The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority operates from offices in Glasgow and London and its purpose is to compensate the victims of violent crime for any physical or mental injuries that they have suffered. The fund which deals with injuries in England, Scotland and Wales was set up in 1964 and now distributes over £200 million pounds in compensation every year. There is a separate scheme for Northern Ireland.

Damages were assessed on a common law basis in the same way that claims are assessed for injury in the County Courts however in 1996 a tariff scheme was introduced which was amended in 2001. The tariff scheme operates by classifying all injuries into bands dependent on severity and thereafter awarding the appropriate tariff for that band.

The scheme will not pay out for trivial injuries and an application will be only considered if :-

• physical or mental injury arises as a result of a violent crime
• the incident occurred in England, Scotland or Wales
• the injury lasted at least 6 weeks and required at least two visits to a medical practitioner

The scheme will only pay out if :-

• the violent incident was reported to the police as soon as was reasonably practical
• the application is received by the CICA within two years of the violent incident

Awards may be reduced or refused for a number of reasons including :-

• failure to report the matter to the police as soon as possible which involves making a formal report
• refusal to assist the police in their investigation or any subsequent prosecution
• in the event that a report to the police is impracticable a report must be made to a person in authority at a relevant organisation
• failure to cooperate with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority
• an unacceptable record of previous convictions making it inappropriate to be compensated from public funds
• behaviour before during or after the event :-
  • voluntarily being involved in a fight
  • striking the first blow
  • injured whilst taking revenge after an attack
  • if drink or drugs contributed to the attack or injury
  • if abusive language or gestures provoked an attack
  • any behaviour that causes or contributes to an attack

Claims can be made for violence, including sexual offences within the family however there is a general rule that compensation must not benefit the attacker which precludes payment of an award if the attacker and victim reside together as members of the same family. There are other complicated rules relating to these provisions and a prospective applicant should take immediate advice.

If you have suffered injury in a violent assault you may be able to claim compensation even if the attacker has not been identified or traced or convicted. We operate the no win no fee scheme and no charge is made unless you actually receive compensation. If your claim is refused or rejected you pay nothing. For like free legal advice just complete and send the contact form or use the telephone helpline and our experts will advise on your potential claim without further obligation. If after talking to us you decide to proceed no further then that is your prerogative and you will not receive any bill from us for our initial advice.

We are an independant claims company with no connection to the CICA. We do not charge you any fee whatsoever unless our claim, on your behalf, to the CICA is sucessful.