Compensation orders: guideline amounts, limits and calculator
Last updated · By Mustafa Bilgic · Injury ranges from the Sentencing Council for England and Wales, limits from the Sentencing Act 2020 and the Scottish and Northern Irish legislation
This page sets out the full Sentencing Council table, how courts decide the amount, the limits that apply in each part of the UK, and what happens when the offender pays in instalments. The calculator adds up the guideline ranges for the injuries you choose, adds financial losses, applies the statutory limit for the court and shows how long payment would take at a weekly rate.
Compensation order calculator
Guideline injury ranges, losses, statutory limits and time to pay
Compensation order amounts for injuries
The Sentencing Council publishes suggested ranges for the physical and mental injuries most often seen in magistrates' courts. Where a case falls within a range depends on how serious the injury is within its category and on its effects on the victim. The ranges must be used together with the general guidance on compensation, and where one victim has several injuries the court applies the principle of totality to reach a fair figure for all of them.
| Type of injury | Description | Suggested range |
|---|---|---|
| Minor eye injuries | Such as being struck in the eye, exposure to fumes including smoke, or being splashed by liquids, causing initial pain and some temporary interference with vision. | £4,820 to £10,660 |
| Transient eye injuries | In these cases the injured person will have recovered completely within a few weeks. | £2,690 to £4,820 |
| Nose | Displaced fracture where recovery is complete but only after surgery. | £4,820 to £6,230 |
| Nose | Displaced fracture requiring no more than manipulation | £3,080 to £3,850 |
| Nose | Simple undisplaced fracture with full recovery | £2,080 to £3,080 |
| Fracture of cheekbones | Simple fracture of cheekbones for which some reconstructive surgery is necessary but from which there is a complete recovery with no or only minimal cosmetic effects. | £5,310 to £7,880 |
| Fracture of cheekbones | Simple fracture of cheekbone for which no surgery is required and where a complete recovery is effected | £2,830 to £3,650 |
| Damage to teeth | Loss of or serious damage to several front teeth. | £10,660 to £13,930 |
| Damage to teeth | Loss of or serious damage to two front teeth. The loss of two front teeth will attract an award in the middle to upper end of this bracket and damage to two front teeth or loss of two milk teeth will attract an award at the lower end | £5,310 to £9,310 |
| Damage to teeth | Loss of or serious damage to one front tooth | £2,690 to £4,820 |
| Damage to teeth | Loss of or damage to back teeth: per tooth | £1,330 to £2,080 |
| Facial scarring | One scar or, a number of very small scars, where the overall effect is to mar but not markedly affect the appearance and the reaction is no more than that of an ordinarily sensitive person. Cases involving one single scar (not hyperpigmented or keloid) that can be hidden or camouflaged and do not represent any significant cosmetic blemish are likely to attract an award at the lowest end of the bracket. | £4,820 to £16,770 |
| Facial scarring | Trivial scarring where the effect is minor | £2,080 to £4,310 |
| Shoulder | Soft tissue injury to shoulder with considerable pain but almost complete recovery within a year | £2,990 to £5,310 |
| Shoulder | Soft tissue injury to shoulder with considerable pain but almost complete recovery within three months | Up to £2,990 |
| Shoulder | Fracture of clavicle depending on the extent of fracture, level of disability, residual symptoms, whether temporary or permanent, and whether union is anatomically displaced | £6,280 to £14,940 |
| Arm | Simple fractures of the forearm | £8,060 to £23,430 |
| Elbow | Simple fractures, tennis elbow syndrome, and lacerations; i.e. those injuries which cause no permanent damage and do not result in any permanent impairment of function resolving in one to two years | £4,310 to £7,930 |
| Wrist | An uncomplicated Colles fracture | £9,070 |
| Wrist | Very minor undisplaced or minimally displaced fractures and soft tissue injuries necessitating application of plaster or bandage for a matter of weeks and a full or virtual recovery within one year | £4,310 to £5,790 |
| Minor hand, finger, and thumb injuries | Including fractures which generally have recovered in six months. Also injuries such as scarring, tenderness, and reaction to the cold where there is full recovery | Up to £5,800 |
| Hips and pelvis | Minor soft tissue injuries with complete recovery | Up to £4,820 |
