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Potential applicants can obtain basic information about compensation possibilities from the network of victim support associations (tel. 08VICTIMES (08 842 846 37), open 7 days a week from 0900 to 2100 hours) or on the Justice Ministry website (www.justice.gouv.fr).
A paper summarising the rules governing compensation for crime victims by the CIVI and the list of documents to be supplied in support of applications for compensation are attached.
COMPENSATION FOR CRIME VICTIMS FROM THE CIVI
At each Tribunal de Grande Instance (TGI), Victims Compensation Commissions (CIVI) decide on applications for compensation submitted by crime victims or persons entitled under them.
Time allowed for applying to the CIVI
Three years from the date of the offence. It can be extended by one year from the date of the final judgment in criminal proceedings. But the Commission has the possibility of extending it further if there are valid grounds.
Facts giving rise to compensation
The applicant must show that the loss sustained is the result of facts which, whether or not done intentionally, correspond to a criminal offence. Compensation is thus available for the consequences of acts committed deliberately, recklessly or negligently, whether or not the offender's identity is known.
As regards damage to property, the offence must be a theft, fraud, embezzlement, extortion, destruction, degradation or deterioration.
There is an exclusion for acts of terrorism, traffic accidents in French territory and hunting accidents.
Place of offence and nationality of victim
If the offence was committed in French territory (Metropolitan France, overseas departments or territories) compensation may be applied for by:
- persons holding French nationality,
- nationals of a Member State of the European Union,
- subject to international treaties and agreements, foreign nationals lawfully residing at the time of the facts or of the application to the CIVI.
If the offence was committed abroad, compensation may be applied for only by persons holding French nationality.
Victim at fault
Where the victim is at fault, compensation may be reduced or excluded, for example if the victim uttered insults, took part in a brawl or participated in an offence. Where the victim has died, the rights of persons entitled under him or her may likewise be reduced or excluded.
Nature and seriousness of the loss
There are two quite different situations.
• Serious personal injury
The victim may obtain full compensation for losses sustained if:
- the facts caused death, permanent or total incapacity for work for one month or more,
- the offence was rape, sexual aggression, trafficking in human beings or sexual misconduct in relation to a minor aged less than 15.
- the CIVI will take account of benefits paid by mutual societies, insurance companies etc.
- Damage to clothing or personal effects is not covered.
• Minor personal injuries and material losses due to theft, embezzlement, extortion, destruction, degradation or deterioration of property.
If the victim sustains physical injury entailing total incapacity for work for less than one month or material loss as a result of one of the offences enumerated above, the compensation is subject to maximum amounts and limiting conditions.
The following additional conditions apply for eligibility for compensation on this basis:
- have monthly resources in 2005 of less than €1265, plus €152 for the first two dependent persons and €96 from the third person onwards. The evaluation of resources includes resources of the spouse and any other people habitually resident in the applicant's home (family benefits are disregarded);
- show that the offender is unknown or insolvent;
- be unable to obtain full and adequate compensation for the loss from an insurance company, a social security body or any other debtor;
- be accordingly in a serious material or psychological situation by reason of the offence.
If all these conditions are met, the maximum compensation is €3795 (three times the resources limit set for the award of legal aid from 1 January).
Where to apply
The same procedure applies whatever the type of compensation applied for. A written application for compensation must be presented to the CIVI.
There is a CIVI for each Tribunal de Grande Instance (see list below). The relevant Commission is the one for:
- either the place where the applicant lives, or
- the location of the criminal court trying the offence.
The relevant CIVI as regards offences against French nationals committed abroad is the Tribunal de Grande Instance at Paris.
How to apply
The procedure begins with an application signed by the victim, or his or her legal representative or lawyer. It is either handed or sent by registered letter to the secretariat of the CIVI, which issues a receipt. You do not have to be assisted by a lawyer. The application must be accompanied by specified information and documents (see list below).
The procedure
The non-contentious stage
Once the application has come before the CIVI, a magistrate investigates it and checks the statements made and the documents attached. The Chairman of the Commission or the magistrate assessing the case has extensive powers: among other things, they may send for copies of reports of the offences and all documents in the criminal proceedings, even if they are still ongoing; they may call witnesses and carry out all investigations as they wish.
The full File is then sent direct by the registry of the CIVI to the Fonds de Garantie des victimes des actes de terrorisme et d'autres infractions (FGTI). Le FGTI has two months after receiving the application to make the applicant an offer. If the applicant accepts it, the FGTI sends the agreement to the Chairman of the CIVI, who endorses it so that the compensation can be paid.
If the applicant rejects the offer or the Fonds de garantie opposes the compensation for reasons stated, the non-contentious stage comes to an end and the procedure continues in the CIVI.
The subsequent stages
The application and vouchers are then sent by the CIVI to the Prosecution Service and the FGTI for their comments no later than two weeks before the date set for a hearing. The applicant and the FGTI must be summoned at least two months ahead of the date. The hearing does not take place in public.
The CIVI issues a decision ordering compensation or rejecting the application. The applicant and the FGTI are notified of the CIVI's decision, and the FGTI pays the agreed compensation within one month of the notification.
Applicants and the FGTI both have a right of appeal. The appeal must be entered by a lawyer within one month of notification of the decision.
A request for a payment to be made into court may be put to the Chairman of the CIVI, who must respond within one month from the date of the request.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS
The application to the CIVI must contain the information needed to assess it. It must be accompanied by supporting documents specifying:
• The applicant's surname, forenames, date and place of birth, occupation, nationality and address (attach a copy of national identity card, resident's card or residence permit, passport etc.),
• Relationship with victim (attach a copy of family record book etc.),
• Date, place and circumstances of the relevant offence (attach receipt for the complaint Filed, documents from the criminal proceedings etc.),
• The court that tried the offence (attach a copy of the judgment),
• Type of injuries, duration of absence from work and sequels if any (attach medical certificates, sick notes, reports of medical examinations),
• Public or private social security bodies covering or insuring the applicant that might be liable for compensating all or part of the loss sustained (attach a copy of the social security card),
• Non-contentious applications made and court proceedings commenced, and sums already paid to the applicant by way of compensation (attach vouchers for daily subsistence grants, pensions, annuities, amounts paid by the offenders, the insurer, etc.),
• Amount of compensation applied for from the CIVI.
If the application concerns compensation for minor personal injuries or material losses as a result of theft, fraud, embezzlement, extortion, destruction, degradation or deterioration of property, the application must specify:
• The applicant's resources (attach the income tax assessment for the year preceding the offence and the year preceding the application to the CIVI or, if the applicant is not liable to income tax, an exemption certificate and a list oft he applicant's real property, if any),
• Evidence to show why the applicant cannot obtain full and effective compensation for his or her loss from public or private bodies to which he or she is affiliated or any other source (the offender, an insurance company, etc.),
• Description of the serious material or psychological situation caused by the offence.
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