Wales shares the England-and-Wales legal framework, JCG bands for general damages, Whiplash Reform tariff for soft-tissue motor injury, three-year limitation.
Wales operates within the England-and-Wales legal framework for personal injury. The Judicial College Guidelines and the Whiplash Reform tariff apply identically. Limitation is three years.
Limitation Act 1980, s.11
Same as England, contributory-negligence reduction without bar.
Caps and ceilings imposed by Wales law that bear on settlement values.
Civil Liability Act 2018 + Whiplash Injury (Amendment) Regulations 2025
The handful of details that distinguish this jurisdiction from its neighbours.
Reported decisions, the limitation clock, and how fault is apportioned for each injury type under Wales law.
Reported Wales decisions for each injury type, each with a link to the judgment and to the full injury guide.
Marva Greyson brought a soft tissue claim under the RTA Protocol after a road traffic accident on 28 June 2017.
whiplash in Wales →Two claimants said they were hurt in a collision in Gloucester on 27 November 2020.
whiplash in Wales →On 4 August 2009 Robert Wilson, a scout leader on a week’s camp at Clyne Farm Centre near Swansea, came down the fireman’s pole at the end of the Burma Bridge on the Challenge Valley assault course.
back & spine in Wales →Crane drivers at a Corus steel plant in South Wales claimed back pain from overhead cranes.
back & spine in Wales →On 21 July 2018 Kirsty Williams-Henry and her family went out at night to see bioluminescent plankton off Aberavon beach.
head & brain in Wales →LMN was born by caesarean section on 14 February 2003 at the Princess of Wales Hospital, Bridgend, profoundly asphyxiated, with ischaemic brain damage and four limb cerebral palsy.
head & brain in Wales →On 23 April 2009 the claimant, playing in goal, had her left hand bent backwards by a hard shot and fell onto it.
fracture in Wales →On 23 June 2020 Hazel Boyd, an experienced work rider at a racehorse yard near Tonyrefail, was cantering a horse called Foxy on the gallops when he moved sharply right and she fell, suffering a dislocation and articular fracture of her right elbow.
fracture in Wales →In 2019 Richard Dee, a newly retired sailor, fell from a friend’s scooter after a regatta in Pembrokeshire.
medical negligence in Wales →The appeal concerned orders anonymising parties and restricting reporting in clinical negligence claims brought by children and protected parties, and in court approval of their settlements.
medical negligence in Wales →David Price, a chef at the Copper Penny pub, tripped over a raised metal strip on the kitchen floor on 14 February 2015 and fell against furniture.
workplace in Wales →Four food processing operatives who worked shoulder to shoulder at the 2 Sisters factory on Anglesey fell ill with Covid in June 2020, during an outbreak in which, they say, 217 of 560 staff caught it and Public Health Wales directed a closure.
workplace in Wales →Statutes and rulings that come up again and again in Wales injury claims, each with its source.
| The tariff | For whiplash injuries from 31 May 2025: £275 (up to 3 months) to £4,830 (18 to 24 months), or £300 to £4,975 with minor psychological injury.Whiplash Injury Regulations 2021, reg 2, as amended |
|---|---|
| Fraud must be proved | An insurer alleging a staged crash must prove it; suspicion is not enough, though the claim can still fail on the evidence.Khan v Nistor [2026] EWCC 5 |
| Contributory negligence | Your own fault reduces damages by a just and equitable share but does not defeat the claim.Law Reform (Contributory Negligence) Act 1945, s 1 |
| Activity centres | An adventure centre running an assault course was liable when a participant fell from a wet fireman’s pole.Wilson v Haden [2013] EWHC 229 (QB) |
| Work equipment controls | Employers must ensure no control for work equipment exposes the operator to a risk to health and safety, except where necessary.Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, reg 17(2), in Willock v Corus |
| Time limit | Three years from the injury, or from your date of knowledge if later; Wales follows the same Limitation Act as England.Limitation Act 1980, s 11(4) |
| Split liability | Liability for the pier fall was settled at two thirds in the claimant’s favour, reflecting her own share of fault.Williams-Henry v Associated British Ports [2024] EWHC 806 (KB) |
| Proving causation in birth cases | Without a negligent cause of delay in delivery, the material contribution test could not help the claimant.LMN v Swansea Bay University Health Board [2025] EWHC 3402 (KB) |
How Wales compares to its sibling jurisdictions in United Kingdom on fault rule and limitation period.
| Jurisdiction | Fault rule | Limitation |
|---|---|---|
| Wales | Common-law contributory reduction | 3 years from date of injury or knowledge |
| England (ENG) | Common-law contributory reduction | 3 years from date of injury or knowledge |
| Scotland (SCO) | Common-law contributory reduction | 3 years from date of injury or knowledge (called "prescription" in Scots law) |
| Northern Ireland (NI) | Common-law contributory reduction | 3 years from date of injury or knowledge |
Common questions about personal injury claims in Wales, answered with the relevant statutory references.
This page summarises the Wales statutory framework as of 2026-05-09. It is not legal advice. Statutes change, published verdicts move, and the position within any band depends on facts the page can't see. For representation, consult a solicitor practising in Wales. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.
