Publication
50486 (22 July 2022)
From Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Published on
Last updated on
From Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Published on
Last updated on
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal
In the matter of an application under the Scheme of Compensation for Personal Injuries Criminally Inflicted
Decision of a Single Member
Name of applicant: [ ]
Application number: 50486
Date of incident: [ ]
Date of application: [ ]
Decision/outcome: The application is refused under paragraph 10 of the Scheme: reasonable assistance to properly assess the claim was not afforded to the Tribunal.
1. Mr [ ] (‘the applicant’) has made a claim for compensation under the Scheme of Compensation for Personal Injuries Criminally Inflicted (‘the Scheme’).
2. In his application for compensation under the Scheme, received by the Tribunal on [ ] (though under cover of a letter dated [ ]), the applicant stated that he had suffered injuries when he was hit in the face by a man on [ ]. On this date the applicant was [ ] years old.
3. The file discloses that dental care was required; that a prosecution secured a conviction against the applicant’s assailant, and that a personal injuries claim against the assailant was contemplated in [ ], after that conviction.
4. While in this case the three-month time-frame set out by paragraph 22 (formerly 22) of the Scheme was exceeded, circumstances which warrant its exceptional treatment include that the applicant was a minor at the time of the assault, and it appears that the original application was at least completed within time.
5. A conviction was secured against an assailant who caused the applicant’s injuries. As such I am satisfied that the applicant has established, on the balance of probabilities, that he was a victim of a crime of violence and sustained personal injury which is directly attributable to that crime of violence. Accordingly, I admit the application for consideration under the Scheme.
6. The applicant submitted invoices and estimates for dental work he required as a consequence of the incident. However through his solicitor on [ ] (at which point the applicant passed his eighteenth birthday) it was indicated that he may pursue a personal injuries claim through the courts.
7. On [ ] the Tribunal Secretariat drew the applicant’s attention to paragraph 16 (now para 15) of the Scheme which states that any damages received in compensation from the offender would be deducted from the Tribunal’s award, and as such requested that the Tribunal be notified of the outcome of any such proceedings.
8. No response was received to that letter. On [ ] the Tribunal wrote to the applicant asking whether the applicant wished to pursue his application. It enclosed the letter of [ ] and sought any further vouching documentation the applicant might wish to submit. It sought a response on or before [ ].
9. No response was received to this letter.
10. Paragraph 10 of the Scheme reads:
“No compensation will be payable to an applicant who has not, in the opinion of the Tribunal, given the Tribunal all reasonable assistance, in relation to any medical report that it may require, and otherwise.”
11. Thus Under Para 10 of the Scheme the applicant must give the Tribunal all reasonable assistance if she or he is to be eligible for compensation under the Scheme. The rationale of this rule appears to be that the Tribunal needs information upon which it can make its decision as to the appropriate amount of compensation to award. That information must come either directly or indirectly from the applicant. However, to take the significant step of declining to award compensation, the Tribunal should be satisfied that the assistance it has sought (and which it has not received) effectively prevents it from conducting a satisfactory analysis of the claim.
12. In this case it appears that a personal injuries claim may have been initiated. These proceedings, if successful, would or should have given the applicant full access to compensation. Any such compensation would be deducted from the Tribunal’s award, per para 15 of the Scheme. Without knowing whether any case was brought, and if so what its outcome was, the Tribunal is unable to satisfactorily analyse this file as it does not know what, if any sum, should be deducted from its award. However it appears reasonably likely that a sum of compensation was accessible to the applicant in and around [ ].
13. As such reasonable assistance was not given to the Tribunal, and no compensation is therefore payable to the applicant.
Tricia Sheehy Skeffington
Member, Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal
22 July 2022