Negligent Breast Implant Compensation Claims Guide

By Stephen Kane. Last Updated 14th June 2023. If a breast augmentation procedure goes wrong or you experience side effects following the surgery, then this is likely to be very upsetting, as well as painful for the victim. In many cases, it could be possible for lawyers to prove that your injury was caused by the negligence of the surgeon. Therefore, if you wish to make a medical negligence case following your breast augmentation surgery accident, please call Advice.co.uk today on 0161 696 9685 to find out more and to launch a compensation claim.

Read on to find out more about the mistakes that can occur during breast augmentation surgery and what you can do about it.

Select A Section

  1. The Criteria For Claiming Breast Implant Compensation For Negligence
  2. Breast Augmentation And Enhancement Injury Compensation Calculator
  3. What Can Medical Negligence Claims Compensate You For?
  4. Common Causes Of Negligence In Breast Implant Surgery
  5. Common Forms Of Injuries From Breast Implants
  6. Compensation Claims For Deflated Breast Implants
  7. Claiming Compensation For Ruptured Implants
  8. Compensation Claims For Surgical Infections
  9. What Are PIP Breast Implants?
  10. Compensation Claims For PIP Implants
  11. How Long Do You Have To Make A Surgical Or Medical Negligence Claim?
  12. Claiming For Medical Negligence With A No Win No Fee Solicitor
  13. Further Advice For Victims Of Surgical Negligence

The Criteria For Claiming Breast Implant Compensation For Negligence

In order to be eligible to claim for breast implant negligence, you must prove as part of the medical negligence claims process that you suffered harm due to a breach of duty of care. Medical negligence occurs if a medical professional provides substandard care to you and directly causes an injury or makes an existing condition worse. In this case, your breast augmentation surgeon has a duty to provide you with care that is reasonably expected of any medical professional.

Breast augmentation compensation claims guide

Breast augmentation compensation claims guide

If your surgeon breached their duty of care and you have subsequently suffered harm, you may have grounds for a valid breast implant compensation claim.

We can discuss the surgical negligence claims process at no expense to you. All you need to do is get in touch. If you seek further legal advice, we can potentially put you in touch with an experienced No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel.

Breast Augmentation And Enhancement Injury Compensation Calculator

It can be helpful to use an alternative to a personal injury compensation calculator like the table below to work out how much money you may be able to receive for plastic surgery negligence claims. However, every case is different and your claim will be based on the specific details of your situation. A solicitor will be able to give you a more accurate estimate based on your circumstances.

InjuryNotesValue
Very severe scarringSignificant disfigurement leading to a severe psychological reaction. A higher award is made for younger claimants (18-early 30s).£29,780 to £97,330
Significant scarringPlastic surgery may be required to repair scar. Also accounts for some psychological reaction. £9,110 to £30,090
Less significant scarringGenerally involving cases of one scar that can be hidden, or potentially a few small scars.£3,950 to £13,740
Trivial scarringMinor impact, with a full recovery expected.£1,710 to £3,530
Moderate Post-Traumatic Stress DisorderPsychological impact of the injury, with a good prognosis for recovery with professional help. £8,180 to £23,150

The figures in the table above are based on those contained in the guidelines of a legal body known as the Judicial College.

What Can Medical Negligence Claims Compensate You For?

In a medical negligence breast augmentation claim, you may be eligible to receive both general damages and special damages. General damages compensate victims for the suffering they have experienced as a result of their injuries and special damages compensates for any specific financial loss. Let’s look at each in more detail.

General damages

Physical pain

Following a negligent breast augmentation, you are likely to be suffering a great deal of pain. The amount of general damages that you will be entitled to receive depends on the duration of this pain and suffering as well as the severity.

Psychological damage

If your breast enlargement has gone wrong and you have suffered significant scarring or feel very unhappy with the way that you look, this is likely to have a psychological impact and may drastically reduce your confidence. You can often make a claim for this psychological damage too.

Special damages

Medical expenses

You may have needed to see private doctors to have corrective surgery or treatment following a failed breast augmentation procedure. You may want to claim back any costs of treatment that are directly related to the surgical negligence you have experienced.

Travel expenses

You may also want to claim back any travel expenses that you have incurred as a result of your injuries. This can include transport costs to and from appointments.

Loss of earnings

If you have taken time off work as a result of your injuries then you may be able to claim loss of earnings. The payment for this will be based on your current earnings. However, it might also take into account future earnings.

Care costs

If you have been so unwell that you were unable to carry out daily tasks at home, then care costs as part of a claim can reimburse the expense of a carer.

Common Causes Of Negligence In Breast Implant Surgery

There are a number of ways in which breast implant surgery can go wrong. You should have been warned of these risks in advance of the procedure, but if the risks were not managed correctly then you may have a claim following your breast augmentation surgery accident. Here are some of the most common reasons that people make breast enlargement claims.

  • Internal bleeding in the breast tissue. Symptoms include painful and swollen breasts.
  • Haematoma, which is an area of bleeding that causes swelling.
  • Capsular contracture. It is normal for scar tissue to develop around breast implants. However, this can sometimes result in oddly shaped or hard implants. When this happens it can become very painful and you may need to have the implant taken out completely.
  • Post-surgical infection. Not only is this unpleasant but it can cause significant scarring.
  • A loss of sensation in the nipple
  • An odd ripple or crease in the surface of the breast due to visible implants.

If you have been the victim of any of these conditions, you may be able to claim breast implant negligence. Speak to our advisors at Advice.co.uk to find out if your surgeon may have behaved negligently and caused these problems.