| Leg | Simple fractures to tibia or fibula with complete recovery | £8,640 to £11,050 |
| Leg | Soft tissue injuries, muscle tears, lacerations, cuts, bruising, or contusions with substantial recovery within a few months | Up to £2,990 |
| Knee | Injuries involving dislocation, torn cartilage or meniscus where recovery has been complete or almost complete | Up to £7,370 |
| Knee | A soft tissue strain-type injury that does not significantly impact on daily activities and gradually resolves within six to seven months | £2,750 |
| Ankle | Minor or undisplaced fractures, sprains, and ligamentous injuries: complete recovery in one year | Up to £6,710 |
| Other injuries not referred to above where there is a complete recovery within seven days | Examples may include grazing, bruising, small cuts where there is no scar | £200 to £840 |
| Other injuries not referred to above where there is a complete recovery within 28 days | Examples may include black eye, bruising, cuts where there is no permanent scar | £840 to £1,680 |
| Other injuries not referred to above where there is a complete recovery within three months | Examples may include bruising, cuts where there is no permanent scar | £1,680 to £2,990 |
| Mental injury | Suggested range |
|---|---|
| Temporary mental anxiety (including terror, shock, distress) not medically verified | £200 to £840 |
| Disabling mental anxiety, lasting up to 6 weeks, medically verified | £840 to £1,880 |
| Disabling mental illness, lasting up to 28 weeks, confirmed by psychiatric diagnosis | £1,880 to £7,150 |
For physical and sexual abuse, the Sentencing Council says such cases will rarely be dealt with in a magistrates' court. Compensation covers the abuse itself and any psychiatric injury, and where the abuse is of a lower level of seriousness and short-lived, with mild psychological effects that resolve quickly or a very good prognosis with treatment, it will be in the range of £11,870 to £25,100.
How the court decides the amount
Section 135 of the Sentencing Act 2020 says the amount must be what the court considers appropriate, having regard to any evidence and any representations by or for the offender or the prosecution, and that the court must have regard to the offender's means so far as they are known. The Sentencing Council's guidance adds these points:
- Two kinds of loss. Financial loss, such as repair costs, lost earnings or medical expenses, and pain and suffering, including psychological harm and any interference with day-to-day activities, judged in the light of medical evidence and the victim's age and circumstances.
- Other routes do not matter. The court must order compensation wherever possible and should not take into account that the victim could bring a civil claim or apply to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. Victims with minor injuries will usually not be eligible under that scheme, which is why the guidance stresses asking for compensation at sentencing.
- Straightforward cases only. Compensation orders are for straightforward cases, and the court should not start a detailed inquiry into the extent of an injury. Where the full loss is hard to establish, it can order an agreed or likely figure, and the victim can still bring a civil claim later, subject to the Limitation Act 1980.
- The victim's view. A victim may not want money from the offender. If so, this should be made known to the court and respected.
The offender's means and paying in instalments
Once the court has a preliminary figure, it must look at what the offender can afford. Where the offender has little money, the order may be scaled down or more time allowed, and the Sentencing Council says the court may allow payment over up to three years in appropriate cases. A prison sentence does not by itself make an order inappropriate, although it may affect whether the offender can pay. If the court would impose both a fine and compensation but the offender cannot afford both, section 135(4) requires it to give preference to compensation, and where means are an issue compensation also takes priority over the surcharge. A compensation order can be a sentence in its own right, in which case it does not attract the surcharge.
The court must normally make a collection order setting out the sum due and the payment terms, and can use an attachment of earnings order or deductions from benefits. Failure to pay is a criminal matter and carries a penal sanction. The victim is not entitled to receive the money until there is no further possibility of the order being changed on appeal (section 141).
