By Lewis Presley. Last Updated 20th January 2023. Welcome to our sexual abuse compensation calculator guide. If you’ve been the victim of sexual abuse or assault, you may think that you are not entitled to claim compensation for your injuries. However, this is not the case.
You can claim compensation for harm caused as the result of violent crimes. You can do this through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), which is an executive agency responsible for compensating victims of violent crimes. Furthermore, you may be able to claim against the perpetrator directly if they have been identified and have the funds to pay you compensation.
Calculating Compensation For Sexual Abuse, Assault And Rape
This guide will explain:
- How you can claim for psychiatric damage as well as physical damage from sexual abuse.
- How sexual abuse compensation is calculated.
- The role of the CICA in criminal injury claims.
- How our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors could help you gain compensation.
- How using our compensation payout calculator could help give a valuation of your claim.
Our advisors offer 24/7 free legal advice so, if you have any questions or queries about making a claim, please call us. You can contact our claims team at a time that suits you by calling 0800 408 7826 or using the live chat feature to the bottom-right of the screen. Alternatively, please read on to learn more about our personal injury calculator.
Jump To A Section
- A Guide To Using A Sexual Abuse Compensation Calculator
- What Is Sexual Abuse?
- What Things Can You Claim For After Sexual Abuse?
- Types Of Sexual Offences
- Statistics For Sexual Offences In The UK
- Physical And Psychiatric Care Cost Claims
- How To Use A Compensation Calculator For Sexual Abuse Or Assault
- Compensation For Sexual Abuse – Historic Cases
- Claim For Sexual Abuse – No Win No Fee Lawyers
- Get Free Advice About Your Claim
- Ask Our Team To Calculate Your Sexual Abuse Settlement
- Supporting Resources
- FAQs On Claims For Sexual Abuse
A Guide To Using A Sexual Abuse Compensation Calculator
Being the victim of sexual abuse or sexual assault can have severe, long-lasting effects on you. A violent attack of this nature could cause severe physical injuries to the victim.
What’s more, sexual abuse, assault and rape can leave long-lasting psychological damage that could take years to subside. In some cases, the victim may suffer from permanent injuries.
It can be difficult to know what steps to take in order to claim compensation for the harm you have experienced. This guide could help.
We will look at the role that the CICA plays in awarding compensation to victims of violent crimes. We’ll also explain how our compensation calculator can help you work out the amount you could claim if you choose to pursue compensation from the perpetrator of the crime directly.
If you would like to know more about your eligibility to make a claim, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team today. Otherwise, read on for more information.
What Is Sexual Abuse?
According to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), sexual assault is defined as sexual contact that someone has been coerced or forced into or where someone has been touched sexually against their consent.
Sexual abuse can include things like:
- Rape
- Sexual penetration with another body part or foreign object
- Unwanted kissing
- Groping or sexual touching that was not consented to
- Forcing someone to watch pornography
- Child sexual abuse
The age of consent is 16 in the UK. This means that any sexual contact with someone under this age is classed as sexual abuse, as legally, a child cannot consent to sexual activity.
If you’ve been the victim of sexual assault or rape, you should always seek medical attention as soon as you can after the incident. You may not think you have been physically injured, but sexual assault carries the risk of internal injuries, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and pregnancy.
Furthermore, you may need treatment for any psychological injuries that have been caused.
What Things Can You Claim For After Sexual Abuse?
When you make a claim through the CICA, you will receive a payment for the injury or injuries you have sustained. These payments are made according to the CICA tariff of injuries. If you’re claiming for more than one injury, then you will be paid:
- 100% of the tariff amount for the injury with the highest value
- 30% of the tariff amount for the injury with the second-highest (or equal) value
- 15% of the tariff amount for the injury with the third-highest (or equal) value.
You could also receive special expenses as part of a claim through the CICA. These expenses must be necessary, reasonable and caused as a direct result of your injuries.
In order to claim special expenses, you will need to show that you were unable to work for 28 weeks after the incident; however, the cost of special expenses will be backdated to the date you were injured.
Things that could be included in special expenses include:
- Physical aids that you depended on and that were damaged in the attack (e.g. glasses or hearing aids)
- The cost of care related to bodily functions, the preparation of meals or supervision where these are necessary
- Any necessary (rather than desirable) adaptations to your home or vehicle
- The cost of any treatment you get from the NHS, where this can’t be acquired free of charge elsewhere
You could also claim loss of earnings after the incident. To do so, you would need to show that you were out of work for more than 28 weeks after the incident. Unlike special expenses, this will not be backdated.
