Correspondence

IBCA Community Update, 9 July 2026 (HTML)

Published 9 July 2026

Hello, and welcome to your community update. This week marks one year since the Infected Blood Inquiry published their Additional Report and this update gives you the latest information on IBCA’s progress in paying compensation. 

This newsletter includes:

• an update on compensation claims
• an update from the Board
  • bringing in more claims
  • an update from the Community Advisory Panel
  • establishing an ethics committee 
  • themes we have been hearing from the community 
• introducing IBCA’s new non-executive directors
• your questions

Thank you for your feedback and questions. They help us improve this update. You can get in touch by emailing ibcaenquiries@ibca.org.uk or on Facebook or X .

An update on compensation claims

As of 30 June 2026: 

• 5,105 people have been asked to start their claim
• 4,637 people have started the claim process
• 3,335 people have had their compensation paid, totalling just over £2.17 billion

Prioritising claims

We prioritise claims based on recommendations from the Infected Blood Inquiry. We are processing claims in stages.

We have asked everyone registered as living infected never compensated and nearing the end of their life to start their claim, and are now contacting people with advanced liver disease. 

We have asked everyone who has registered to make a deceased infected claim with a beneficiary of an estate who is nearing the end of their life to start their claim, and are now contacting beneficiaries who are aged 75 or over.

We are currently asking living affected people who are nearing the end of their life to start their claim, and expect to soon have contacted everyone currently registered in this group. We will then contact people aged 75 or over to start their claim.  

Registration

We have received 19,565 registrations of intent to claim compensation. This figure represents individual registrations, not unique people or claims, as some people may have registered more than once. 

The full figures, including a breakdown of each group, are available on our website.

View our latest compensation and registration figures on the IBCA website. 

If you, or someone you know, could be eligible for infected blood compensation, or want to make an additional claim, please find out more information about how to register on our website. 

Each claim must be registered separately - this includes multiple claims from the same person, or multiple family members claiming individually. You cannot register as a family claim.

If your circumstances have changed since you registered with us, please let us know.

An update from the Board 

Our Board meeting took place on Tuesday 7 July. The video will be available on our YouTube channel shortly. 

This is part of our commitment to being open and transparent. You can also see the agenda and board papers on our website. 

The main items discussed have been summarised for you below.

An update from our CEO on bringing in more claims

Our ambition is to bring in a further 5,000 claims to decision by the end of March 2027.  This means that people will know whether their claim is eligible for payment. We’re starting with hundreds more, at this point in time, and have a plan for how we get to thousands more. We will begin with infected claims. This then allows us to later bring in more affected claims.

As every affected claim is linked to an infected claim, by progressing more infected claims and progressing them faster now, we will be able to support significantly more affected claims later, moving them towards payment.

We will still follow the prioritisation criteria set out by the Infected Blood Inquiry. This means that any claims for people that are at the end of life, with advanced liver disease, or from someone aged 75 or over will be prioritised across all groups.

Wherever possible, we will pay a person’s core award so that they do not have to wait for supplementary claims or regulatory changes before receiving any compensation.

Update from the Community Advisory Panel

Mohammad El-Gendi, Vice Chairperson of the Community Advisory Panel (CAP), presented the Board with their discussion and findings from their recent meetings. 

Each member of CAP has direct experience of the infected blood scandal, and, as a panel, these members advise the Board, helping to shape how we deliver compensation. 

CAP presented four key areas of discussion at the Board meeting, you can find these in the CAP Board Paper published on our website. The four areas were:

• reassessment of compensation awards and recovery of payments
• the Terms of Reference that CAP are using
• how IBCA supports those who have registered their intent to claim
• some wider suggestions for improvements and changes to the compensation service

The Board will provide a response to the CAP’s paper. This will be made available on the IBCA website. 

We will also continue to develop the CAP section on our website, to provide the community with more information about the panel’s work and broaden understanding.

The CAP is just one of the ways we listen to the community. Your views are central to how we design and deliver the compensation claim service, and your feedback directly helps us build a claim service that works for you.

If you have a concern you’d like to share, you can email us at feedbackandconcerns@ibca.org.uk.

Creating an Ethics Advisory Panel

Following a recommendation by IBCA’s Community Advisory Panel that we appoint an ethics advisor or panel to support key decision-making, the Board has agreed to appoint an ethics panel. 

