Government compensation schemes progress but challenges remain

A number of government compensation schemes have made notable progress in managing claims and processing payments, according to a recent report by the National Audit Office (NAO), which serves as the independent government spending watchdog. However, the report also emphasises that there is still much work to be done in order to identify all eligible individuals and minimise delays in claims processing.

The NAO's report examines several key compensation schemes, including the Windrush Compensation Scheme and various facets of the Horizon compensation initiatives, among others. By February 2026, the government had disbursed around £3.5 billion across these schemes, although estimates suggest that an additional £11.4 billion could be paid out, bringing the projected total to nearly £14.9 billion. Notably, the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme alone is expected to account for £12.8 billion of this total.

Throughout the execution of these schemes, initial estimates regarding the number of eligible claimants and compensation amounts were often underestimated. Consequently, departments faced substantial backlogs due to a variety of reasons that included a lack of awareness and trust in the compensation processes among potential claimants, as well as lengthy retrieval of necessary background information.

The report indicates that significant efforts have since been made to identify and engage with potential claimants. For instance, three schemes extended their deadlines to accommodate those who were unaware of their eligibility. Moreover, four of the five schemes that remain open have received claims from around two-thirds or more of the estimated eligible population, though many of these estimates carry considerable uncertainty.

The time taken to process claims varies significantly across the schemes, with some individuals waiting over a year for their compensation offers. Nevertheless, all schemes now provide interim payments or fixed sums to facilitate swifter resolutions for some claims. For instance, as of January 2026, the average time to conclude fully assessed claims in the Horizon Group Litigation Order Scheme was 147 working days, compared to just 24 days for fixed sum claims.

Claimant organisations have expressed concerns regarding transparency, stating that potential claimants are still unclear about expected timelines for claim processing and that some schemes lack sufficient independence. Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, commented that “People who have experienced harm should be able to expect a clear process for claiming compensation and no unreasonable delay in processing their claim. There is clear evidence that more recent compensation schemes have learned from the experience of earlier schemes, helping reach more affected people and speed up payments to those eligible”