JCG 17th edition (April 2024) categorises facial injury into: fractures (cheekbone / zygoma, nose, jaw - mandible and maxilla), facial disfigurement / scarring, and damage to teeth. Each is valued separately and claims commonly combine two or more. The mass of a serious facial injury claim is often driven by the psychological overlay and the scarring bracket rather than by the fracture itself - which is why a competent valuation assessment takes all the strands together.
Casibus works with SRA-regulated personal injury specialists on a no win, no fee basis. Every case depends on its evidence.
JCG 17th edition facial injury brackets
Fractures of the cheekbone (zygoma)
Serious fractures requiring surgery with lasting consequences (paraesthesia, facial-nerve symptoms, residual deformity) sit in the mid to high four-figure range. Simple fractures with complete recovery sit in the low four-figures.
Fractures of the nose or nasal complex
Serious or multiple fractures requiring several operations and/or with permanent deformity / breathing difficulty: low five-figures. Displaced fractures with near-complete recovery after manipulation: low four-figures. Simple undisplaced fractures: low to mid four-figures.
Fractures of jaws
Very serious multiple fractures requiring prolonged treatment and with permanent consequences (eating difficulties, paraesthesia): mid five-figures to low six-figures. Less serious fractures with rapid surgery and good recovery: mid four-figures to low five-figures.
Damage to teeth
JCG separates dental injury into loss of / damage to several front teeth (mid four-figures), two front teeth (low four-figures), one front tooth (low four-figures), and back teeth (low four-figures per tooth). Long-term costs of bridges, crowns and implants often drive the special-damages element.
Facial disfigurement / scarring
See scarring claims for the fuller treatment. JCG separates facial scarring into: very severe (young claimants - usually under 30 - with very disfiguring scars and severe psychological reaction): mid-to-upper five-figures to low six-figures. Less severe: low-to-mid five-figures. Significant scarring, less significant scarring and trivial scarring run down from there.
Common clinical patterns we see
- Zygomatic / orbital fracture - dashboard / steering wheel impact, fall-onto-face, assault; often treated with ORIF by maxillofacial surgery.
Routes to a face injury claim
- RTA - steering wheel / dashboard / airbag impact; motorcycle / cycling crash; pedestrian knockdown. See road traffic accidents.
Psychological overlay - why JCG makes the uplift
Facial injury - particularly scarring and disfigurement - regularly produces significant psychological sequelae: depression, anxiety, social avoidance, body dysmorphic disorder, PTSD. JCG recognises this explicitly in the facial scarring bracket by providing higher figures for 'very severe scarring in relatively young claimants where a severe psychological reaction causes a significant problem'. The psychological overlay is proved with consultant psychiatrist evidence and often increases the overall valuation well above the fracture bracket alone. See psychological injury.
Special damages in face / dental claims
- Maxillofacial / plastic / ENT surgery - private where NHS waits delay reconstruction.