09. What can I claim compensation for?

There are two types of compensation you can claim.

General damages
General damages are for the pain and suffering you have had to cope with after an injury. The court decides how much this will be.

Special damages
Special damages are for money you've had to pay or earnings you have lost because of an accident. They can include loss of future earnings too. And if a member of your family has been killed, you may be able to claim compensation if they supported you.

Special damages compensation can also cover:

• damage to clothing or other belongings;  
• the cost of medical treatment;  
• travel costs to hospital for you and visiting relatives;  
• ongoing care, therapy or counselling to help you recover from or cope with your injury; and  
• the cost of hiring a car or repairing the one damaged in an accident.

If you need to spend money for things related to your accident or injury, you should keep receipts if you can. This will make it easier to claim the money back as part of special damages.

How does the court decide the compensation?
If a court decides you were partly to blame for your injuries, it may reduce the amount of damages you get (for example, if you were not wearing a seat belt when you had a car accident). This is called ‘contributory negligence’.

You may also get less compensation if the other side can prove you did not ‘mitigate’ your losses (that is, you did not do what you could to keep them to a minimum).

If you have been getting some types of benefit payments because of a personal injury, you may have to pay these back out of any compensation you get. The rules are complicated, and you should get expert advice. For more on claiming benefits, see the Community Legal Service leaflet 'Welfare benefits'.