Infected Blood Compensation Scheme overview: Affected people
Published 12 February 2025
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Below is a summary of information about the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme relevant
to affected people who have suffered the impacts of infected blood through their relationship with an infected person. The information provided in this summary is relevant to applicants across all four UK nations. This should be read in conjunction with the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme Summary.
| Category of Award | Core route awards | Supplementary route awards available? |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £20,000-£86,000 | No |
| Social Impact | £8,000-£12,000 | No |
| Autonomy | Available for partners, parents and children £6,600-£16,000 |
No |
| Care | Not available for affected people in their own right Care awards can be paid directly to affected people at the request of an infected person or their estate representative. |
No |
| Financial Loss | Available for bereaved partners and children under the age of 18 at time of infected parent’s death Bereaved partners: £16,682 per annum (£8,341 for years where the infected person would have been 66 or older) Bereaved children: £5,561 per annum while under 18 (£2,780.50 for years where the infected person would have been 66 or older) Bereaved child who has lost both parents to infected blood related infections while under 18: £22,243 per annum (£16,682.25 for years where one parent would have been 66 or older; £11,121.50 for years where both parents would have been 66 or older) |
Yes - other bereaved affected people (e.g. parents or disabled children over the age of 18) may be eligible to receive Financial Loss awards if they can provide evidence of dependency on the infected person at the time of death |
What is the eligibility criteria for affected people?
Affected people are those who have suffered the impacts of infected blood through their relationship with an infected person, either living or deceased. This includes:
Partners of eligible infected people. This includes:
- spouses;
- civil partners;
- partners cohabiting with an eligible infected person for at least one year following infection.
Where an eligible infected person has had more than one partner during the course of their infection, all partners who meet the above definition will be eligible for compensation in their own right.
Partners who separated from the eligible infected person prior to infection will not be eligible for compensation.
Parents of an eligible infected person, including:
- biological parents;
- adoptive parents;
- others acting in the capacity of a parent as described below (e.g. step parents, grandparents);
who
cared for and lived with an eligible infected person whilst that person was under the age of 18. The provision of care and accommodation must have continued or been expected to continue for a period of at least 1 year.
The age at which the child became infected does not impact a person’s eligibility. However, compensation rates are higher for the parents of an infected person where the onset of infection began before the child turned 18 (and the parents cared for and lived with the infected child for at least 1 year) than for parents whose child was infected as an adult.
Children of an eligible infected person, including:
- biological children;
- adoptive children;
- others in the position of a child as described below (e.g. step children);
who
while under the age of 18, were cared for and lived with (for a period of at least 1 year) a parent who was, or later became, infected.
The age of a child at the time of a parent’s infection does not impact eligibility but compensation rates will be higher for children who, while under the age of 18, lived with and were cared for by an infected parent (for at least 1 year), than for people whose parents were infected when they were in adulthood.
Siblings of eligible infected people, including:
- biological and adoptive siblings;
- step siblings;
- others in the position of a sibling as described below;
who
while under the age of 18, lived in the same household as an infected person for a period of at least 2 years (regardless of whether the infection occurred during this period), or who would have expected to have done so but for the infection.
Social Impact awards will be higher for siblings who, whilst under the age of 18, lived in the same household as an infected person for a period of at least 2 years after the onset of the infection, or would have been expected to live in the same household were it not for the impact of the infection.
Siblings who did not live in the same household as an infected person for a period of at least two years whilst under the age of 18 may be eligible for compensation as a carer.
Carers of eligible infected people
Carers of an eligible infected person (e.g. friends or family) who, without reward or remuneration, provided personal care or support greater than would otherwise reasonably have been expected. Such carers will be eligible for compensation in their own right where the provision of care averaged at least 16.5 hours of care per week over a time period of at least 6 months.
What supplementary awards are available for affected people?
- There is a financial dependency award for some eligible affected people under the supplementary route. The core route for affected people includes a Financial Loss award for bereaved partners and children, including an uplifted award for children who have lost both parents to infected blood related infections. There is an additional Financial Loss award available to bereaved affected people who were financially dependent on an eligible infected person at the time of the infected person’s death.
- This award recognises that some affected people may have experienced a greater financial loss than the core route assumes based on their relationship to the infected person. For example, the core route does not assume that a parent would be financially dependent on their child. As such, affected people for whom this applies may be eligible to receive compensation to cover the period of time between the infected person’s death and healthy life expectancy.
How is money received through compensation awards by affected people managed?
