Can I Sue Someone For Assault?

In the year ending March 2018, 665,000 people sustained at least a minor injury as a result of an assault. These statistics incorporate a number of different types of crimes of violence, from one-off physical altercations to sexual assault.

As a victim of a crime of violence, the first thought is to go for a personal injury compensation claim against an assailant to compensate you for the losses that the assault has caused. The issue this presents is that the assailant is not always found.

In the same time frame as previously mentioned above (year ending March 2018), only 9% of crimes end with suspects being charged or summonsed in England and Wales. This decreased to only 3% in rape cases.

If I cannot trace the assailant responsible, am I unable to look to make a claim?

This is where the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) comes in. The CICA is a scheme funded by the government, designed to compensate blameless victims of violent crime. Importantly, it is not necessary for an assailant to be prosecuted or even found for an application to be submitted to the CICA.

As long as an applicant has complied with the police investigation (as far as reasonably expected to assist in bringing the assailant to justice), they may still be able to apply for a claim. This is regardless of whether or not the assailant receives a criminal conviction for their actions.

What does the CICA compensate for?

The CICA can compensate for the following:

• Compensation for the injury – Including physical, mental, and sexual injuries. These are assessed through the CICA’s tariff of common injuries.
• Loss of earnings – The applicant needs to have been in employment at the time of the incident. The award would commence after 28 weeks of absence and would be paid at a statutory sick pay weekly rate.
• Special expenses – Like treatment, equipment, and house alterations that are all needed as a result of the incident and your injuries.
• Bereavement payments – The CICA is able to offer compensation for the loss of a loved one if the applicant is a qualifying relative and if the police report confirms appropriate.

For more information on CICA claims, please see our comprehensive guide here.

Why should I request a solicitor to help me?

It is important to consider why you would need a personal injury attorney to run your claim. CICA claims are deceptively complex. While they are procedural and may seem relatively straight forward initially, the requests the CICA makes can be confusing and the information required can be difficult to obtain.

Having an experienced personal injury attorney available whenever you need to speak to them, guiding you through the process, can be the difference between a successful claim and an unsuccessful claim.

Why should I choose to be represented by Oakwood Solicitors Ltd?

At Oakwood Solicitors, we offer an initial free consultation with one of our experts for us to assess your potential claim. After the free consultation, if we believe that there are sufficient prospects, we will agree to work on your CICA assault claim on a ‘no win, no fee’ basis.

If your claim is unsuccessful, you will not be expected to pay us a penny. If you are successful in your claim, we take a percentage of the compensation meaning that the only time we will receive money is if we have brought your assault claim to an effective conclusion.

Further reading

Criminal injury claims – Oakwood Solicitors

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