Cosmetic Surgery Compensation Calculator

A claimant who suffered very severe facial scarring causing facial disfigurement could potentially receive between £36,340 and £118,790, according to the Judicial College (JCG). The JCG provides guideline compensation brackets for various types of injuries and illnesses.

It may be used by those calculating your general damages. This is awarded to you for the pain and suffering you have expereinced.

How much compensation you could be awarded under this heading will depend on various factors such as:

What harm has been suffered
The severity of this harm
Your prognosis
What treatments you have needed

In the following table, we look at compensation guidelines found in the JCG relevant to physical injuries, such as scarring. Note, the top figure does not come from the JCG.

Harm	Severity	Notes	Damages
Multiple forms of severe harm with special damages	Severe	The most serious forms of harm and special damages for lost earning, medical costs and other expenses	Up to £1,000,000+
Brain damage.	Very severe	The person will need full-time nursing care and they will suffer with double incontinence and little to no language function.	£344,150 to £493,000.
	Less severe	The person will have made a good recovery, returning to normal working and social life.	£18,700 to £52,550.
Bowels	Double Incontinence	Loss of natural bladder and bowel function with other medical complications.	Up to £224,790
Bladder	Complete Loss of Function	Complete loss of the bladder's control and function	Up to £171,680
Facial disfigurement.	Very severe scarring	A very disfiguring cosmetic effect with severe psychological reactions in a younger claimant.	£36,340 to £118,790.
	Less severe scarring	A significant psychological reaction and substantial disfigurement.	£21,920 to £59,090.
	Significant scarring	At this degree, the worst effects have been or will be reduced by plastic surgery.	£11,120 to £36,720.
Scarring to other parts of the body.	Multiple Laceration Scars That Are Noticeable or One Disfiguring Scar	Affecting the chest, back, legs, arms, or hands.	£9,560 to £27,740.
	Single Noticeable Scar Or Several Superficial Scars	Affecting the legs, arms, or hands.	£2,890 to £9,560.

Compensation For The Psychological Impacts Of Cosmetic Surgery Negligence

A case of severe psychological damage could potentially receive between £66,920 and £141,240, in line with figures in the JCG.

Cosmetic surgery procedures could also result in people experiencing psychological harm. As a result of the harm you experienced, you may develop a diagnosed psychiatric condition such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Compensation for PTSD or psychiatric damage generally may be assessed in line with the JCG.

In the table below we use some of the JCG’s brackets regarding psychological injuries. Please note that the first entry has not come from the JCG.

Harm	Severity	Notes	Damages
Multiple forms severe harm + special damages.	Severe.	Multiple types of severe harm and special damages for medical costs.	Up to £500,000+
Psychiatric damage - generally.	Severe	The claimant faces marked issues across multiple parts of their life with being able to cope with work and experiencing future vulnerability.	£66,920 to £141,240.
	Moderately severe	There are significant issues but there is a good prognosis	£23,270 to £66,920.
	Moderate	There have been marked improvements made.	£7,150 to £23,270.
	Less severe	Awards will consider how long any disability lasted for.	£1,880 to £7,150.
Post-traumatic stress disorder.	Severe	The person is prevented from working due to the permanent effects of the harm suffered.	£73,050 to £122,850.
	Moderately severe	The effects could cause the person a significant disability for the foreseeable future.	£28,250 to £73,050.
	Moderate	There should be no grossly disabling symptoms as the person has largely recovered.	£9,980 to £28,250.
	Less severe	In 24 months an almost complete recovery should have been made.	£4,820 to £9,980.

Additionally, you can also use our cosmetic surgery compensation calculator. If you have any questions about how to use this, you can contact our advisors.

How Can Cosmetic Surgery Compensation Claims Help Recovery?

Cosmetic surgery compensation claims could help your recovery by addressing financial losses associated with your case. This may be through special damages and interim payments.