Common Forms Of Injuries From Breast Implants

Following any type of surgery, it is normal to experience some level of discomfort. After breast augmentation surgery, you may be advised that you could experience a tightening in your chest, low-level swelling, bruising and pain. If however, you experience any of the following symptoms, this could indicate that there has been a breast augmentation surgery accident, leading to unexpected and unwanted side effects such as:

  • Significant bleeding
  • Leakage of any type of fluid
  • Breast deflation
  • Unsightly scarring
  • A DVT or blood clot
  • If you experienced an allergic reaction following the anaesthetic – your surgeon should have checked this prior to the procedure.
  • Excessive pain
  • Infection at the site of the wound
  • Finding out that you are unable to breastfeed
  • Experiencing a loss of sensitivity in the nipples
  • Rippling of the skin caused by the implant being too close to the skin’s surface
  • Abnormal or unevenly shaped breasts, usually caused by a rotating implant
  • Lumpiness of the breast caused by an implant which has ruptured
  • Hard breast tissue caused by internal scarring, also known as capsular contracture
  • Unexpected swelling

Compensation Claims For Deflated Breast Implants

If your breast implants have deflated then you may certainly be eligible to make a breast enlargement claim. Speak to Advice.co.uk and we will be able to offer you further information. We may ask about any other symptoms you have experienced in order to establish whether or not you have a viable case to claim breast surgery compensation.

Claiming Compensation For Ruptured Implants

There is a very good chance that you will be able to make a compensation claim if one or both of your implants has ruptured. Implants are designed to be hard-wearing and should not break. You should be able to make a claim for both the physical and psychological suffering you have experienced following a ruptured implant. Recent evidence shows that PIP implants are more likely to rupture than other brands. Although PIP implants are no longer allowed in the UK, there have been many successful PIP implant claims. Contact Advice.co.uk to find out more about achieving compensation for ruptured breast implants.

Compensation Claims For Surgical Infections

Assuming that your surgeon was to blame for your surgical infection, you may well be eligible to make a claim. You will also have a good case if the wrong medicine was prescribed to you or if you experienced an allergic reaction to a medication that was administered without anybody checking your tolerance first. Advice.co.uk have many years’ experience in helping people go about making claims for medical negligence. We should be able to advise you whether or not you have grounds to make a claim following your surgical infection.

What Are PIP Breast Implants?

PIP implants have been banned in the UK since 2010 when it was discovered that they contained a silicone gel that had not been approved. These PIP implants were found to rupture much more easily than other types of implants. There is currently no indication that the PIP implants will have any serious implications for health but the symptoms of a rupture are unpleasant and if you have received PIP implants then you may be keen to have them removed. Unless the PIP implants have actually ruptured, there is no clinical indication for them to be taken out unless you feel anxious about the possibility of a rupture.

PIP implants are manufactured in France and the risk of rupturing is common to all implants made by the French company, Poly Implant Prosthesis (PIP). It is estimated that 47,000 women in the UK have PIP implants, most of which are still in situ.

Clues that an implant may have ruptured include a new swelling or lumpiness in the breast, redness, painful breasts, a sensation of burning or enlarged lymph nodes. If you notice any of these symptoms, you should see a doctor as soon as possible. You may be required to have an ultrasound or MRI scan to check for a rupture. If your implant has ruptured then you will need to have it removed.

If you are unsure whether or not you have PIP implants then your clinic will be able to advise you. Some private clinics have been willing to replace PIP implants for free. Check your clinic’s policy on PIP implants if you feel that you may wish to have them removed or replaced.

Compensation Claims For PIP Implants

If you have experienced problems following a procedure to fit PIP implants, you may well be able to claim compensation, particularly if you became unwell as a result. Many women might find it psychologically difficult to go through another surgical procedure and may experience a high level of anxiety when finding out that they have been fitted with PIP implants. PIP breast implant compensation has been payable to many women who have suffered as a result. If your PIP implants were fitted after 2010 when the implants were banned in the UK, then you will most certainly be able to make a claim as they have been fitted illegally.

Advice.co.uk will be able to provide further information on this and support should you wish to launch a claim.

How Long Do You Have To Make A Surgical Or Medical Negligence Claim?

Just like the standard personal injury claims time limit, the medical negligence claims time limit is also 3 years from the date of the incident or from the date that you acquired knowledge that you had an illness or injury.

Breast implant compensation

Breast surgery negligence

If you are unsure whether your case has breached the time limits,  speak to us at Advice.co.uk and we will look into the details of your case.

Personal injury claim time limit
Clinical Negligence3 years after the cause of the injury was discovered
Compensation following death3 years following the accident that caused death

Claiming For Medical Negligence With A No Win No Fee Solicitor

If you have a valid medical negligence claim for injuries you suffered due to breast augmentation surgery, then you could seek help from a solicitor. We recommend getting support from a solicitor who has experience with this type of case. If you contact our advisors, they may connect you with a No Win No Fee solicitor on our panel.

A No Win No Fee solicitor from our panel may offer to support your breast augmentation claim under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under this arrangement, you won’t need to pay any upfront or ongoing fees for their services. Also, if your claim is unsuccessful, there’s no need to pay your solicitor for the service they provided on your case.

If your claim is successful, then you’ll pay your solicitor a success fee. This is typically a small and legally capped percentage deducted from the medical negligence compensation awarded to you.

To learn more about breast augmentation compensation claims or No Win No Fee solicitors, you can contact our advisors. They can provide free advice about your potential claim. To contact our team, you can:

Further Advice For Victims Of Surgical Negligence

PIP Implants – NHS – What the NHS are saying about PIP

All about breast enlargement – Another page from the NHS.

Workplace Rights

No Win No Fee Claims

Other Criminal Injury Claim Guides