Your eyes are one of the most important parts of your body. Thus, it’s very unfortunate if your eyes become injured and damaged during a laser eye surgery procedure, especially when it isn’t your fault and should never have happened. If you want to seek compensation for a botched laser eye surgery procedure, you can apply for a laser eye surgery claim.
How Soon Should You File for A Laser Eye Surgery Claim?
The answer is as soon as possible. However, there may be times when you cannot immediately attend to it since your own health is your priority. You are given up to 3 years to file for compensation against the clinic and/or the doctor. Once the 3 years have gone by, the claim will no longer be honoured by any party, including the court.
If the operation is performed on a child or a minor, the claim is suspended until they are 18 years old. By then, the three-year time limit begins. It’s possible, however, that the child appoints a parent or a guardian to file the claim on his or her behalf.
How Much Will The Solicitor’s Fee Costs?
Many factors can affect the overall costs of a solicitor. These include the type of claim, the amount you wish to claim, and the decision of the defendant. If you’re worried about the fees, you can check if the firm offers a conditional agreement known as no win, no fee. As its name implies, you don’t pay for the service except for a certain fee. Remember, though, that these firms agree on such arrangement only when the likelihood of winning the claim is extremely high.
Needless to say, this setup is helpful especially since the UK no longer provides legal aid for personal injury cases.
What To Do?
Here are some of the steps in a laser eye surgery claim:
- Look for a solicitor who will assess your claim.
- If it is valid, gather all the documents and other materials that will serve as your evidence.
- The solicitor then informs the other party of the claim.
- The other party is given up to 3 months to investigate and reply.
- If he accepts the liability and pays the compensation, the claim is settled. If he doesn’t, it moves on to court.
What If The Defendant Operates In Another Country?
The UK laws on personal injury claims can already be quite complex since many factors have to be considered. However, it becomes even more problematic and complicated if such a claim has to be addressed to a defendant operating in another country.
If you have your laser eye surgery in another country and you wish to file for a claim against the facility or the practitioner, then you need to find somebody who also works there. This is because their rules on personal injury can be very different from those of other countries. Besides, it’s already outside the physical jurisdiction of a UK solicitor.
That doesn’t mean, however, you can no longer talk to a UK solicitor. A solicitor is the best person to ask when you want to get more information about the claims processes of other countries. It’s also likely the solicitor will know someone or a firm overseas who can help you get a claim.
