I have always been obsessed with numbers. In my cabinets I have records of every single invoice I have ever raised since I sent my first one on 21 October 1991. It was for £58.75 to a client in dispute with the local Environmental Health Department in relation to “water nuisance”.
This obsession with figures extends to clients damages. I religiously keep track every year on the awards we are achieving for our clients. It helps gauge how well the department is performing and any trends in the levels of damages that are being awarded.
I have settled a couple of big cases recently and was interested to see how much we had generated on behalf of clients in the last 18 months. I was staggered by the result. In the last 18 months my team have secured the sum of £ 6,142,000 for abuse victims.
These awards have come from a wide range of sources. Many are awards made by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. A large proportion also come form claims against Local Authorities. As you would expect there are many awards against institutions such as schools and the Scout Association. The most satisfying awards are often those paid by the perpetrators of the abuse themselves where they have sufficient funds to compensate the victims.
The figures seem to reflect the growth in this area of work and how busy the department is and must also be a reflection on how hard the staff here work on behalf of clients to ensure that the best possible settlements are achieved.
For any help or advice in relation to abuse claims, contact our specialist team today.