Sexual Assault Compensation – Making A Claim Directly Against Your Attacker
When you make a claim against your perpetrator, criminal injuries compensation is not awarded through the CICA. This is only possible if the perpetrator is known and they have the funds to compensate you. Whether you are entitled to sexual abuse compensation or historical abuse compensation, your settlement would be made up of two heads of claim:
- General damages compensate you for the pain, suffering and loss of amenity caused by your injuries, including both physical and psychological injuries. A diagnosis from a medical professional can prove the extent of your injuries, something that a solicitor from our panel could arrange for you.
- Special damages are designed to cover any financial losses or expenses caused as a result of your injuries. For example, if you have had to pay for medication or private medical treatment. Bank statements, receipts or invoices can prove these losses.
Speak to our advisors for more information on what you could get when claiming compensation for sexual abuse directly from your attacker. They can give you some ideas on what evidence you could collect to improve the possibility of being awarded sexual assault compensation.
Types Of Sexual Offences
This section highlights examples of incidents that could lead to you claiming criminal injuries compensation. As we’ve already touched upon, there are two routes you could take to claim compensation.
The first option is to claim through the CICA. In order to claim through the CICA, there’s no requirement for the person you’re claiming against to have been arrested, convicted or even identified. With CICA claims, the money that you’re awarded comes from the government.
In order to claim compensation through the CICA, it is essential that the crime is reported to the police. If you did not report a crime as soon as possible after the incident, you might find it difficult to claim.
You could also pursue a claim against the person who injured you directly. In order to do this, you must know who it is that caused your injuries; you cannot launch a claim otherwise. Furthermore, the person you are claiming against must have the means to pay you if the compensation claim is successful.
Please read on to find out more about the kinds of incidents and injuries you could claim for.
Psychiatric Injuries And Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a type of anxiety disorder. It happens when someone has gone through a very stressful, scary or traumatic event.
Symptoms of PTSD can include:
- Flashbacks and nightmares about the traumatic event
- Emotional numbing
- Avoidance
- A feeling of being “on edge” (hyperarousal)
- Mental health problems, for example, depression or anxiety
- Destructive behaviours like drug or alcohol abuse
The symptoms of PTSD can seriously affect someone’s quality of life. For instance, emotional numbing may cause you to withdraw from close relationships, and things like drug and alcohol misuse can affect your physical health.
Sexual Assault By Rape
Rape is a kind of sexual assault where someone uses their penis to penetrate another person without consent. Legally, someone without a penis cannot commit rape, but someone without a penis may be convicted of rape if they help someone else commit this kind of crime.
According to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, consent is where a person agrees by choice and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice. This means that if someone is coerced or threatened into agreeing to participate in a sexual act, this is not consent.
Sexual Assault
This is where someone is forced to engage in sexual activity against their will or is sexually touched without their consent. Sexual assault by penetration is where someone uses their body part or a foreign object to penetrate a person’s anus or vagina without their consent.
Sexual assault can include things like:
- Unwanted groping
- Sexual touching without consent
- Unwanted kissing
Intimate Partner Abuse
In the past, it was not considered possible for rape to occur within a marriage. However, the Sexual Offences Act 2003 outlined rape within marriage as a criminal offence.
Consent is not automatic, even between romantic partners. You should always be able to withdraw consent for a sexual act, even if it’s one that you have engaged in consensually in the past.
If you have been sexually abused or raped by your partner, you could claim compensation for the harm that you were caused. In order to claim through the CICA, you need to report the abuse to the police. However, you don’t need to wait for the perpetrator to be convicted or even arrested in order to start your claim for compensation.
If the perpetrator has enough money to pay your compensation, you could claim against them directly. Refer to our compensation calculator to see how much you could be owed.
Sexual Abuse In A School
As we have already mentioned, any sexual contact between an adult and a child under the age of 16 is abuse. This is because, legally, a child cannot consent to sexual activities.
Furthermore, a child in further education (for example, in a sixth form attached to a school or a further education college) cannot engage in a sexual relationship with a person over the age of 18 in a position of trust. This could include teachers or members of staff at the school.
If your child is under 18 and you would like to make a claim through the CICA, you can do this on their behalf. If you want to claim directly against the perpetrator on behalf of someone under the age of 18, you would have to be appointed a litigation friend.
