Abstract

If people are injured in traffic or industrial accident, or through medical negligence, they can seek compensation through civil courts.  Serious injuries might result in long-term impairments, such as being unable to walk.  People might require lifelong social or medical support. Part of a claim is typically for sufficient money to ensure a reasonable quality of life. Estimating the quantum – what is sufficient – requires the input of several disciplines. An important contribution is estimating how long a person is expected to live.

Solicitors’ letters regarding life expectancy include questions such as:

How long is my client who suffered injuries at birth expected to live?

My client suffered a serious spinal cord injury in a road accident. He is a smoker. What is his life expectancy?

My client notified the NHS of her new address, but her appointment for cancer surgery was sent to her old address. What is her life expectancy given the delay in surgery, and what would it have been but for the error?

We will use several statistical techniques to address these questions.