How To Check Your Eligibility To Claim Criminal Injuries Compensation

If you have been the victim of a violent crime, you may be thinking about seeking criminal injuries compensation and the eligibility requirements that you need to meet in order to do so.

Criminal injuries compensation eligibility

There are several avenues you can take to seek compensation for a criminal injury. For the purpose of this guide, we will be focusing on claiming compensation via the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA). The CICA awards compensation to those who have been injured as a result of a violent crime in England, Scotland or Wales and have no other way to seek compensation. We will explore this in further detail throughout our guide.

Additionally, we will provide details about the evidence you may need to provide to support your case and the time limits that may apply when claiming via the CICA.

Furthermore, we will discuss the compensation that you could be eligible to receive.

If you are interested in hiring a No Win No Fee solicitor to represent your claim, we could help by connecting you with a solicitor from our panel.

Learn more with our helpful guide. Alternatively, you can discuss your options with one of our advisers. Contact us today by:

Using the live chat feature below
Calling an adviser at 020 8050 2736
Completing our online contact form

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A Guide To Criminal Injuries Compensation Eligibility Requirements
When Are You Eligible To Seek Criminal Injuries Compensation?
The Importance Of Evidence In Proving Your Eligibility For Criminal Injuries Compensation
What CICA Compensation Could You Receive From A Successful Claim?
Why Make A No Win No Fee Claim For Criminal Injuries Compensation?
Learn More About The Criminal Injuries Compensation Eligibility Criteria

A Guide To Criminal Injuries Compensation Eligibility Requirements

The following sections will explore claiming through the CICA. However, there are other avenues you could take to seek compensation.

Firstly, you can make a claim directly against the perpetrator if their identity is known and they have the funds to pay compensation.

Alternatively, you can make a claim against a vicariously liable third party, such as a school or your employer if they failed to do everything they could reasonably be expected to do to prevent you from experiencing harm.

Finally, you could make your claim via the CICA. This is a means of claiming compensation when you are unable to claim against the perpetrator of the crime and when there is no vicariously liable third party responsible for your injuries.

For example, you may not know who assaulted you, or you do know their identity but they cannot afford to pay compensation. Likewise, it could be that your employer took concerns about discrimination at work seriously and took all reasonable steps to prevent you from sustaining harm but you still experienced an assault at work.

If no other route is available, you may be able to direct your claim for criminal injuries compensation to the CICA. Some of the circumstances which could lead to you making a claim include:

The next section will cover some of the CICA’s eligibility requirements. In the meantime, you can contact our team of advisers if you’d like to talk about your specific circumstances. They can provide insight about the criminal injuries compensation eligibility criteria during a free consultation.

When Are You Eligible To Seek Criminal Injuries Compensation?

In order to claim through the CICA, the incident must have occurred in England, Scotland, or Wales. It could also have occurred in a ‘relevant location’, such as a boat registered to the previously mentioned countries.

Additionally, to claim you must have been the direct victim of a crime of violence. The CICA has a specific definition for a ‘crime of violence’ and it includes:

Physical attacks
Other acts or omissions that cause physical injury to a person
Threats against a person, causing immediate fear of violence in circumstances that cause reasonable firmness to be in such fear
Sexual assault
Instances of arson or fire-raising

In addition, you must meet the CICA’s residency requirements. You must also have reported the incident to the police as soon as possible. You must submit a crime reference number to the CICA so they can liaise with police about certain details.

The criminal injuries compensation eligibility requirements may differ if you are claiming via another route. For more information, get in touch on the number above.

Is There A Time Limit For Claiming Via The CICA?

The CICA have a time limit for how long you have to claim criminal injury compensation. You generally must begin your claim within 2 years of reporting the incident to the police, which must be done as soon as possible.

However, exceptions could be made if you can prove there were extenuating circumstances that prevented you from either reporting to the police or beginning your claim within the two year time limit.

If you have questions about the time limits, please get in touch with our advisers via the phone number above.

The Importance Of Evidence In Proving Your Eligibility For Criminal Injuries Compensation

When making a claim via the CICA, you may be asked to provide evidence such as:

Proof that you meet the residency requirements
Medical evidence of your injuries
Evidence of any financial losses incurred as a result of your injuries
Proof that you reported the incident to the police, such as a police reference number

Additionally, you will be asked to provide medical evidence where appropriate. However, before you are asked to do so, the CICA will need further information including confirmation from the police that the incident was reported and that your behaviour didn’t contribute to the incident in which you were injured.

