First final compensation in blood case will be given in a few days

The first victims of the infected blood scam will receive final compensation payments this week, the government has said.

Ten people have been offered settlements worth a total of more than £13 million, with thousands more applications to be processed from January.

More than 30,000 people became infected with HIV and hepatitis from contaminated blood products in the 1970s and 80s.

In May 2024, officials received a devastating report Concealed the scam and exposed victims to unacceptable risks,

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said in the October budget that £11.8 billion had been set aside to compensate victims, in a move it is believed would be the largest payout of its kind in NHS history.

Nearly 4,000 survivors and bereaved partners have already received a series of interim payments worth up to £310,000.

A new organisation, the Infected Blood Compensation Authority, has been set up to provide final payments to infected people and their families.

The government has said that the first few victims have now accepted the offer and are due to receive money in the coming days.

The individuals, whose identities are being kept secret, were infected with the potentially deadly virus after receiving a contaminated blood transfusion, or receiving treatment for hemophilia or a similar blood disorder.

Another 25 people have been invited to make their claims for final compensation and are expected to receive offers soon.

Cabinet Office Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said “no amount of compensation” can fully address the suffering resulting from this scandal.

“I hope this shows that we are doing everything we can to provide significant compensation to those infected and affected,” he said.

“After so many years of injustice, I hope this provides some reassurance to a community that has suffered greatly that action is being taken.”

The government is holding fresh talks this week with groups of survivors and their relatives amid criticism that the compensation process was too slow and did not fully take into account the families’ views.

Some? Bereaved relatives were recently told Their interim compensation payments, scheduled to be made before Christmas, were suddenly stopped until they could provide additional documentation.

Earlier this week, the chairman of the public inquiry into the scandal, Sir Brian Langstaff, Wrote to ministers to raise concerns There is an ‘atmosphere of dissatisfaction’ with the way the process is being managed.

Kate Burt, chief executive of the Haemophilia Society, previously described news of the final payment as “positive” but said it should not overshadow the “significant concerns felt in the community”.

“The reality behind this announcement is that there is widespread frustration over the slow implementation of compensation and anger that the government is not listening to suggestions from the community on how to improve the scheme,” he said.

“If rapid progress is to be made in compensating those infected and the bereaved, the government must begin to take seriously the concerns of those at the center of this scandal.”