50149 (31 August 2022)

Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal

Scheme of Compensation for Personal Injuries Criminally Inflicted - General Scheme

Single Member Decision

Application of [ ]

Application number 50149

Name of applicant: [ ]

Date of incident: [ ]

Date application received: [ ]

Decision: No award.

The Applicant states that he was the victim of a violent crime which occurred on the [ ] at [ ]. The Applicant states that he attempted to stop the theft of his car when he was attacked by a group of young men and was the subject of a serious assault. He sustained a stab wound to his leg, a fracture to his jaw, a cut over an eye and bruising to the body.

The incident was reported to An Garda Siochana in [ ] shortly after it occurred. The matter was investigated and four of the perpetrators were identified and prosecuted. The Applicant did not receive any payment of compensation.

The Applicant states that he suffered a number of injuries, in particular injuries to the area of his left eye, a nasal fracture, injuries to arms and legs and trauma and bruising to various areas.

The General Scheme provides that the Tribunal may pay compensation for out of pocket expenses in respect of personal injury, where the injury is directly attributable to a crime of violence, subject to the provisions of the scheme. Amounts claimed must be vouched and/or supported by appropriate documentation. The Tribunal is entirely responsible for deciding in any particular case whether compensation is payable under the scheme.

Paragraph 21 of the Scheme (pre-April 2021) states that “Applications should be made as soon as possible but, except in circumstances determined by the Tribunal to justify exceptional treatment, not later than three months after the event giving rise to the injury”. In this case the application was received on the [ ] and was substantially late, being submitted more than 15 months after the incident occurred.

Paragraph 11 of the Scheme (pre-April 2021) provides that “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 it may require, and otherwise”.

The Tribunal wrote to the Applicant on the [ ] requesting necessary documentation in support of the application. The Tribunal request a written statement explaining the delay in submitting the application. The Tribunal requested that the applicant furnish further details of his claim for loss of earnings.

The Applicant has not to date submitted the requested documentation and the Applicant has not communicated with the Tribunal in relation to the matter for many years. The Tribunal more recently wrote to the Applicant on the [ ] (note: this appears be a typographical error and should correctly read [ ] noting the failure to respond to earlier correspondence and requiring a response by the [ ] confirming whether the Applicant intended to pursue his application and submitting the necessary documentary evidence supporting a claim for loss of earnings or any out-of-pocket expenses being claimed. The Tribunal noted that if no reply was received by that date, the application would be forwarded to a member for decision.

The application was received on the [ ] and was substantially late, being submitted more than 15 months after the incident occurred. The application is inadmissible under Paragraph 21.

The Tribunal has not received the required documentation from the Applicant supporting any financial claim under the Scheme. The Applicant has not communicated with the Tribunal for many years. In the circumstances, the Tribunal finds that the Applicant has not given the Tribunal all reasonable assistance as required by Paragraph 11 and has not vouched his claim.

The Application does not meet the requirements of Paragraphs 11 and 21 of the Scheme and the Tribunal therefore makes no award.

Dated the 31st day of August 2022

Cathal Lombard

Tribunal Member