Criminal injuries compensation claims and CICA

When someone is seriously injured by another person’s unlawful behaviour or violent attack, they may be able to claim compensation for their injuries. The amount of compensation that they can claim, depends on how the injury occurred, its severity and its impact on the injured person’s life. In claims for criminal or unlawful injury, the amount of compensation that can be claimed also depends on whether the claim is made against the CICA or an insured organisation or individual defendant.

Injuries caused by violent crime may be eligible for CICA compensation, such as:

• a physical attack or assault;
• manslaughter or murder;
• shaken baby (brain injury);
• sexual or physical abuse;
• acts of terrorism;
• arson.

Where the injury was caused by the negligence, criminal or unlawful behaviour of an individual or organisation with a duty of care (responsibility) toward the person who was injured, such as an employer or local authority, the injured person may be able to recover a higher amount of compensation by making a personal injury claim against the wrongdoer and/or their insurers.

You can talk to one of our experienced personal injury solicitors, free and confidentially, for advice on the best way to obtain compensation for your injury by contacting us.

Our personal injury lawyers specialise in obtaining rehabilitation and compensation for people with severe and life changing injury.

In compensation claims against an insured defendant, we can help our clients recover compensation for one or more of the following types of injury:

• head injury, brain injury or neurological injury;
• spinal cord injury or SCI (paraplegia, tetraplegia);
• major trauma or multiple injury;
• severe fractures or facial injury;
• amputation;
• severe burn and scald injuries;
• blindness;
• nerve injury;
• CRPS or chronic pain;
• severe scarring or disfigurement;
• PTSD or severe psychological injury;
• fatal injury.

Claims for compensation from the CICA can only be made for specific types of severe injuries. These include severe physical injuries, sexual or physical abuse, the death of a close relative or disabling psychological injuries which have been diagnosed by a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist.

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority or CICA is a government agency which provides compensation to seriously injured victims of violent crime. CICA handles more than 30,000 claims and pays out more than £130 million in compensation each year to people who have been injured by violent crime in England, Scotland or Wales.

CICA claims are different from personal injury compensation claims which are made against the person or organisation responsible for causing the injury and are usually defended or settled by the wrongdoer’s insurers. CICA claims are made directly to the CICA, rather than against the person who caused the injury. CICA deals with the claim, which it either rejects or accepts and pays the victim’s compensation. For the claim to be accepted, the crime must have been reported to the police, but the victim’s attacker or abuser does not have to be identified or convicted and is not made aware of the victim’s claim, which is handled confidentially by the CICA.

CICA claims have their own time limits, strict eligibility criteria, and processes for applications, review and appeals. Unlike personal injury negligence claims, in which the wrongdoer’s insurer pays compensation to the injured person for a wide variety of injuries and financial losses, CICA compensation is fixed by a tariff that is set by the government funded Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. CICA compensation is paid by the government via the scheme.

CICA’s compensation tariff usually results in a lower amount of compensation than someone with the same injuries would receive in a personal injury claim settlement or court award. CICA compensation is currently limited to a maximum of £500,000 in any successful claim.

CICA has strict eligibility criteria for who can make a claim. CICA compensation claims can be made by:

• a victim of violent crime who was injured;
• the close relative of someone who died as a result of violent crime;
• someone who witnessed a violent crime (or its immediate aftermath) in which their close relative was injured;
• someone who paid for the funeral of someone who died as a victim of violent crime;
• someone who was injured whilst taking a ‘justified and exceptional’ risk to try to stop a crime.

In addition:

• the person making the claim must satisfy the CICA’s nationality criteria;
• the crime must have happened in England, Scotland, or Wales;
• the crime must have been reported to the police without delay;
• the victim must have cooperated with the police in bringing the person who committed the crime to justice.

CICA also considers the victim’s own behaviour before, during or after the crime. The claim may be refused or the compensation reduced if the injured victim provoked or willingly took part in a fight, or had previous criminal convictions.

Victims of crime who fulfil CICA’s criteria can make their own application directly to the CICA, but where their injuries are complex or severe their compensation may be significantly increased if their claim is handled by an experienced solicitor.

The time limits to make a CICA claim are shorter than the limitation deadlines for personal injury claims. The general rule for CICA claims is that the application must be made within two years of the date of the crime which caused the injury.

Exceptions to the CICA’s two-year time limit include:

• a child who was under the age of 18 when their injury occurred, must apply before their 20th birthday;
• child abuse claims may be made up to two years from the date the abuse was reported to the police as an adult;
• CICA may allow claims in exceptional circumstances where there is a good reason for the delay, such as if the injured victim lacks mental capacity.

In all cases, the crime must be reported to the police before applying the CICA.

Failure to claim within the CICA’s time limit usually results in the injured victim’s claim being rejected. You should not delay making an application until the criminal court case has concluded. If the police advise you to delay making your CICA claim, you should seek advice from a specialist solicitor.

Our personal injury solicitors act for our clients in personal injury claims against insured defendants on a no win no fee basis. This means that if your claim succeeds, most of the legal costs will be paid by the defendant’s insurers, and there is nothing to pay if your claim is unsuccessful.

In CICA claims, the CICA does not pay any of the injured victim’s legal costs, so these must be paid from the injured person’s compensation. For this reason, it is possible for injured victims of crime to make their own application to the CICA, without instructing a solicitor. However, where the injuries are severe, we recommend that the injured person is advised and represented by a specialist solicitor as this can significantly increase the amount of compensation.