NHS Medical Negligence Claims Statistics 2025/2026: National & Essex Data

• 424 new medical negligence claims received – a 20.5% increase from 2023/2024
• £97.5m was paid in damages across clinical claims – an 18% increase from 2023/2024 figures (£82.6m)
• 36+ obstetrics (birth injury) claims received valued for a combined £48.1m – a 34% increase from 2023/24 figures (£35.8m)

*This is gathered from NHS Resolution data on the following NHS Trusts: Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, and The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust.

According to the latest NHS Resolution Annual Report & Accounts, the NHS received a record-breaking 15,236 claims requests nationwide in 2025/2026. For perspective, that's nearly 42 claims per day.

This is a 5.6% increase from 2024/2025’s figures, and marks the latest in a longer trend of medical negligence claims growing since 2007/2008. This is also the highest total of clinical negligence claims made against the NHS in its history, surpassing the 15,078 received in 2021/22.

However, while this number appears large, it pales in comparison to the estimated 353 million primary care appointments local GP practices handle annually. This reassures us that medical negligence remains rare, though it has consistently grown over the last two decades.

How does national claims data compare to Essex claims data?

To compare medical negligence claims data in Essex with national figures, we have compiled the data from four Essex-based NHS Trusts:

• Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust
• Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
• East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust
• The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust

According to this data, these Essex-based trusts accounted for 424 claims received in 2024/2025 – approximately 3% of the total claims nationwide across 134 NHS Trusts.

This represented a 5.7% rise in the number of claims compared to 2023/2024 figures, and a 22.9% increase on 2022/2023. Consequently, we can see that the growth rate of clinical claims in Essex is slightly greater than the national rate, but not by enough to suggest that Essex NHS Trusts are more prone to errors. 

Our own experience as solicitors in Essex tells a slightly different story. In 2025, we received 949 claims requests from prospective claimants. Although this was a slight decrease on 2024's total of 979 claims, it remains significantly greater than our totals from several years earlier. Our number of accepted cases trended similarly.

Both nationwide NHS Resolution data and our local data in Essex show that we are seeing a higher volume of negligence claims now than at any time before. In addition, as more claims are pursued, the threshold for accepting and settling cases is also rising.

This emphasises the need to choose a specialist clinical negligence firm to represent your case. Working with an experienced solicitor, such as our experts at Gadsby Wicks, increases the likelihood that your claim is viable and recovers the compensation you deserve.

NHS Resolution states that a total of £3.24 billion was paid against all NHS clinical negligence schemes in 2025/2026, with £2.43 billion representing compensation paid to the claimants.

This is a near 5% rise over 2024/25 figures – slightly less of a leap than in recent years, but still representing a record for NHS Resolution payouts in a calendar year.

Interestingly, however, just 5,990 clinical claims closed with damages in 2025/26, a significant 23% drop from the previous year's figures (7,806). 

As the total compensation paid to claimants increased despite this reduction in closed claims, this indicates a large increase in the average compensation awarded per claim compared to the previous year.

This could be a signal of higher settlements across the board, or it may have simply been a year with an unusually large number of high-value cases. We'll need to compare next year's data to see if a trend emerges.

Looking more closely, obstetrics (birth injury) claims are the most “valuable” type of claim, accounting for a substantial 54.9% of the value of claims received in 2025/2026. For comparison, the next largest speciality, emergency medicine, represented just 7.5%.

The national data aligns closely with our recent medical negligence claims data in Essex. Between June 2019 and August 2026, our estimated case value has totalled £132,226,000.

Although birth injury claims represent just 17% of all claims we have pursued since January 2021 (and only 6% of all claims received), they represent nearly 53% of our estimated case value in this period.

This is not hugely surprising. Since we launched our firm in 1993, birth injury claims remain among the most complex cases, and claimants will usually require lifelong care and treatment, such as claims involving Cerebral Palsy.

