NHS medical negligence liabilities hit £58.2bn amid calls to improve patient safety

The NHS’s total liabilities for medical negligence have hit an “astounding” £58.2bn amid ministers’ failure to improve patient safety, an influential group of MPs have warned.

The Commons public accounts committee (PAC) said the “jaw-dropping” sums being paid to victims of botched treatment and government inaction to reduce errors were “unacceptable”.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has set aside £58.2bn to settle lawsuits arising from clinical negligence that occurred in England before 1 April 2024, the PAC disclosed.

“The fact that government has set aside tens of billions of pounds for clinical negligence payments, its second most costly liability after some of the world’s most complex nuclear decommissioning projects, should give our entire society pause,” said Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the PAC chair.

“This is a sign of a system struggling to do right by the people it is designed to help,” he added.

The PAC urged ministers to take urgent steps to reduce “tragic incidences of patient harm” and to also end a situation where lawyers take an “astronomical” 19% of the compensation awarded to those who are successful in suing the NHS. That amounted to £536m of the £2.8bn that the health service in England paid out in damages in 2023-24 – its record bill for mistakes.

“Far too many patients still suffer clinical negligence which can cause devastating harm to those affected,” and the ensuing damages drain vital funds from the NHS, the report said.

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Source: The Guardian, 14 May 2025