- Compensation will be payable through a lump sum or series of regular payments (instalments) over 5, 10 or 25 years.
- Compensation received through instalments will be uplifted each year in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
- Compensation payments made through the Scheme will not adversely impact means tested benefits.
- Compensation payments made under the Scheme will be exempt from income, capital gains and inheritance tax. This is in line with tax exemptions for the first and second interim pay.
Can an affected person ‘Return to the Scheme’ for reassessment?
There is no provision for the reassessment of an affected person’s claim following an infected person’s return to scheme.
What next?
- The latest information on applying for compensation through the Scheme can be read on the IBCA website. Sign up to IBCA’s mailing list for the latest updates on the Scheme as it develops.
Case studies for affected people
The case studies below are example scenarios. The names, dates of birth and other clinical details are fictitious and have been created to illustrate the principles of the Scheme. These case studies aim to help illustrate how compensation is calculated in different possible scenarios. Whether an applicant is eligible for compensation and what level of compensation they are eligible to receive will be dependent on IBCA’s assessment based on the regulations for the Scheme.
Case study 11: Application by the child of an infected person who died of Hepatitis C
Moussa’s father, Omar, was infected with Hepatitis C as a result of an infected blood product received during treatment for a bleeding disorder. Moussa was aged 13 and lived with his father when Omar died from decompensated cirrhosis.
As the child of a person who was infected, Moussa is eligible for compensation as an affected person.
Summary of Moussa’s application
Moussa’s date of birth: 21 August 1990
Omar’s date of birth: 30 June 1964
Date of treatment which led to Omar’s infection: 12 October 1988
Date of Omar’s diagnosis: 17 November 1991
Date of Omar’s death: 7 September 2003
The table below shows Moussa’s compensation award as an affected person.
| Category of affected person award (Child under 18) | Value of compensation award as an affected person | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £40,400 | Award for child under 18 at the time of onset of parent’s Hepatitis C (decompensated) infection |
| Social Impact | £12,000 | Award for child under 18 at the time of onset of parent’s Hepatitis C (decompensated) infection |
| Autonomy | £6,600 | Award for child under 18 at the time of onset of parent’s Hepatitis C (decompensated) infection |
| Financial Loss | £27,805 | Financial Loss award comprises 5 years of dependency payments at £5,561 per annum |
| Care | N/A | Affected persons are not eligible for Care awards. |
| Total affected award | £86,805 |
Case study 12: Application by a sibling of an infected person living with Hepatitis C - Affected sibling was under the age of 18 at the time of infection
Simone’s sister, Chantal, was infected with chronic Hepatitis C after a blood transfusion she received in childhood. Simone was 13 years old at the time of her sister’s infection. Simone lived at home with her family throughout her childhood.
As a sibling who lived with an infected person during childhood, Simone is eligible for compensation as an affected person.
Summary of application
Simone’s date of birth: 12 January 1980
Chantal’s date of birth: 22 December 1982
Date of treatment which led to Chantal’s infection: 17 March 1993
Date of Chantal’s diagnosis: 7 April 1994
Chantal infection severity band: Hepatitis C (chronic)
The table below shows Simone’s compensation award as an affected person.
| Category of affected person award (Sibling) | Value of compensation award as an affected person | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £20,00 | Award for sibling at severity band for Hep C/B (chronic) |
| Social Impact | £12,000 | Award for sibling at severity band for Hep C/B (chronic) |
| Autonomy | £0 | Siblings are not eligible for an autonomy award |
| Financial Loss | £0 | Siblings not eligible as not financially dependent on the infected person |
| Care | £0 | Affected persons are not eligible for Care awards in their own right. |
| Total affected award | £32,000 |
Case Study 13: Application by a sibling of an infected person living with HIV - Affected sibling was over the age of 18 at the time of infection
From the ages of 4 through 18 John lived with his younger brother Charlie in the family home. Charlie was infected with HIV contracted through infected blood products at the age of 25. John was 29 years old at the time of his brother Charlie’s infection and the brothers were not living together at this time.
As a sibling of an infected person who lived with their sibling for two years under the age of 18, John is eligible for compensation as an affected person.