To learn more about the criminal injuries compensation eligibility criteria, please get in touch with an adviser. They can also discuss the evidence needed to make a claim via the CICA. They can also advise on what evidence you may need to provide if you take a different route to seek compensation.

What CICA Compensation Could You Receive From A Successful Claim?

After making a successful criminal injuries compensation claim via the CICA, you could receive a settlement comprising several heads of claim. This could include, for example, compensation for your injuries, a payment for special expenses and a payment for loss of earnings.

The CICA will reimburse a criminal injury in line with the tariff outlined in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012. While you may wish to use a criminal injury claim calculator to get an estimate of what you could be owed, we have created a table using figures from the tariff of injuries instead.

Injury	Amount	Details
Non-Consensual Penile Penetration	£22,000	Penetration of one or more of the vagina, anus, or mouth, that results in a moderate, permanent mental illness that is confirmed by a medical professional.
Non-Consensual Penile Penetration	£22,000	Penetration of one or more of the vagina, anus, or mouth, that results in serious internal bodily injuries.
Pelvis	£11,000	Fractured pelvis with continuing, significant disability.
Sexual assault (the victim is any age)	£8,200	A persistent pattern of severe abuse by one or more attackers that goes on for 3 years or more.
Face	£6,200	Fractured jaw that requires an operation and results in continuing, significant disability.
Knee	£3,500	One fractured knee that leads to a continuing and significant disability.
Eye	£3,500	Moderate loss of visual field that is permanent.
Eye	£3,500	Detached retina in one eye.
Teeth	£2,400	Loss of two or three front teeth.
Finger and Thumb	£2,400	Fracture or dislocation of thumb on one hand, with a continuing and significant disability.

As per the Scheme, you can claim for a maximum of 3 injuries. However, you will only receive the full tariff amount for the most serious injury. For the second most serious or equally as serious injury, you will receive 30% of the full tariff amount. For the third most serious or equally as serious injury, you will receive 15% of the full tariff amount.

However, there are additional payments you can receive if your injury or the incident has resulted in you becoming pregnant, losing a foetus or contracting a sexually transmitted disease.

What Else Can Criminal Injuries Compensation Settlements Include?

You could also receive a payment for special expenses. These are financial costs that you have incurred due to your injury.

However, in order to be eligible for a special expenses payment, your injury must be serious enough that it caused you to lose earnings, earning capacity or be similarly incapacitated for more than 28 weeks. Also, the expenses must be reasonable, necessary and unavailable for free elsewhere. These expenses will be backdated to the date of the incident.

Examples can include damage to property or equipment that you relied on as a physical aid or care costs relating to your bodily functions.

You could also receive a payment for loss of earnings. However, to be eligible, you must have been completely unable or had a very limited capacity to undertake any paid work for more than 28 full weeks. If you are eligible, you will receive a payment for loss of earnings from the 29th week onward.

There are other criminal injuries compensation eligibility requirements that must be met to receive loss of earnings. Call our team for more information.

Why Make A No Win No Fee Claim For Criminal Injuries Compensation?

You could work with a No Win No Fee solicitor who offers their services under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA).

Under a CFA, you generally do not have to pay for your solicitor’s services if your claim fails. You also usually won’t have to pay for these services in order to begin the claim or during the claiming process.

Instead, the solicitor will take a success fee at the end of the entire process, if your claim is successful. This fee is taken from your compensation amount and is subject to a legal cap.

We Offer Free Legal Advice – See If You Can Make A CICA Claim Today

If you have any further questions about the criminal injuries compensation eligibility criteria, you can contact our team. Our advisers are available 24/7 and can provide free legal advice about your potential claim.

You can get in touch by:

Using the live chat feature below
Calling an adviser at 020 8050 2736
Completing our online contact form

Learn More About The Criminal Injuries Compensation Eligibility Criteria

Below, please find some additional resources that could help:

Additionally, we have provided some of our other guides that you may find beneficial:

Thank you for taking the time to learn about the criminal injuries compensation eligibility criteria for claiming via the CICA. For more information, get in touch on the number above.

Writer Morgan Fox

Editor Meg Maloney

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Criminal Injuries Compensation Eligibility Guide