Criminal Injury Compensation – Am I Eligible To Make A CICA Claim?

If you have been the victim of a violent crime, you could be entitled to recover criminal injury compensation. It is possible in limited circumstances to claim directly from your attacker, but this guide will mostly focus on how to claim through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).

Criminal Injury Compensation Key Takeaways

  • If you have been injured in a crime of violence, you could be entitled to compensation.
  • The compensation is based on a fixed tariff system, but in general, the more severe the injury is, the higher the amount.
  • It is possible to claim for certain financial losses.
  • The expert criminal injury solicitors from our panel could help you with your claim on a No Win No Fee basis

You can use the menu below to navigate our guide, or if you prefer, you can connect directly with an advisor by:

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Am I Eligible To Make A Criminal Injury Compensation Claim?

To be able to receive criminal injury compensation you must meet the eligibility criteria. They are that:

  • You have been the victim of a crime of violence, as defined in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 (The Scheme).
  • The crime happened in England, Scotland or Wales (or another relevant place such as a ship registered to one of these countries)
  • The crime was reported to the police, and you have co-operated with them.
  • The claim must be started within the 2-year time limit (although there are some limited exceptions to this).
  • You have no unspent convictions.

Crimes of violence include assaults, stabbings, and sexual assaults. If you would like to check if you meet the criteria to claim, you can reach out to an advisor for a free case assessment.

How Much Compensation You Could Claim For Criminal Injury

If your claim is successful, you will recover compensation. The Scheme has a list of tariffs, and your injuries will be valued in line with this. If you have suffered multiple injuries, then there is a formula that applies to calculate your compensation:

  • The injury with the highest value is awarded in full
  • 30% of the tariff figure is awarded for the second highest value injury
  • 15% of the tariff figure is awarded for the third highest value injury.

If you have suffered more than 3 injuries, you will receive no further compensation unless the case involves the loss of a pregnancy or the contraction of a sexually transmitted disease.

To illustrate potential compensation levels, we have made a table below that covers some of the injuries listed in the Scheme and their tariff figure. 

InjurySeverityCompensation TariffNotes
Multiple severe injuries with claimable financial lossesVery seriousup to £500,000Multiple injuries of a serious nature with significant loss of earnings special expenses and loss of earnings.
Brain damageVery serious£250,000No useful physical movement.
Moderate£55,000Moderate intellectual deficit.
QuadriplegiaSerious£250,000Loss of the ability to move the limbs.
EyesLoss of vision£110,000There is a loss of sight in both eyes.
Mental injurySeriously disabling£27,000Permanent mental injury that is seriously disabling.
ScarringSerious disfigurement of the face£11,000The face is severley disfigured by scarring.
EarLoss of an ear£11,000An ear is lost, but the other is not injured.
Arm - RadiusBoth Arms£11,000Continued significant disability due to fractures to both forearms.

Please note that the top figure cannot be found in the tariff as it represents the maximum amount that you could claim, which would include significant loss of earnings and special expenses.

This should give you an idea about injury compensation, so we will now move on to look at financial losses.

What You Can Claim For?

In addition to compensation for the injuries suffered, you could be awarded special expenses. These are financial losses and include:

  • A physical aid or property that you relied upon that is damaged in the incident
  • Adaptations made to your home, for example, a stairlift or ramp
  • Specialist equipment, such as mobility aids, to help you cope with your injuries

It is also possible to claim loss of earnings, but this cannot be claimed for the first 28 weeks that you are absent from work.

To discuss what you could be able to claim as part of your criminal injury compensation, get in touch with us today.

How Criminal Injury Cases Differ From Personal Injury Claims

Making a CICA claim is not the only way to recover compensation following a crime of violence. It is possible to make a personal injury claim against your attacker. This can be advantageous as there is a wider scope to claim financial losses. Also, your injury damages would be calculated on an individual basis rather than using a fixed tariff.

As damages can be higher in personal injury claims, it would make sense to pursue this avenue rather than a CICA claim. Whilst this is, in theory, correct, there are some practical considerations when thinking about suing your attacker:

  • Will they have the funds to pay your damages at the end of a personal injury claim?
  • Would you be comfortable taking them to court, where it is possible you could be required to give evidence?

You can use our compensation calculator to estimate your personal injury compensation. This is just for guidance purposes. and we would always recommend speaking to an advisor for more information.

Generally, we would only recommend pursuing damages from an individual directly if they had the means to pay at the end of the case and you were comfortable doing so. This is why the CICA exists: to help compensate violent crime victims without the worry of not actually receiving damages.

There is no requirement to exhaust the avenue of a personal injury claim prior to contacting the CICA. If you would like to talk over your options, we are happy to do so free of charge and with no obligation.

A man who is armed with a knife is climbing a set of stairs.

What Is The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA)?

As mentioned in the last section, the CICA was established to compensate victims of violent crime. It is government funded so if successful, you will always receive compensation.

There is no requirement for your attacker to be convicted or even charged by the police. So long as you meet the eligibility criteria in this guide, you should be successful.

The CICA will not always accept your claim, and you may have to appeal their decision. This is something one of the specialist criminal injury solicitors from our panel could help you with.

How Long Do You Have To Make A Claim?

There is a 2-year time limit for starting your CICA claim. This is from the date of the violent crime, but there can be exceptions. 

An example would be in cases of historical abuse of a sexual nature. The victims of such crimes may not have been able to report the crime at the time, or the perpetrator could have been a family member. Factors like these can be considered by the CICA if a claim is received outside the usual time limit.

There also can be exceptions for children as they are unable to claim themselves. They will have 2 years to claim from either the date they turn 18, or the date the incident is reported to the police (if this is after they have turned 18).

It should be noted that the CICA will expect you to report your incident to the police as soon as you are able.

How Our Team Of Solicitors Can Help You

The expert criminal injury solicitors on our panel can help you with your claim for compensation. They can:

  • Obtain your medical records or medical evidence to prove your injuries
  • Fill in the paperwork required by the CICA
  • Deal with any appeal if the CICA reject your claim
  • Advise you about the special expenses and loss of earnings that you could be entitled to
  • Making sure that the correct tariff is applied by the CICA to your case

Our panel solicitors can also handle your claim on a No Win No Fee basis by offering you a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Under a CFA:

  • If your case does not win, you do not have to pay your solicitor for their work
  • As your case progresses, you will not have to pay any solicitor’s fees
  • You also do need to pay any solicitor’s fees prior to your case starting

If your case is successful, a small deduction will be made from the compensation to pay your solicitor’s success fee. This is a legally capped percentage, which means you keep the majority of the criminal injury compensation.

A criminal injury compensation lawyer works on a case at a desk.

If you would like to know if you are eligible to make a No Win No Fee claim with one of our panel members, you can contact us for an eligibility check.

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More Information

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Thank you for reading our guide about criminal injury compensation. Call us for your free case assessment to start your claim today.