CRIMINAL INJURY COMPENSATION SCHEME - UK CLAIMS
If you have been violently assaulted and suffered a personal injury then even if there is no conviction or if your assailant is unknown you can make a criminal injury compensation claim. The CICA is a Public Body which administers the Criminal Injury Compensation Scheme throughout England, Scotland and Wales. Its aim is to compensate innocent victims of violent crime. The CICA has offices in Glasgow and London and pays out over £200,000,000 every year. There is a separate scheme for Northern Ireland which is administered in Belfast.
Each injury is allocated a value under the Criminal Injury Compensation Scheme with tariff bands ranging from £1,000 to £250,000. The three most serious injuries are considered when assessing the award for trauma with a maximum total payment for pain and suffering of £250,000. The Authority will also consider claims for loss of salary and special expenses in certain circumstances to a maximum further award of £250,000. The overall maximum award is £500,000.
A personal injury award can also be claimed if you were present during an assault on someone close to you which caused you mental injury. If your parent, child, husband, wife or partner has died as a result of a violent crime, a sum may be payable for death and dependents may also be able to claim compensation. The Authority may also refund funeral expenses.
The Authority considers a number of factors when assessing an award:
- Time limits are relevant and the application must usually have been submitted within two years of the offence. Out of time applications can be made but are rarely successful except in unusual circumstances. It is worth considering an out of time application for certain sexual assaults including those with serious psychological consequences including rape and child abuse.
- The extent of the injury must be assessed under the CICA tariff scheme to have a value of at least £1,000. To qualify for this amount it is usually necessary to show that the effects of the injury lasted at least 6 weeks necessitating at least two visits to see a medical practitioner.
- The applicants behaviour is considered before, during and after the assault. If the applicant has deliberately provoked an attack or taken unreasonable action following the incident then the Authority may disallow the claim.
- Co-operation by the applicant is vital to ensure that the claim is properly investigated. The applicant must ensure that he reports the assault to the Police as soon as reasonably possible and must co-operate with any subsequent prosecution of the assailant.
- Unspent previous convictions for all offences are taken into account. The period that an offence remains 'live' and "unspent" is outlined in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act. Certain serious offences never become 'spent'.
- Motoring offences are excluded unless the vehicle has been deliberately used as a weapon and dog bite claims will only succeed on the same basis.
- Offences of violence within the family will be compensated except where the assailant will take some benefit from the award.
- It is not necessary for the assailant to be either identified or convicted in a Court of Law to make a successful application.
If you would like free advice from specialist personal injury solicitors just complete the contact form and we will phone you without obligation. We deal with Criminal Injury Compensation Scheme applications on a no win no fee basis and you do not have to provide any finance as the claim proceeds. You do not have to pay for any expenses or insurance. The CICA do not pay legal charges and if your claim is successful there will be a deduction from the monies paid to you to cover the cost of legal fees incurred on your behalf. If after talking to our experts you decide to proceed no further you will not be charged for any advice.
In the case of CICA claims terms will vary and in the case of MIB claims terms may vary.