Special damages are awarded for the financial losses you expereinced due to the harm you suffered. Financial losses which you may be compensated for, as well as evidence of such losse,s may include:

Lost earnings and income. Depending on how your earning potential and income were affected, this could constitute a large part of your settlement. You may be compensated for both losses already incurred, as well as future projected losses. Bank statements and payslips can be used as evidence.
Medical expenses. You may have had to pay for further surgery to correct severe scarring. You may also have had to meet costs such as counselling for psychological injuries or PTSD. Invoices and bills can be used to prove these losses.
Childcare costs. You may have been unable to look after your child during part of your recovery. Receipts for childcare costs may be submitted.
Cosmetic aids. You may require cosmetic aids as part of the treatment process for your physical or psychological injuries. You could provide receipts for these costs.

Some of these financial losses, such as lost income and medical bills, may place you in immediate financial pressure. Interim payments may be secured in some such cases. These could provide access to funds (deducted from your final settlement) you urgently need.

Securing special damages and interim payments could help you to meet financial costs and provide for your family whilst concentrating on your recovery. A member of our panel of solicitors could help you to understand and navigate the cosmetic surgery claims process. Contact our advisors to learn more.

Can I Claim Compensation For Cosmetic Surgery Negligence?

Yes, you could claim compensation for cosmetic surgery negligence if you suffered unnecessary harm due to substandard medical care. Eligibility for cosmetic surgery claims requires that you prove that:

You were owed a duty of care by a medical professional.
A medical professional breached their duty of care.
This breach caused you avoidable physical and/or psychological harm

All medical professionals, including cosmetic practitioners and surgeons, owe their patients a duty of care. This means they must provide you with the correct standard of care to avoid causing unnecessary harm.

What If My Procedure Was Done Through The NHS?

No matter whether your procedure was done through the NHS or a private healthcare provider, you could still claim compensation. Those carrying out cosmetic surgery procedures owe the same duty of care whether the service is provided by the NHS or at a private clinic. If your case meets the eligibility requirements, you could make a claim.

Compensation for claims made against the NHS would be paid via the relevant NHS Trust.

Can I Claim Against A Private Clinic

Medical professionals working for a private clinic still owe the same duty of care as all other medical professionals. If your case meets the eligibility requirements, you could still make a claim.

Any compensation would be paid to you through the private clinics’ insurance.

Am I Able To Claim For Cosmetic Procedures That Happened Abroad?

You may be able to claim for harm caused by cosmetic surgeries carried out abroad.

Although other countries may have differing surgical standards from those in the UK, we may still be able to help you make a claim if you have suffered negligence.

To see whether we may be able to help you with your cosmetic surgery abroad claim, you can contact our advisors.

What Procedures Could I Claim Cosmetic Surgery Compensation For?

You could claim cosmetic surgery compensation for unnecessary and avoidable harm resulting from any procedure.

You could claim compensation for harm caused by procedures such as:

Breast augmentation

This was the most popular procedure in 2022 with 6,707 procedures being carried out. The procedure aims to improve a patient’s appearance, or to restore shape.
Example – a surgeon uses defective breast implants, causing them to leak inside the patient and causing a severe infection they wouldn’t have otherwise suffered.

Breast reduction

This was the second most popular procedure, being performed 5,270 times. The procedure may be carried out to reduce the size of the breast, alleviating back pain or other symptoms.
Example – a surgeon poorly sutures the surgical incisions. This results in asymmetry between the breasts as well as avoidable, significant scarring. The patient may experience chronic pain and psychological distress.

Abdominoplasty

A total of 3,241 operations, including tummy tucks, were carried out in 2022. These procedures can be performed to tighten abdominal skin.
Example – poor post-surgical care of the wound leads to the patient contracting a hospital-acquired infection. This resulted in the patient requiring an extended hospital stay while they were treated for the infection.

Liposuction

2,318 such procedures were carried out in 2022. Liposuction involves the removal of fat deposits at different sites in the body.
Example – the procedure is carried out poorly, failing to meet acceptable standards. This leads to the patient developing a blood clot in the lungs. The patient has to undergo further treatment for this.

Please contact our team to learn more about claiming for clinical or hospital negligence.

What Are Some Examples Of Negligence In Cosmetic Surgery Claims?