Summary of John’s application
John’s date of birth: 12 July 1955
Charlie’s date of birth: 7 August 1959
Date of Charlie’s diagnosis: 10 March 1985
Date range that John and Charlie lived together: 7 August 1959 until 22 September 1973
Charlie infection: HIV
The table below shows John’s compensation award as an affected person.
| Category of affected award (sibling) | Value of compensation | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £22,000 | Award for a sibling of an infected person with HIV who did not live together for 2 years after infection date, but did live together for 2 years under the age of 18. |
| Social Impact | £8,000 | Award for a sibling of an infected person with HIV who did not live together for 2 years after infection date, but did live together for 2 years under the age of 18. |
| Autonomy | £0 | Siblings are not eligible for Autonomy awards. |
| Financial Loss | £0 | Siblings are not eligible for Financial Loss awards in their own right. |
| Care | £0 | Affected people are not eligible for Care awards. |
| Total affected award | £30,000 |
Case study 14: Application by a sibling of an infected person who died from Acute Hepatitis B in the acute period - Affected sibling would have expected to live with the infected person for 2 years under the age of 18
Lucy’s step-brother, Ron, was infected with Hepatitis B as a result of an infected blood product received during treatment for a bleeding disorder. Lucy was aged 13 and had lived with her step-brother for one year and five months, when Ron died from his Hepatitis B infection in the acute period.
Had Ron not sadly died from his Hepatitis B infection, Lucy and Ron would have been expected to have continued to live together for at least two years whilst Lucy was under the age of 18, and after Ron’s infection. Therefore, when calculating Lucy’s compensation award as an affected sibling, her application is treated as though she and Ron lived together for a period of two years after the onset of infection.
Summary of Lucy’s application
Lucy’s date of birth: 7 December 1973
Ron’s date of birth: 27 March 1977
Date of treatment which led to Ron’s infection: 2 February 1987
Date of Ron’s diagnosis: 15 May 1987
Date of Ron’s death: 5 July 1987
Date range that Lucy and Ron lived together: 19 December 1985 until 5 July 1987
Ron’s infection severity band: Acute Hepatitis B (where the infection resulted in a fatality in the acute period)
The table below shows Lucy’s compensation award as an affected person.
| Category of affected award (sibling) | Value of compensation | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £22,000 | Award for a sibling of an infected person with acute Hepatitis B (where the infection resulted in a fatality in the acute period), who did not live together for 2 years after the infection date under the age of 18, but would have done so but for the infection. |
| Social Impact | £12,000 | Award for a sibling of an infected person with acute Hepatitis B (where the infection resulted in a fatality in the acute period), who did not live together for 2 years after the infected date under the age of 18, but would have done so but for the infection. |
| Autonomy | £0 | Siblings are not eligible for Autonomy awards. |
| Financial Loss | £0 | Siblings are not eligible for Financial Loss awards in their own right. |
| Care | £0 | Affected people are not eligible for Care awards. |
| Total affected award | £34,000 |
Case study 15: Application by a parent of a child who died from HIV infection
When she was 3 years old, Sally was infected with HIV, contracted through infected blood products. She died from her infection aged 10.
Her mother, Patricia, is eligible for compensation through the Scheme as an affected person as well as being eligible to apply for compensation as the personal representative for Sally’s estate.
Summary of Patricia’s application
Sally’s date of birth: 18 December 1982
Date of Sally’s diagnosis: 12 May 1986
Date of Sally’s death: 7 June 1993
Sally’s Infection Severity Band: HIV
The tables below show Patricia’s compensation award as an affected person and as the personal representative for Sally’s estate.
Compensation award to Patricia as an affected parent:
| Category of affected person award (Parent) | Value of compensation award as an affected person | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £65,400 | Award for a parent of a child with HIV before age 18 |
| Social Impact | £12,000 | Award for parent of a child with HIV before age 18 |
| Autonomy | £6,600 | Award for parent of a child with HIV before age 18 |
| Financial Loss | N/A | Parent not eligible as not financially dependent on the infected person |
| Care | N/A | Affected persons are not eligible for Care awards in their own right. |
| Total affected award | £84,000 |
Compensation award to Sally’s estate:
| Category of infected person award (Estate) | Value of compensation award as an estate | Calculation |
|---|---|---|
| Injury | £180,000 | Award for the estate of someone with a HIV infection |
| Social Impact | £50,000 | Award for the estate of someone with a HIV infection |
| Autonomy | £60,000 | Award for the estate of someone with a HIV infection |
| Financial Loss | £12,500 | Eligible for £12,500 fixed rate for miscellaneous costs |
| Care | £342,560.33 | Based on receiving 8 years of care for HIV calculated at past care rate (i.e. current commercial rate minus 25%). |
| Total award for Sally’s estate | £645,060.33 |