A medical assessment - properly called a medico-legal examination - is usually the single most important step in a personal injury claim. The report that comes out of it governs how your injury is characterised, how your prognosis is assessed, and how your claim is valued against the Judicial College Guidelines. Understandably, most claimants are anxious about it - they worry about being caught out, being disbelieved, or accidentally saying the wrong thing.
A medical assessment - properly called a medico-legal examination - is usually the single most important step in a personal injury claim. The report that comes out of it governs how your injury is characterised, how your prognosis is assessed, and how your claim is valued against the Judicial College Guidelines. Understandably, most claimants are anxious about it - they worry about being caught out, being disbelieved, or accidentally saying the wrong thing.
There's no need to be anxious. This guide explains exactly what happens, who attends, how long it takes, what the expert is actually looking for, and what to do (and not do) before and during the appointment. The short version: be honest, bring what you've been asked to bring, and let the expert do their job.
What is a medico-legal examination?
A medico-legal examination is an independent medical assessment conducted by a qualified doctor or specialist for the purpose of producing a report to be used in a legal claim. The key word is 'independent' - the expert is not your treating clinician and isn't there to provide treatment. Their job is to:
- Diagnose what injury or condition you have.
Their report will then be used by your solicitor - and, in due course, the defendant's insurer and (rarely) the court - to value your claim.
The two main types of medical examination
MedCo examination - for OIC / low-value RTA claims
If your claim is a whiplash or other soft-tissue injury from a road traffic accident, valued under £5,000 and under 24 months recovery, your first medical report comes from a MedCo-accredited expert. The MedCo portal (set up under the Civil Liability Act 2018 reforms) randomly allocates claimants to an accredited medical reporting organisation, which appoints an expert. The examination is:
- Standardised in structure - a defined questionnaire plus a specific physical examination.
The random allocation is a core part of the reform - it prevents 'expert shopping' by either side. You cannot choose your MedCo expert; it's deliberately structured that way.
Pre-Action Protocol expert - for standard, higher-value, and complex claims
For claims outside the MedCo portal - cyclists, pedestrians, motorcyclists, work accidents, clinical negligence, industrial disease, and any case over the MedCo threshold - the expert is selected by the claimant's solicitor (with the defendant entitled to raise reasonable objection under CPR Part 35). The expert specialty is matched to the injury:
- Orthopaedic surgeon - for musculoskeletal injuries.
Serious-injury claims often involve multiple specialists across disciplines. Each produces a separate report covering their specialty.
Part 35 - the expert's duty to the court
One thing worth knowing: your expert isn't your advocate. Under Civil Procedure Rules Part 35, the expert's overriding duty is to the court - not to your solicitor, not to you, not to the defendant. The expert must give an honest, independent, objective opinion based on their examination and the records, even where that opinion is less favourable than either side would like.
This isn't a threat - it's a protection. It means the expert can't be influenced, pressured or 'coached'. It also means the report carries real weight in negotiation and at trial. In a typical case, the defendant's insurer gives significant weight to a Part-35-compliant expert report - which is exactly why the examination matters so much.
Before the appointment - preparation
- Read any questionnaire sent in advance - you may be asked to complete it before the appointment or bring it filled in.
Important tips - be honest, not tactical
- Be truthful. The single most damaging thing in a personal injury claim is exaggeration. If an expert suspects you're overstating symptoms, they will record it - and insurers will use it to argue fundamental dishonesty under s.57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015, which can throw out a claim entirely.
During the examination - what actually happens
- Arrival and ID check. You'll usually check in at reception, sometimes complete a short questionnaire if not done already.
Total time: 30-60 minutes for a standard examination. Longer for complex or multi-system injuries.
After the examination - the report
The expert prepares a written report in the form required by CPR Part 35 and its Practice Direction. The report typically includes:
- Your history as recorded by the expert - you can correct factual errors.
The report is sent to your solicitor first. You have a chance to review it for factual accuracy - incorrect names of employers, wrong dates, misrecollected symptom descriptions. You cannot change opinions; those are the expert's. Factual corrections are usually handled by a short addendum or a revised version.
Your solicitor then discloses the report to the defendant's insurer in the normal course of the claim. Under the Pre-Action Protocol, the defendant can raise questions or - in a minority of cases - request permission to instruct their own expert, but the norm is that a single jointly-accepted expert report supports settlement.
How the report is used to value your claim
The report drives:
- General damages - your solicitor matches the diagnosis, severity and prognosis to the relevant Judicial College Guidelines 17th edition bracket, and positions you within it.
For the compensation framework see how much compensation and general vs special damages.
Can there be a second opinion?
Sometimes. Situations where a second examination is appropriate:
- Your recovery has significantly changed since the first report (typically 12+ months since the original examination).
For MedCo reports in OIC whiplash claims, a 'further medical report' can be requested where prognosis changes or additional symptoms develop. Your solicitor manages the process.
The serious warning - fundamental dishonesty
Under section 57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015, a personal injury claim that is 'fundamentally dishonest' can be dismissed in its entirety - even if parts of it were genuine. Exaggerating symptoms for gain, faking an injury, inventing an accident scenario, or pretending to be unable to do things you can do can all trigger this. The consequences are serious: no compensation, adverse costs orders, and potentially criminal proceedings for fraud.
The straightforward solution: tell the truth. Nothing more is asked of you. A genuinely injured claimant has nothing to fear from a fair examination.
