NHS Negligence Compensation Amounts

74% of claims settle for under £25,000, but claims over £1M account for 67% of total payments.

13,329

Claims settled

£3.1B

Total payments

Nil

Most common band

2.2%

Claims over £1M

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Claims vs Payments by Band

Just 2.2% of all claims are worth over £1 million, yet they account for 67% of total spend. The dual bars below show this concentration effect for every compensation band.

Nil

6,441 claims
% of claims48.3%
% of payments (£8.9M)0.3%

£1-£1,500

173 claims
% of claims1.3%
% of payments (£2.0M)0.1%

£1,501-£25,000

3,265 claims
% of claims24.5%
% of payments (£144.6M)4.7%

£25,001-£50,000

1,191 claims
% of claims8.9%
% of payments (£116.9M)3.8%

£50,001-£100,000

841 claims
% of claims6.3%
% of payments (£134.6M)4.4%

£100,001-£250,000

696 claims
% of claims5.2%
% of payments (£218.6M)7.1%

£250,001-£500,000

250 claims
% of claims1.9%
% of payments (£167.8M)5.5%

£500,001-£1,000,000

175 claims
% of claims1.3%
% of payments (£217.0M)7.0%

£1,000,001-£2,000,000

91 claims
% of claims0.7%
% of payments (£216.1M)7.0%

£2,000,001-£4,249,999

51 claims
% of claims0.4%
% of payments (£271.1M)8.8%

£4,250,000+

155 claims
% of claims1.2%
% of payments (£1.6B)51.4%

Distribution by Number of Claims

How many claims settled in each compensation bracket in 2024/25.

Nil6,441 claims
£1-£1,500173 claims
£1,501-£25,0003,265 claims
£25,001-£50,0001,191 claims
£50,001-£100,000841 claims
£100,001-£250,000696 claims
£250,001-£500,000250 claims
£500,001-£1,000,000175 claims
£1,000,001-£2,000,00091 claims
£2,000,001-£4,249,99951 claims
£4,250,000+155 claims

Distribution by Total Payments

The same brackets by total payment value tell a very different story. A small number of high-value claims dominate total spending.

Nil£8.9M
£1-£1,500£2.0M
£1,501-£25,000£144.6M
£25,001-£50,000£116.9M
£50,001-£100,000£134.6M
£100,001-£250,000£218.6M
£250,001-£500,000£167.8M
£500,001-£1,000,000£217.0M
£1,000,001-£2,000,000£216.1M
£2,000,001-£4,249,999£271.1M
£4,250,000+£1.6B

Catastrophic Claims Over Time

Total payments for claims in the highest band (£4,250,000+) over time. These are typically catastrophic injury cases involving lifelong care costs.

£134.5M
£143.3M
£210.1M
£184.9M
£233.8M
£416.0M
£421.8M
£362.4M
£346.9M
£464.5M
£529.6M
£990.8M
£1.1B
£982.4M
£936.1M
£1.1B
£1.3B
£1.4B
£1.6B
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024

Key Insights

Low-value claims (<£25K)

74%

9,879 of 13,329 claims

High-value claims (>£1M)

2.2%

297 claims worth £2.1B

High-value share of payments

67%

Claims over £1M as share of total paid

See which specialties drive high-value claims →

Source: NHS Resolution Annual Report and Accounts 2024/25. Data covers the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST), Existing Liabilities Scheme (ELS), and Risk Pooling Scheme for Trusts (RPST). This information is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.