Familial Sexual Abuse
In some cases, a child can be sexually abused by their own family member. If a child is subjected to sexual abuse from a young age, this can have a severe psychological impact and could affect their development as they age.
Child sexual abuse can take two forms: contact and non-contact sexual abuse. Contact sexual abuse is where there is physical contact between the perpetrator and their victim and might include rape, sexual assault by penetration, touching and kissing.
Non-contact sexual abuse, on the other hand, does not involve contact between the victim and abuser. It can include things like exposing a child to pornography, flashing, forcing a child to partake in sexual conversations online and making a child masturbate.
Historical Sexual Abuse And Assaults
There is usually a time limit to starting a claim through the CICA. Generally, this is two years from the date that the incident happened.
However, exceptions can be made if you were under the age of 18 at the time the abuse occurred. If the abuse was reported while you were under 18, but no claim was made, you have 2 years from the date of your 18th birthday to claim.
If the incident was not reported, you have 2 years from the date you report the incident to the police to claim. You should report the incident as soon as possible; any delay might affect your ability to claim.
Statistics For Sexual Offences In The UK
The Office of National Statistics (ONS) has supplied a report based on information from the Crime Survey of England and Wales. The figures show what relation victims of rape and sexual assault by penetration have with the perpetrators of these crimes.
As we can see from this graph, women are more likely than men to know their assailants. Women are most likely to be assaulted by a partner or ex-partner, and men are most likely to be assaulted by a stranger. The rates of rape or assault by penetration by family members are similar across both sexes.
If you have any questions or queries or want to see if you’ll be able to claim, call our advisors for free legal advice today using the phone number at the top of your screen.
Physical And Psychiatric Care Cost Claims
When you make a personal injury claim against the perpetrator directly, you could also claim care costs as part of the financial losses caused by the injury. Your personal injury solicitor will request evidence of the care costs you’ve sustained. It can involve you claiming for such things as:
- Private therapy or counselling due to the impact of the trauma.
- Care costs for a nurse or gracious care due to a loved one needing to take time off work to help you deal with the trauma.
- Adjustments to your property that you need to cope with your injuries.
Our compensation calculator can be useful in working out how much you could claim. While it doesn’t take into account the cost of care, it does give you an idea of how much you could be owed. You can then add any care expenses to this to give you an estimate of how much you could be owed.
When you claim through the CICA, the care costs that you can claim are slightly more restrictive. The CICA will pay for the cost of any care that is necessary and relates to the preparation of food, bodily functions or supervision for your safety or the safety of others. You will have to prove that this care isn’t available free of charge from the NHS or your local authority.
How To Use A Compensation Calculator For Sexual Abuse Or Assault
A sexual abuse compensation calculator can clearly and concisely inform you of what you could claim when pursuing compensation from the person who assaulted you directly. All you need to do is input the kind of injury you sustained, the effects of the injury and any financial losses caused due to it, and you can have a quote in moments.
Compensation For Sexual Abuse – Historic Cases
When making a claim for compensation for sexual abuse through the CICA, you can receive compensation for your injuries.
Below, we have created a table to help you gain a clearer understanding of how much you could receive in compensation for a successful claim for sexual abuse. The compensation figures listed have been taken from the Tariff of Injuries which is set out in the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012.
The Scheme allows for compensation to be paid for a maximum of three injuries. If more than two injuries are being claimed for, the multiple injury formula will apply. This means you will be awarded 100% of the full tariff amount for the highest valued injury, 30% for the second highest or equally highest valued injury and 15% for the third highest or equally highest valued injury.
Other payments could be awarded if you have become pregnant, lost a foetus or contracted a sexually transmitted disease as a direct result of the crime of violence.
