Fatal Injury Claims Solicitors

Losing someone you love is one of the hardest experiences anyone can face. When that death was caused by someone else’s negligence, the practical and financial consequences can feel overwhelming on top of the grief.

You may be wondering whether you are able to claim at all, what a claim would involve, or whether now is even the right time to ask. Our specialist solicitors are here to answer those questions gently and clearly, at whatever pace feels manageable for you.

We help families across London and the wider UK bring fatal injury claims and recover fatal accident compensation following a death caused by an accident or by negligence. As part of our wider team of personal injury solicitors in London, we handle every enquiry with care, patience and complete confidentiality.

 Lost a Loved One? Contact Us Today

If someone close to you has died as a result of an accident or negligence, early legal advice can help you understand where your family stands and make sure important evidence is preserved. There is no obligation, and we will always be straightforward with you about whether we can help.

Our fatal injury solicitors can help you to:

• Understand whether your family may have a claim
• Identify who is entitled to claim, and in what capacity
• Understand what a fatal injury claim can cover
• Explain how the process works and how long it may take
• Guide you through the next steps at a pace that suits you

Speak to our team today to discuss your circumstances.

What Is a Fatal Injury Claim?

A fatal injury claim is a compensation claim brought after someone has died as a result of another person’s negligence. It is a civil claim, made against the person or organisation responsible, or more usually against their insurers.

No claim can undo what has happened. What it can do is recognise that the death should not have occurred, and provide financial security for the people who depended on the person who died.

Fatal accident claims work differently from other personal injury claims in one important respect. Where someone has died, there are two separate types of claim that may be available, and they can often be brought together as part of the same case:

• A claim on behalf of the estate, for losses the person themselves suffered before they died
• A claim by their dependants, for the financial and practical support they have lost

Understanding which of these applies to your family is one of the first things we will help you with.

Who Can Make a Fatal Accident Claim?

Not everyone affected by a death is legally entitled to bring a claim. The rules are set out in law, and they can feel restrictive at a time when a great many people are grieving. We will look at your family’s circumstances and explain clearly where you stand.

Claims on Behalf of the Estate

A claim on behalf of the estate is brought by the person’s personal representatives — usually the executors named in a Will, or the administrators of the estate where there is no Will.

This type of claim covers losses suffered by the person before they died. That can include any pain and suffering they experienced between the accident and their death, together with financial losses such as lost earnings during that period. Funeral expenses paid by the estate may also be recovered.

Claims by Dependants

Separately, certain family members who depended on the person financially or practically may bring a claim in their own right. The law sets out who counts as a dependant, and the list is broader than many people expect. It can include:

• A husband, wife or civil partner, and former spouses or civil partners
• A partner who lived with the person as though married or in a civil partnership, for at least two years immediately before the death
• Children, including adopted and step-children, and other descendants
• Parents, grandparents and others treated as a parent
• Brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and their children

Being on that list is only the starting point. A dependant also needs to show that they relied on the person who died — financially, or for services such as childcare, care or work around the home.

Bereavement Damages

A fixed statutory award, known as bereavement damages, may also be available. This is a set sum recognised by law rather than an amount calculated from your individual losses.

Only a narrow group of people can receive it: a husband, wife or civil partner; a partner who had lived with the person for at least two years immediately before the death; or, where the person who died was an unmarried child under 18, their parents.

What Fatal Accident Compensation Can Cover

Every case is different, and the value of a claim depends entirely on individual circumstances. We will explain honestly what can be recovered in your situation and how it is assessed.

Depending on the case, fatal accident compensation may include:

• Loss of financial dependency — the income, pension and other financial support the household has lost
• Loss of services — the practical contribution the person made, such as childcare, caring responsibilities, household work or maintenance
• Funeral expenses
• Losses suffered before the death — including pain and suffering, and lost earnings or expenses between the accident and the death
• Bereavement damages, where a family member qualifies

Calculating a dependency claim properly takes care. It often involves looking many years ahead, particularly where young children are involved, and we work with independent experts where that is needed to get it right.

Types of Fatal Accident We Advise On

A fatal injury claim can arise from almost any kind of accident or act of negligence. The principles above apply whatever the circumstances, but establishing who was responsible depends on how the death happened.

We advise families following deaths on the road, including collisions involving drivers, passengers, motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians — you can read more about establishing responsibility in road traffic accident claims. 

Where someone has died in a workplace accident, their family may be entitled to fatal accident at work compensation, and our page on accident at work claims explains more. 

We also act where a death has followed avoidable failures in medical care, which are handled by our clinical negligence lawyers, and where a death has been caused by unsafe premises or public spaces, which may give rise to public liability claims.

Whatever the circumstances, if someone you love has died and you believe it could have been prevented, please speak to us. We will tell you honestly whether we think there is a claim.

Inquests and Fatal Injury Claims

Where a death is sudden, violent or unexplained, a coroner will usually open an inquest. An inquest is not a claim and does not award compensation — it is a fact-finding process to establish how the person died.

For many families, the inquest and the civil claim run alongside one another. Evidence heard at an inquest can be highly relevant to a fatal injury claim, and being properly represented at that stage can make a real difference to what follows.

We can support you with both. If you would like to know more about the process and what representation involves, please see our page for inquest solicitors.

Time Limits for Fatal Injury Claims

Fatal injury claims are subject to strict time limits, and they work differently from other personal injury claims.

As a general rule, a claim must be started within three years of the date of death, or within three years of the date the family first knew that the death may have been caused by negligence. Where the person died within three years of the accident itself, a fresh three-year period usually begins on the date of their death.

There are exceptions. Different rules apply where a dependant is a child, and courts have a discretion to allow claims to proceed outside the time limit in certain circumstances — although that discretion cannot be relied on.

We would never want a family to feel rushed. Equally, contacting a solicitor early gives us the best opportunity to preserve evidence while it is still available.

Related Personal Injury Services

How Our Fatal Injury Solicitors Can Help

We understand that instructing a solicitor may be the last thing you feel able to do right now. Our role is to take the legal burden off your family, so you can concentrate on each other.

We can:

• Explain clearly, and without pressure, whether a claim is likely to be available
• Identify who in your family is entitled to claim, and in what capacity
• Investigate how the death happened and establish who was responsible
• Gather evidence, including independent expert evidence where required
• Support you through an inquest where one is held
• Value the claim carefully, including long-term dependency losses
• Negotiate with insurers and, where necessary, issue court proceedings
• Keep you updated in plain English throughout, at a pace that suits you

Where it is easier for you, we can meet at your home or in hospital, and we can arrange an independent interpreter if English is not your first language.

Why Choose TV Edwards?

• Specialist personal injury solicitors. Fatal claims are handled by experienced solicitors within our dedicated personal injury team.
• Support through the inquest and the claim. We can guide your family through both, so you are not repeating your story to different firms.
• A compassionate approach. We take instructions sensitively and at your pace, and we will always be straightforward with you about what is realistic.
• An established London firm. We have supported clients across London and the wider UK for many years.
• Practical, joined-up advice. Where a death raises questions about probate or the estate, colleagues elsewhere in the firm can advise.
• Clear communication. You will know who is handling your case, what is happening and what comes next.

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