Stillbirth Compensation Claims UK: Can You Claim After Negligent Care?

Quick answer: A stillbirth compensation claim in the UK may be possible where substandard antenatal or labour care caused or materially contributed to the death of a baby after 24 weeks of pregnancy in England and Wales, or where negligent care led to neonatal death shortly after birth. Typical scenarios include dismissed reduced fetal movements, missed growth restriction with delayed delivery, mismanaged placental abruption, and delayed Caesarean after clear fetal distress. Not every stillbirth is negligence: UK law asks whether care fell below a competent obstetric or midwifery standard and whether competent care would probably have avoided the death. Parents may also claim for recognised psychiatric injury. Eligible relatives may recover a fixed bereavement award of £15,120 under the Fatal Accidents Act, alongside funeral costs and other proven losses. Most families have three years from death or date of knowledge. Start with the Quick Claim Form on mayiclaim.co.uk. Figures below are illustrative only — not guarantees or quotes.

At a glance

• In England and Wales, stillbirth means a baby born with no signs of life after 24 completed weeks of pregnancy.
• A claim may be possible where negligent antenatal or labour care caused or contributed to the death — not every stillbirth is negligence.
• Common red flags: dismissed reduced fetal movements, missed growth restriction, delayed emergency Caesarean, mismanaged abruption.
• Parents may claim for recognised psychiatric injury; eligible relatives may claim the £15,120 Fatal Accidents Act bereavement award (who qualifies is tightly defined).
• Usual time limit: three years from death or date of knowledge.
• NHS claims go through NHS Resolution; private care via indemnity insurers.
• Start with the Quick Claim Form on mayiclaim.co.uk — free, confidential, no obligation.

Stillbirth vs neonatal death (claim snapshot)

Claim element	Stillbirth (after 24 weeks, England & Wales)	Neonatal death (live birth, dies within ~28 days)
Typical clinical focus	Antenatal monitoring, RFM, growth, timing of delivery	Intrapartum care plus immediate neonatal resuscitation/treatment
Fatal Accidents Act / bereavement	Eligible relatives may claim where negligence caused death	Same statutes may apply where negligence caused death
Estate claim (LRMPA)	Limited if never live-born; facts matter	Often clearer route for pre-death suffering if baby lived
Parent psychiatric injury	Possible if legal threshold met	Possible if legal threshold met
Illustrative overall band on live MIC birth pages	Roughly £15,000–£100,000+ (not a quote)	Overlaps; packaging of heads of loss can differ

Figures are illustrative only — not guarantees. See the compensation section below.

What counts as stillbirth negligence?

In England and Wales, a stillbirth is the birth of a baby with no signs of life after 24 completed weeks of pregnancy. A neonatal death is the death of a live-born baby in the first 28 days of life. A stillbirth negligence claim arises where avoidable maternity failures caused or contributed to that loss. Related birth injury claims and obstetrics and gynaecology claims cover the same pathway when the baby survives injured, or the mother is harmed.

Common patterns include reduced fetal movements dismissed without assessment, CTG, ultrasound or escalation; growth restriction ignored on serial scans or fundal-height checks, with delayed induction or planned Caesarean; placental abruption not treated as an emergency; and delayed emergency Caesarean after clear fetal distress. Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is an adjacent risk: failure to identify or treat GBS can lead to neonatal sepsis, meningitis or neonatal death — see also birth injury claims involving cerebral palsy, Erb’s palsy and negligence. Failures around pre-eclampsia or other high-risk pregnancies can also support a claim. The legal question is whether competent care would probably have changed the outcome.

When is stillbirth care medical negligence?

A tragic outcome alone does not prove negligence. Courts apply Bolam and Bolitho: care is judged against what a responsible body of competent midwives or obstetricians would have done, provided that opinion withstands logical scrutiny. A stillbirth medical negligence claim generally needs four elements — see our guide to medical negligence claims in the UK.

• Duty of care — almost always present once a midwife, obstetrician, GP or hospital maternity service accepts a woman for care.
• Breach of duty — care fell below the standard of a reasonably competent clinician (for example ignoring reduced movements, failing to escalate CTG concerns, or delaying delivery when findings required action).
• Causation — on the balance of probabilities, timely competent care would have avoided the stillbirth or neonatal death.
• Loss — measurable harm: the death and its consequences, psychiatric injury to parents, funeral costs, and any proven dependency or services losses.

NICE guidance and trust protocols often form the clinical backdrop to expert evidence — context, not a legal shortcut. Some babies die despite excellent care; a clear failure to act on red flags can still support liability after a Duty of Candour apology. For related maternal failings, see obstetrics and gynaecology negligence.

Evidence that helps a stillbirth claim

These cases are document-led. A specialist solicitor usually obtains records with your written authority. Useful material includes antenatal notes, growth charts and scan reports; attendances about reduced fetal movements; CTG traces; labour notes with decision times for induction or Caesarean; neonatal notes if the baby was born alive; placental pathology and post-mortem reports where available; complaint or serious-incident material; and a calm parental timeline. Funeral invoices, lost earnings and counselling records support special damages and psychiatric injury claims. Sparse notes do not automatically defeat a claim — start with letters and dated notes at home, then let the solicitor request the full set.

How much compensation might a stillbirth claim attract?