However, our local data demonstrate a more diverse spread of compensation awarded than NHS Resolution’s national statistics, with delayed diagnosis or treatment representing nearly 26% of our estimated case value between 2021 and 2026.

The main takeaway is that the total cost of clinical negligence is rising alongside the number of claims received, and that cases with the most significant, long-term repercussions (such as birth injury claims) typically attract the largest amounts of compensation.

In 2025/2026, 60% of clinical negligence claims pursued were closed with compensation (damages) awarded to the claimant. This is a noticeable rise from 54% in 2024/25, and the highest proportion seen for several years. 

This increase suggests that more claims are meeting the threshold for damages, showing that pursuing compensation is often worthwhile for claimants who believe they received negligent treatment.

This data is crucial as it highlights the importance of being represented by an experienced, specialist medical negligence solicitor or firm.

With three-fifths of all claims settled by NHS Resolution in this period resulting in payouts, working with a trusted expert is essential to ensure that your claim is investigated to the level necessary to prove your case and recover compensation.

Based on our 30+ years of experience in medical negligence claims, we can confidently say that many claims that do not secure damages are led by less experienced or generalist solicitors. We never pursue a claim that we are not confident we can win for our client.

Furthermore, this also demonstrates the value of choosing a “no win, no fee” medical negligence solicitor. Claims that do not result in compensation still generate legal costs. A “no win, no fee” or Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA) ensures you are never at any financial risk regardless of the outcome.

At Gadsby Wicks, our claim funding options all guarantee that you will pay nothing unless your claim is successful.

The national and local medical negligence claims collected above are more than numbers. They highlight trends at the heart of our sector and illuminate risk areas for patients in Essex and nationwide. 

So, what can we take away from the data above?

• The volume of medical negligence claims is rising both nationally and locally, putting more scrutiny on the quality and validity of claims
• Medical negligence compensation is also rising, but is more prone to fluctuation due to the unique circumstances behind every claim
• Birth injury claims are definitively the most "valuable" types of claims both nationally and locally, putting more pressure to improve the standard of maternity care
• Delayed diagnosis and treatment are consistently the most common cause of medical negligence, according to our claims data in Essex
• While three-fifths of claims now are closed with damages paid to the claimant, the importance of specialist advice and "no win, no fee" agreements remains as strong as ever
• More cases are being settled outside of court nationwide, meaning less stressful experiences for claimants

Using our 30+ years of medical negligence experience, we strongly believe that current trends relating to the number and value of claims – both nationally and here in Essex – have put more emphasis than ever on choosing the right solicitor to represent your case.

With the rising number and cost of medical negligence working against industry efforts to cut the cost of harm (such as the introduction of fixed recoverable costs), it is very possible that the thresholds for claims to be accepted will increase to attempt to find a balance.

This could mean that perfectly valid claims do not receive the compensation and justice they deserve if the evidence presented or the overall case is not deemed strong enough.

By choosing a true medical negligence specialist with a long track record of successful claims and a finger on the pulse of the latest data and trends, your claim has a much greater chance of achieving a successful outcome.

• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2025/2026
• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2024/2025
• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2023/2024
• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2022/2023
• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2021/2022
• NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2020/2021
• NHS Resolution Annual Statistics
• Clinical Negligence: What’s Changing? (The Law Society)
• Managing the Costs of Medical Negligence Claims (APIL)
• NHS facing ‘absolutely shocking’ £27bn bill for maternity failings in England (The Guardian)
• Delayed Diagnosis, Wrong Diagnosis, Failed or Delayed Treatment and Failed to Perform Test Statistics (NHS Resolution)
• Activity in the NHS (The King’s Fund)
• Obstetrics Claims 2018/2019 - 2023/2024 (NHS Resolution)
• Medication Errors 2017-2025 (NHS Resolution)
• 237+ million medication errors made every year in England (BMJ Group)
• Cost of settling clinical negligence claims has more than tripled in last two decades (National Audit Office)
• Gadsby Wicks internal claims data 2021-2026