Common Examples of negligence in cosmetic surgery claims could include surgical errors, the use of defective equipment or products and other similar failures.

Such examples may include (but are not limited to):

The failure to obtain informed consent – surgical teams should clearly convey any potential risks and side effects of procedures, such as a chemical peel. If a patient is unaware of potential risks, such as significant scarring, their recovery and psychological health may be impacted.
Surgical errors – mistakes during surgical procedures, such as an incorrect incision in a blepharoplasty, could cause scarring or even loss of sight.
Poor post-surgical care – poor follow-up care (whether as an inpatient in hospital or as an outpatient) could lead to serious infections. In some instances, infected wounds may require additional surgical treatment.
The use of faulty or defective equipment and products – the use of faulty surgical implements or defective implants may cause significant injury or infection. Such infections could lead to the patient developing sepsis.
Retained foreign objects – these may be left inside a patient due to a surgeon’s negligence. Such incidents could lead to infections or even internal bleeding.
Anaesthetic negligence – may include the administration of the wrong dose of anaesthesia. Complications could include respiratory diseases or trauma due to awareness of the surgical procedure.
Poor pre-surgical assessments – the inadequate pre-surgical evaluation of patients’ skin for a chemical peel could lead to scarring. The wrong skin type may be identified, causing scarring to the affected areas.

If you have experienced negligence and would like to know how a cosmetic surgery compensation calculator could help you, contact our advisors today.

How Do I Bring A Claim After Negligent Cosmetic Procedures?

To bring forward a claim after a negligence cosmetic procedure you must ensure that you collect a sufficient body of evidence and adhere to the relevant time limit.

When you make any type of claim for medical malpractice, you have to prove that negligence has occurred. Examples of evidence which could help you do this include:

Photographs of visible scars. These may include a single disfiguring scar, multiple scars or those caused by a head injury.
Medical records showing the original procedure you underwent, harm caused by this and subsequent care you required.
Details of anyone witness to the poor care and/or the harm you experienced.
Reports carried out by independent medical professionals. If you choose to work with a solicitor from our panel, they may ask that you undergo a medical examination. An independent expert would assess the harm you suffered and create a report detailing this.

There is also a time limit in which you must file your claim. Medical negligence claim time limits are set by the Limitation Act 1980. Under this legislation, you have 3 years from the date of the incident or of your awareness of this harm to begin the claiming process.

It is essential to note that time limits may vary for individuals under the age of 18 or those with reduced mental capacity.

To learn about these exceptions, ask any questions about using a cosmetic surgery compensation calculator, or see if a solicitor from our panel could help you, contact our advisors.

Why Choose Compensation Calculator UK

At Compensation Calculator UK, we work with an expert panel of solicitors who have years of experience working on cosmetic surgery claims and could help you with yours.

Some of the benefits of working with a solicitor on our panel include:

Help with gathering evidence to support your claim
Submitting your claim within the time limit
Negotiating your compensation to cover both general and special damages
Communicating with the defending party of your behalf

A solicitor from our panel could also help you by using a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). This facilitates claims under a No Win No Fee model. The benefits of using a CFA are:

You won’t have to pay anything upfront or during the progress of your claim for the solicitor’s services
There are no service fees to pay if the claim fails
You will pay a success fee if your claim succeeds. This legally limited percentage is taken from your compensation.

Get in touch with our expert team today for an assessment of your case and to learn more about using our cosmetic surgery compensation calculator:

Phone 0800 408 7826.
Use our live chat on this page.
Contact us by filling in our form.

More Information

Here you can find out more about how to claim compensation for different types of medical negligence:

View our compensation calculator for NHS medical negligence here.
Check how to claim for delayed diagnosis in this guide.
Here we look at how to claim for breast cancer misdiagnosis.

Reference guides:

BAAPS has produced information on safety in surgery for patients.
Find information and advice on choosing who will do your procedure in this NHS resource.
Further guidance on cosmetic surgery from the NHS.

Thank you for reading our guide on using a cosmetic surgery compensation calculator.

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How Much Compensation For Cosmetic Surgery Claims?

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