Important: The figures below are illustrative only. They are drawn from ranges on May I Claim’s live birth-injury and fatal-negligence pages. They are not a quote, promise, guarantee or Judicial College Guidelines extract for your case. Actual awards depend on medical evidence, causation, qualifying relatives, psychiatric injury and special damages. No reputable adviser can value a stillbirth claim accurately on first contact.

Where negligent care causes stillbirth or neonatal death, our birth-injury guide discusses an illustrative band of roughly £15,000 to £100,000+, reflecting grief-related heads of loss rather than lifetime care packages in surviving cerebral palsy cases. Separately, eligible relatives in England and Wales may recover a fixed statutory bereavement award of £15,120 under section 1A of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976 (as amended). Who qualifies is tightly defined — typically a spouse or civil partner, a qualifying cohabiting partner, or parents of an unmarried minor child as set out in the Act.

Under the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1934, the baby’s estate may recover damages for pain and suffering between injury and death where the baby was born alive, plus certain expenses. Under the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, eligible dependants may claim funeral expenses, lost financial support and loss of services where proved. Parents who develop a recognised psychiatric injury — for example PTSD after a preventable stillbirth — may claim alongside the fatal claim. A delay that did not change the pathway may attract little or no award; a clear failure on reduced movements or fetal distress that probably cost the baby’s life can support both liability and a meaningful award. For funding, see our no win no fee claims guide for 2026. For fatal clinical claims, read claiming when a loved one dies due to hospital negligence.

Time limits for stillbirth compensation claims UK

Most stillbirth and neonatal death claims in England and Wales must be issued at court within three years under the Limitation Act 1980. The clock usually runs from the date of death, or from the family’s date of knowledge — when you first knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that negligence may have played a part. Do not wait for every investigation to finish; limitation does not pause automatically. Section 33 discretion to allow late claims is never guaranteed. See personal injury claim time limits in the UK. If unsure, get a free assessment early.

NHS vs private maternity care

NHS maternity claims are normally brought against the trust and handled through NHS Resolution, not against the individual clinician personally. Claiming does not stop ongoing NHS care. An NHS complaint or Duty of Candour process can run in parallel; it does not freeze the civil limitation clock. Private obstetric care is usually defended by the clinician’s or hospital’s indemnity insurer. Your solicitor identifies the correct defendant, obtains records, instructs experts and sends a Letter of Claim under the Pre-Action Protocol.

How the May I Claim process works

May I Claim connects people with an independent panel of specialist solicitors. We do not cold-call, we do not buy leads for spam, and we are not tied to a single law firm. Stillbirth negligence cases are usually funded on a no win, no fee Conditional Fee Agreement, with any success fee capped at 25% of damages (excluding future losses) under rules your solicitor will explain in writing.

1. Complete the Quick Claim Form on mayiclaim.co.uk — the primary next step so details reach the team promptly and sensitively.
2. Free consultation — a trained adviser or solicitor reviews what happened and whether investigation is warranted.
3. Specialist solicitor match — if suitable, you are matched with an independent panel solicitor experienced in maternity and fatal clinical negligence.
4. Funding and evidence — Conditional Fee Agreement and After-the-Event insurance are explained; maternity records, CTG traces, scans and expert opinions on breach and causation are obtained.
5. Letter of Claim and resolution — formal allegations go to NHS Resolution or the private indemnity insurer; most claims settle without a final trial.

Typical investigations take many months; resolution often falls between roughly 18 months and three years. Completing the form does not commit you to issuing proceedings.

FAQs

Can I claim for stillbirth if there was no autopsy?
Yes, possibly. Liability turns on whether care fell below a reasonable standard and whether competent care would probably have avoided the death. Experts can often work from records, CTG traces, scans and placental histology even without a full post-mortem.

What if reduced fetal movements were my only warning?
Reduced or changed movements are a recognised red flag. If you reported concerns and were reassured without proper assessment, and the baby was later stillborn, that can support a claim — experts ask what a competent service should have done and whether earlier delivery would probably have saved the baby.

Can both parents claim for psychological injury?
Often yes, where each parent has a recognised psychiatric injury caused by the negligent care. Grief alone, without a diagnosed condition meeting the legal threshold, is more limited.

Is neonatal death treated the same as stillbirth for compensation?
The pathways overlap, but packaging differs. If the baby was born alive then died, the estate may have a clearer claim for pre-death suffering, and Fatal Accidents Act rules still apply for eligible relatives.

Will making a claim affect NHS care in a future pregnancy?
No. A civil claim is separate from clinical care. Using bereavement or subsequent-pregnancy pathways does not waive your right to seek legal advice.

Ready to take the next step?

If you believe negligent maternity care caused or contributed to a stillbirth or neonatal death, complete the Quick Claim Form on mayiclaim.co.uk.

Thanks — we’ll be in touch about your enquiry.

When you submit the form, you will be asked to confirm: I agree that May I Claim may contact me by phone, SMS or email about this enquiry.

We’ll only use your details to follow up on the claim you’ve asked about. You’re not signing up for cold calls or unrelated solicitor spam. You can ask us to stop anytime.

May I Claim connects you with an independent panel of specialists. We don’t sell your details for cold calling.

---

This article is general information about UK clinical negligence processes, not legal advice for your individual circumstances. Compensation figures are illustrative only and not guaranteed. mayiclaim is a trading name of R Costings Limited (Registered in England No. 4804492), regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under FRN 836625. May I Claim connects you with an independent panel of specialist solicitors; the legal work on any claim is carried out by the panel firm matched to your case.