of the solicitors on our panel work on a No Win No Fee basis, so you can make a claim without having to worry about there being any sort of risk.

Why Claim With Our Helpful Team?

You may be wondering why you should choose to work with Advice.co.uk, rather than with a competitor. Not only have we explained our No Win No Fee approach, but there are plenty of other benefits too. This includes the fact that we have years and years of experience in the industry. We also care about our clients. We want to make sure that you get the payout you are entitled to. We also have an exceptional reputation in the industry, which we are sure will put your mind at ease. Simply take a look at what past clients have had to say.

Call Our Advisors Today

If you are ready to bring a personal injury claim because you have had carbon monoxide poisoning, we are ready and waiting to help you. As mentioned, we offer a beneficial No Win No Fee service. We have years of experience in the industry and we make our service as straightforward as possible. Simply follow the three steps below. The number you need is 0161 696 9685.

Contact our team by email, phone, or post.Our team will assess your claim.Once you are ready, we can then start your claim.

Advice And Resources

CO poisoning – Information from the NHS on this type of poisoning.

Symptoms of CO2 – Symptoms checker for CO2 Poison

No Win No Fee Claims – our guide to No Win No Fee claims

Workplace Rights – our guide to workplace rights. 

 

Guide by OS

Edited by DEG