Limits on compensation orders
There is no statutory limit on the amount a court in England and Wales can order against an offender aged 18 or over. Two exceptions apply in the magistrates' court. For an offender who was under 18 when convicted, section 139 caps compensation at £5,000 for each offence of which they were convicted, and the total for all the offences, including any taken into consideration, cannot exceed £5,000 times the number of offences of which they were convicted. For offences committed before 11 December 2013, section 142 keeps the old limits: £5,000 per offence from 1 October 1992, £2,000 from 1 May 1984, £1,000 from 1 December 1977 and £400 before that.
| Court | Limit per offence | Law |
|---|---|---|
| England and Wales: magistrates' court, offender aged 18 or over, offence on or after 11 December 2013 | No limit | Sentencing Act 2020 (s.142 applies only to earlier offences) |
| England and Wales: magistrates' court, offender under 18 when convicted | £5,000 | Sentencing Act 2020, s.139 |
| England and Wales: magistrates' court, offence 1 October 1992 to 10 December 2013 | £5,000 | Sentencing Act 2020, s.142 (lower limits for earlier offences) |
| England and Wales: Crown Court | No limit | Sentencing Act 2020 (ss.139 and 142 apply only in magistrates' courts) |
| Scotland: justice of the peace court | £2,500 | Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, s.249(8)(b), level 4 |
| Scotland: sheriff court, summary case | £10,000 | s.249(8)(a), the prescribed sum in s.225(8) |
| Scotland: solemn proceedings | No limit | s.249(7) |
| Northern Ireland: magistrates' court | £5,000 (£1,000 if under 18) | Criminal Justice (NI) Order 1994, art.14(11) |
| Northern Ireland: Crown Court | No limit set | art.14(11) applies only to magistrates' courts |
Young offenders and parents
When the offender is under 18, section 140 applies section 380 of the Sentencing Act 2020. The court must order the parent or guardian to pay instead of an offender under 16, and may do so for an offender aged 16 or 17, unless the parent or guardian cannot be found or an order would be unreasonable in the circumstances. The parent or guardian must be given the chance to be heard, and the court then looks at the parent's or guardian's means rather than the young person's. A parent or guardian can appeal to the Crown Court against an order made by a magistrates' court.
Road accidents, deaths and property
Section 136 restricts orders for road accidents. A court can make one for injury, loss or damage caused by a road accident only if the offender was uninsured and compensation is not payable under arrangements to which the Secretary of State is a party (the Sentencing Council puts it as the Motor Insurers' Bureau not covering the loss), or for loss suffered by dependants after a death, or for damage to a stolen vehicle that has been recovered. The order can then include a lost no claims discount.
Outside road accidents, an order can cover funeral expenses and bereavement after a death caused by the offence. The bereavement amount cannot exceed the figure in section 1A(3) of the Fatal Accidents Act 1976, which is £15,120, and it can only go to someone who could claim bereavement damages under that section. For stolen property that is recovered, any damage while it was out of the owner's possession is treated as caused by the offence (section 137).
Compensation orders, the CICA and civil claims
A compensation order does not stop you making a civil claim or applying to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, but it is taken into account to avoid paying twice. The Sentencing Council says that money paid under an order will generally be deducted from a later civil award or a payment under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. Section 144 says civil damages are assessed without regard to the order, and the claimant then recovers only the amount by which the damages exceed the compensation, plus any compensation the claimant failed to recover. The CICA's own payments follow the tariff of injuries, and civil courts in England and Wales value injuries with the Judicial College guidelines, set out on our UK injury compensation amounts page.
Under section 143 an offender can ask the court to discharge the order or reduce what is left to pay, for example if a civil court later finds the injury or loss was smaller, if stolen property has been recovered, or if the offender's means have unexpectedly fallen for the long term.
Compensation orders in Scotland
In Scotland, section 249 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 lets the court order a convicted person to pay compensation for personal injury, loss or damage caused directly or indirectly, or for alarm or distress caused directly, to the victim. Orders can also cover bereavement and funeral expenses after a death that was not due to a road accident. The court must take the offender's means into account, and cannot make an order together with an absolute discharge or a community payback order, or when it defers sentence.
