Concussion Injury Compensation

Question:

I made a claim for concussion injury compensation after an accident at work for which my employer admitted liability. However the Injuries Board assessment of how much compensation for a concussion injury I should get seems low to me. Should I accept it?

Answer:

Without conducting an evaluation of your concussion injury compensation claim, it is impossible to determine whether you should accept the Injuries Board´s assessment of how much compensation for a concussion injury you should receive or not. The Injuries Board will have made their calculations based on the information you provided them when you submitted your concussion injury compensation claim and the independent medical examination you underwent.

Admittedly, there is no dedicated area on either the online application or the hard copy of Application Form A for you to expand on how the concussion injury has affected your everyday life and, without knowing the how badly you may have been incapacitated by your concussion injury, the Injuries Board will have calculated how much compensation for a concussion injury you were entitled to based only on the medical facts of your concussion injury in relation to your sex, age and general state of health prior to your accident at work and the brain injury compensation figures published in the Book of Quantum.

Your “loss of amenity” is an important factor in a concussion injury claim should you be unable to complete day-to-day tasks or if your enjoyment of leisure and social pursuits has suffered because of the bang to your head. Due to the nature of some concussion injuries, this factor can account for a substantial part of a concussion injury compensation claim and it is strongly recommended that you maintain a diary to record the effect that your brain injury has on your daily quality of life.

If you have suffered any form of negative effect on your emotional well-being due to how your work concussion injury occurred or during your recovery, you may also be able to include this element of your accident in your concussion injury claim for compensation. Victims of a concussion injury may develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder if their concussion injury occurred in a particularly violent accident, or become anxious and depressed during their recovery. Furthermore, if these emotional traumas manifested after the medical examination of your concussion injury had taken place, they would have been omitted from the information communicated to the Injuries Board and left out of the Injuries Board´s assessment of your claim for concussion injury compensation.

With so many possible variables, it is easy to understand why no two concussion injury claims for compensation are the same and why you may believe that the Injuries Board´s assessment of your concussion injury compensation claim is low. It could be possible that your perception of how much compensation for a concussion injury you should be entitled to is based upon what you have heard or read but, unless you undergo an evaluation of your injury and its consequences with an experienced concussion injury claims solicitor, it is unlikely that you will ever be certain that the assessment conducted by the Injuries Board reflects the true extent of your concussion injury or represents adequate concussion injury compensation.

As the Injuries Board Ireland has already issued its assessment of your concussion injury compensation claim, it is recommended that you speak with a concussion injury claims solicitor at the first practical opportunity. Once you have discussed the circumstances of your concussion injury at work and the consequences that the injury has had on your quality of life, your solicitor will advise you whether to accept the Injury Board Ireland´s assessment of your concussion injury claim or to pursue your entitlement to concussion injury compensation through other channels.