Figures released by the BBC show that children are the subject of many violent acts of crime. Not only is it disgusting that violent acts are committed on adults it’s even more horrendous to hear of children who have been subject to these types of crimes, as the child has no way of defending themselves.
Figures show that almost half of sexual abuse victims are children; out of the 19,250 recorded incidents in 2008/9, 47% of these incidents involved the child as the victim. 30% of robbery victims were minors, and also 111,000 violent crimes were committed against under 18’s. It is also very sad to think, that out of these figures, these are only the cases which have been reported, as often the child feels too frightened to come forward. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/10254922.stm
In these circumstances it can be a very difficult and upsetting time. No matter what you do, the awful memories of these incidents can never be erased. It is possible to make a claim for compensation in these types of situations. Again it will probably not make things better but at least the person living through these horrible times may gain some peace of mind in knowing that they can claim for some financial stability. These types of claims are dealt with by a government body known as the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (or CICA).
If the person claiming for compensation is under the age of 18, they will need someone known as a litigation friend to act on their behalf. This is someone, usually a parent or guardian, who acts with the child’s best interests in mind. It is seen in the eyes of the law that a minor doesn’t hold the necessary capabilities of dealing with a claim for compensation, and so the litigation friend makes the claim on behalf of the child. If the claim is deemed as successful, the settlement money the child is entitled to will be kept in a savings account until the court feels the child is mature enough to have access to the compensation (at the age of 18).
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority is a government organisation that pays compensation to those people who have been a victim of crime. You can make your claim directly with the CICA, or have an expert solicitor representing you. The only issues with going it alone is that the claims are often under settled, and take longer to conclude. It is advisable to seek representation from an independent firm of personal injury solicitors. As the firm of solicitors cannot recover their fee’s from the CICA, they will probably charge for a small percentage of the settlement sum, but it does mean that you could claim much more money if you do instruct representation.
The other benefit of representation is that placing a claim through the CICA can be a very slow process. If you have the help of a solicitor, they will be in contact regularly with the CICA chasing for updates for the claim, which will speed up the process on the claimant’s behalf.
If you are unsure as to if your claim or a dependant’s claim will be successful, speak to a personal injury solicitor and they will be able to assess the situation and advise you accordingly. They will also give you guidance on the steps to follow next.