There is no limit in solemn proceedings. In summary proceedings a sheriff can award up to the prescribed sum, which section 225(8) sets at £10,000, for each offence, or more where the offence carries a higher maximum fine, and a justice of the peace court up to level 4 on the standard scale, £2,500. Payment is made to the clerk of court, who passes it on to the person entitled.
Compensation orders in Northern Ireland
Article 14 of the Criminal Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 is close to the England and Wales rules. The court can order compensation for personal injury, loss or damage, and for funeral expenses or bereavement after a death not caused by a road accident, and must give reasons if it does not make an order. It must have regard to the offender's means and give preference to compensation over a fine. Bereavement cannot exceed the sum in article 3A(3) of the Fatal Accidents (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, currently £19,700. A magistrates' court can order up to £5,000 for each offence, or £1,000 where the offender is under 18. Victims of violent crime in Northern Ireland can also apply to the separate Northern Ireland criminal injuries scheme.
Worked examples
Broken nose, adult offender. A victim has a simple undisplaced fracture of the nose with full recovery and lost £300 of wages. The guideline range is £2,080 to £3,080, so with the lost wages the reference range is £2,380 to £3,380. If the offender can pay £25 a week, £3,380 would take 136 weeks, about two years and seven months, which is within the three years the guidance allows in appropriate cases. At £20 a week it would take 169 weeks, more than three years, so the court might set a higher rate or scale the order down.
Two injuries. A victim has a simple nose fracture and bruising that heals within 28 days. The ranges are £2,080 to £3,080 and £840 to £1,680. The lower end of the most serious injury is £2,080 and the upper ends added together come to £4,760. Because of totality, the court reaches one figure for both injuries rather than simply adding the ranges.
Young offender. A 15-year-old is convicted in the youth court of one offence that caused a simple fracture of the forearm (£8,060 to £23,430). The order cannot exceed £5,000, and the parent or guardian will normally be ordered to pay it. These examples are our own calculations from the published ranges and rules.
Sources and methodology
The injury table was read from the Sentencing Council's page and each range checked against it. The calculator's two reference points are ours, not the Sentencing Council's: the highest lower end among the chosen injuries, and the upper ends added together, each plus your financial losses and cut to the statutory limit for the court. The court itself applies totality and the offender's means to reach one figure.
- Compensation, explanatory material and suggested starting points for physical and mental injuries, Sentencing Council.
- Sentencing Act 2020, sections 133 to 146 (compensation orders) and section 380, on legislation.gov.uk.
- Fatal Accidents Act 1976, section 1A, on legislation.gov.uk.
- Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, sections 225 and 249, on legislation.gov.uk.
- Criminal Justice (Northern Ireland) Order 1994, article 14, and the Fatal Accidents (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, article 3A, on legislation.gov.uk.
Frequently asked questions
How much compensation do you get from a compensation order?
It depends on the injury and the offender's means. Magistrates use the Sentencing Council ranges, for example £200 to £840 for grazes or bruising that heal within seven days and £840 to £1,680 for a black eye or cuts that heal within 28 days. The court then weighs what the offender can pay.
Is there a maximum compensation order in the magistrates' court?
Not for an adult offender convicted of an offence committed on or after 11 December 2013. For an offender under 18 the limit is £5,000 per offence, and older offences keep the old limits in section 142 of the Sentencing Act 2020.
How long does an offender have to pay a compensation order?
The court sets the payment terms in a collection order. The Sentencing Council says payment can be allowed over up to three years in appropriate cases, and failure to pay is a criminal matter.
Does a compensation order affect a CICA claim?
Yes. The Sentencing Council says money paid under a compensation order will generally be deducted from a later payment under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme or a civil award, to avoid paying twice.
Do parents pay a compensation order for a child?
In England and Wales the court must order the parent or guardian to pay for an offender under 16, and may for one aged 16 or 17, unless the parent cannot be found or it would be unreasonable. The parent's means are then taken into account.
What is the compensation order limit in Scotland?
There is no limit in solemn cases. In summary cases a sheriff can award up to £10,000 per offence and a justice of the peace court up to £2,500, under section 249 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995.