| Injury | Details | Compensation Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Non-Consensual Penile Penetration of a person of any age. | The person has suffered a severe mental illness and severe internal bodily injuries. | £44,000 |
| Non-Consensual Penile Penetration of a person of any age. | This has resulted in a moderate mental illness that is disabling and has been confirmed by a psychiatrist. | £22,000 |
| Non-Consensual Penile Penetration of a person of any age. | Repetitive incidents that took place for up to 3 years. | £16,500 |
| Non-Consensual Penile Penetration of a minor. | This has resulted in a moderately disabling mental illness with serious internal injuries. | £33,000 |
| Non-Consensual Penile Penetration of a minor. | Resulting in a severe mental illness that has been confirmed by a psychiatric prognosis. | £27,000 |
| Sexual assault of a minor | Frequent incidents that have resulted in a severely disabling mental illness as confirmed by a professional. | £27,000 |
| Sexual assault of a minor | Sexual assault that has taken place over the course of 3+ years. | £8,200 |
| Sexual assault of a minor | Serious incidents of non-penetrative sexual acts that took place under clothing. | £2,000 |
| Sexual Assault of a person of any age. | Sexual assault that has resulted in serious internal bodily injuries. | £22,000 |
| Sexual Assault of a person of any age. | Repetitive sexual abuse over the course of 3 years or more. | £8,200 |
Additionally, compensation for victims of abuse could also be awarded for special expenses. Any special expenses must be necessary, reasonable, directly resulted from the violent crime and unavailable for free elsewhere. Examples of special expenses can include:
- Any equipment that was damaged in the incident that you relied on, such as hearing aids or glasses.
- Care costs that relate to food preparation or your bodily functions.
- Any adaptations to your home, such as a stairlift.
- Any equipment you need to cope with your injuries, such as a mobility car.
You could also receive a payment for loss of earnings if you are eligible. Do not hesitate to contact our advisors today if you have any questions about claiming sexual assault compensation.
Claim For Sexual Abuse – No Win No Fee Lawyers
If you decide to claim for sexual abuse, you could do so with the support of a No Win No Fee solicitor. Funding for your No Win No Fee lawyer could be under the terms of a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). A CFA is a type of No Win No Fee arrangement.
Under this type of funding, an upfront solicitors fee won’t typically be charged. If your claim for sexual abuse is successful, a success fee will be taken from your sexual abuse compensation. The amount that can be taken is capped by the law. However, should your compensation for sexual abuse claim fail, you will not be expected to pay your lawyer.
Get Free Advice About Your Claim
You can use our compensation calculator to see how much compensation you could receive in a direct claim against the person who abused or assaulted you. Our experienced advisors offer free legal advice so they can help you with any questions and queries you might have. Furthermore, our panel of No Win No Fee solicitors could also help you receive thousands of pounds of compensation.
- Call us on 0800 408 7826
- Write to us using the Live Chat window on the right-hand side of your screen.
- Contact us via our website.
Ask Our Team To Calculate Your Sexual Abuse Settlement
If you don’t want to use our compensation payout calculator, don’t worry. Our team of advisors can help you free of charge. So just give our claims team a call; they will run through the claim with you and provide you with an accurate estimate.
Supporting Resources
For more information about reasons for pursuing criminal injuries compensation, use the links below.
The National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC) offers more information about child sexual abuse, which you can find here.
If you would like to know more about how to report a crime, visit the police.uk page.
The NHS also provides more information on sexual health which you can locate here.
Have you suffered psychological injuries and want to see if you can claim? If so, click here to view our website.
If you’ve suffered a scar injury that wasn’t your fault, click here.
Have you broken your foot and want to see if you can claim? If so, click here.
FAQs On Claims For Sexual Abuse
There are answers below to some frequently asked questions about criminal injuries compensation.
Do victims of abuse get compensation?
You can claim compensation for criminal injuries if certain conditions are met. The CICA provides more information regarding your eligibility to make a claim.
How much money do sexual assault victims get?
It depends on the extent of the injuries and the financial losses caused by the injury. Our advisors can assess this if you wish; just call us to discuss your claim.
Can you claim compensation for historical abuse?
Yes, you can. The CICA will consider cases that happened more than 2 years ago if you can show that circumstances stopped you from claiming before now.
Compensation For Sexual Abuse – Can I Claim Directly Against My Abuser?
You may be able to make a civil claim for compensation directly against your abuser, if they have been identified. You would also only be able claim against them if they had the funds to compensate you.
Unlike a CICA claim, there are no fixed settlements in personal injury claims. While guidance for sexual abuse compensation exists in the form of the Judicial College Guidelines, you would still be able to potentially negotiate a settlement.
There are also no limits in place for requesting compensation for financial losses and expenses – if for example, your earnings or income was affected by the assault then you could be able to seek the full amount you lost, or will lose, as part of your compensation in your sexual abuse claim.
Please reach out to a member of our team if you are eligible to make a personal injury claim. They can give you information about compensation for sexually abused victims in the UK.
How much compensation do you get for criminal injuries?
When you claim through the CICA, the amount you receive will be taken from the tariff of injuries. Our sexual abuse compensation calculator can break down and estimate each aspect of this to better understand what you could receive in a direct personal injury claim.
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