Lawyers give evidence to the Infected Blood Inquiry over Infected Blood Compensation Scheme

The IBI announced it will hold two more days of hearings on 7-8 May about the timeliness and adequacy of the Government’s response to compensation. 

Leigh Day represents more than 300 people infected and affected by the contaminated blood scandal and as such has been provisionally contracted by the Infected Blood Compensation Authority to provide individuals with independent legal support throughout their application process. 

While the compensation scheme has been operating since October 2024 and has invited over 250 individuals to apply to the scheme, fewer than 70 individuals have been paid compensation so far. 

The IBI asked Leigh Day to share information on its interactions with the Infected Blood Compensation Authority to date and highlight any concerns or changes that could be made to the compensation scheme they believe are necessary. 

In its evidence to the IBI ahead of the hearings in May, while acknowledging the scale of the task ahead, Leigh Day has raised concerns that the Infected Blood Compensation Authority and Government officials are not working quickly enough to ensure that the thousands of individuals infected and affected by the scandal are compensated. It says it is imperative that compensation is paid to individuals across the infected blood community as soon as possible.  

Despite Sir Brian Langstaff’s May 2024 report into the infected blood scandal finding a “catalogue” of failings by health authorities and individuals, the resulting compensation scheme has caused distress within the infected blood community because of a lack of clarity and transparency over how compensation decisions would be made. 

In a statement given in April 2025 to the IBI, Leigh Day partner Gene Matthews said he and his team want to ensure their clients, and the wider infected blood community, are afforded a scheme that ensures they are compensated appropriately for the harm and suffering they have endured.    

To date only individuals already registered with the existing support schemes have been invited to apply for the scheme, meaning thousands of others are left waiting with no timeline as to when the application process will open for them. Gene said there is no reason why a test phase cannot be run simultaneously for all cohorts within the infected blood community. Sadly, many more individuals will die before ever receiving compensation. This is not in the spirit of the Inquiry’s report and  further frustrates a community who have long fought for justice and appropriate redress.  

The Government should be concerned that it is not clear that the scheme promotes fair and just compensation. Many individuals infected with Hepatitis C have been diagnosed with lifelong conditions caused by their underlying infection, yet these extra-hepatic manifestations are ignored under the scheme. Individuals will have the option to apply via a supplementary route for an uplift where they have suffered additional harm and/or have incurred additional financial loss. However the regulations limit eligibility to such an extent that very few individuals will be entitled to increased payments. This is in direct contradiction with the summary of the scheme published by the Government in August 2024. It serves to perpetuate the existing distrust the community have for the Government and further exacerbates the long fought disparity between individuals who have been infected with mono-HCV and mono-HIV. 

Gene Matthews said: 

“The concerns of infected and affected community must be addressed by the Government. I have attempted to capture some of those concerns in my statement,  they go to the issue of the lack of transparency displayed by the Government since the compensation scheme was announced in May 2024 and, as almost a year later, many individuals not being clear on what compensation they are entitled to receive and when they will be  able to apply for that compensation. More must and can be done by the Government to provide a clear timeframe to the community and respond to the concerns raised by them and their representatives.” 

Leigh Day’s witness statement can be found here.