The Criminal Injury Compensation Authority (CICA) is a government run authority that victims of violent crimes can call upon to award them compensation. The Authority has recently upgraded and changed some of its eligibility criteria in a bid to cut its annual bill but if the victim of a crime is still eligible then they still have the right to submit a claim to the CICA. The scheme is meant as a last resort and a decision regarding payment may be delayed while the victim continues to try and claim from their assailant or even their employer. You can download the new criteria by clicking here.

The crime must be reported to the police by the victim or a friend or family member. If no police report is filed and no investigation undertaken then the CICA will not intervene and any application will be rejected immediately under these circumstances. The CICA does not judge on whether a crime was committed, or by whom, but they may pay compensation to victims that have reported the crime to the police.

There is a two year statute on claims for injuries. This means that the victim has two years to submit their claim following the date of the accident. If the victim is aged under 18 at the time of the incident then they will have two years from the date of their 18^th birthday. There are some mitigating circumstances that allow for this period to be extended but this does not include claims that the victim was not aware of the scheme or the two year deadline.

Minor injuries are not covered by the scheme. As such, if the injury portion of the awarded compensation would be less than £1,000 then the claim will be rejected. The CICA says that they are a scheme that is set up to compensate the sufferers of serious injuries. This means that cuts and bruises will not usually be enough to justify a CICA compensation package. Mental and emotional injuries are considered when calculating this figure.

When it comes to loss of earnings, the CICA scheme will not usually pay for the first 28 weeks of time off work. The amount that may be awarded for this element of the crime is also capped. This all means that a victim may not receive the full compensation that they believe they are owed and they may still fall some way short financially once compensation has been awarded.

The behaviour of the victim is considered as part of the CICA scheme. This includes behaviour before, during, and after the incident and the CICA will even look into a person’s criminal record. Those with an unspent criminal conviction will not be considered for the scheme – changes that were introduced in November 2012.

There are critics to some of the changes and eligibility requirements. For example, there are groups that argue even minor injuries can lead to long term emotional and mental damage and so even minor injuries with a compensation value of less than £1,000 should still be considered by the Criminal Injury Compensation Scheme.

MAKING A CLAIM

Making a claim for your personal injuries with Stocks Legal is really easy. You can speak to an experienced personal injury solicitor today by calling 0800 988 9055 or you can use our online claim enquiry form by clicking here. There is no obligation and you have nothing to lose by speaking to us.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mike Topper is the litigation manager at Stocks Legal Personal Injury Solicitors. Mike is highly experienced in all types of personal injury cases. He is highly focussed on client care and getting the maximum compensation that is available for his clients and their families. He rightly sees personal injury claims as a real must for the English legal System as without a proper compensation structure, many injury people can be left with no support or ongoing medical treatment.

If you have any questions arising from this article to can contact Mike by calling 0800 988 9055 or by sending him an email by clicking here.

Access To Justice CICA Criminal Injury Claims General PI News StockslegalAug 16th, 20130 comments