CICA failing the public, says report
14 Dec 07
National Audit Office finds longer delays in victim payouts
Victims of violent crime are taking unacceptably long to receive payments under the publicly funded compensation scheme, according to an official report.
In a report published today the National Audit Office found that the average time taken to conclude applicants' cases rose from 364 days (12 months) in 1998-99 to 515 days (almost 17 months) in 2006-07. This was despite a 23% fall (to 61,000 last year) in the number of applications over the same period.
At the moment a backlog of 81,000 applicants are waiting to hear the result of their claims.
Chairman of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, Edward Leigh MP, said the system was slowly grinding to a halt and the taxpayer was paying more for a worse service.
The report says that application forms are long and difficult to complete, and delays are caused by bureaucratic and repetitive processes. However Sir John Bourn, head of the NAO, noted that the CICA had begun a major overhaul of the way it operated and said he expected to see swift improvements in the service provided.
The CICA recently appointed a new chief executive, Caroline Oatway.