The panel will provide advice and support on decisions relating to the delivery of compensation which raise ethical questions. These might include how IBCA uses AI or how the organisation uses public money to build the compensation service. 

Our Board agreed that it is right to appoint this panel as we continue to understand more about the unique needs of each person making a claim. 

A Terms of Reference for the panel will now be developed. This means creating a set of guiding principles that enable the panel to carry out their work. We are also starting to consider panel membership. 

Themes we are hearing from the community

Our latest Community Themes report is now available on our website.

The report is based on what you have told us through various channels between April and June. Themes include:

• challenges people are experiencing getting hold of historical medical evidence
• navigating probate or confirmation for deceased estates
• accessibility concerns, particularly around digital inclusion and reaching minority communities
• condition-specific concerns about medical assessments

The report also shares insights from our recent user research and explains how your feedback is shaping improvements to our service.

Introducing IBCA’s new non-executive directors

IBCA has appointed two new non-executive directors to its board.

Laura Bunt, our new digital transformation non-executive director, has held leadership roles across a number of organisations and has experience advising public bodies on digital transformation. She will help IBCA make sure it manages data well and provides effective digital services.

Richard Blakeway, customer journey non-executive director, currently chairs the Office for Legal Complaints and has served as both Deputy Mayor for Housing in London and as Housing Ombudsman. He will bring his experience in public advocacy to help IBCA provide a service that is fair, compassionate and straightforward to use.

Both appointments reflect our commitment to transparency and independent oversight, and to building a service that puts the community at its heart.

Chief Executive David Foley said: “Laura and Richard bring a wealth of experience, and more importantly, they share our commitment to pay every eligible person the compensation they deserve as quickly as we can, while building a compensation service which is right for everyone.”

Your questions

What is happening with the 4th set of regulations?

Last month, the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme (Amendment) Regulations 2026, commonly known as the fourth regulations, were laid in parliament. This followed a public consultation on proposed changes to the infected blood compensation scheme.

The regulations implement recommendations from the Infected Blood Inquiry’s Additional Report, published in July 2025.

The House of Commons debated the regulations this week and, subject to parliamentary approval, they will become law in the autumn 2026.

Once the regulations come into force, we will put them in place for our compensation service as quickly as we can, and will update you when we have more detail.

To find out more about the Infected Blood Compensation Scheme regulations visit GOV.UK. 

What financial advice or guidance is available when I make a claim? 

When you receive your offer of compensation, you will also receive information about the financial advice available to you.

Depending on your circumstances, it might include:

• ways to get free financial guidance from MoneyHelper
• financial guidance for people claiming compensation through IBCA
• a paid session with a financial adviser who has experience of working with the infected blood community

You can find more about financial advice on our website: Get financial advice and guidance.

Free legal support is available when you claim

Some people claiming compensation have told us they were contacted by solicitors offering ‘no win, no fee’ terms or Conditional Fee Agreements. Before making any decisions, there are a few important things to know:

• free legal support is available, paid for by IBCA and completely independent of us
• you do not need a solicitor to register or make a compensation claim. If you would like legal support, IBCA can arrange this for you at no cost when your claim begins
• ‘no win, no fee’ or Conditional Fee Agreements may deduct costs from your compensation award - we are aware of cases where significant amounts have been charged to those who have made a claim 
• registering with IBCA is free and straightforward - you can do it yourself, with support from our team, or with someone you trust

We can arrange free legal support when a claim begins, through six independent legal firms who offer impartial advice at no cost to you. If you want to use a different firm, we can discuss this with you.

We know some people may feel under pressure to sign legal agreements quickly. You should never feel rushed into making a decision about your claim or legal representation. If anyone is encouraging you to sign something you do not fully understand, or asking for money in relation to an IBCA claim, please seek independent advice.

If you are worried that someone may be pressuring or taking advantage of you in relation to your claim, please let our safeguarding team know by emailing safeguarding@ibca.org.uk.

Protecting you from fraud

We have systems in place to prevent, spot and deal with fraud. If you get a suspicious message or phone call and want to check if it’s really from IBCA, call us on 0141 726 2397 or email fraud@ibca.org.uk.

If you think someone has defrauded you:

• report it online at Report Fraud or call 0300 123 2040
• in Scotland, call the police on 101
• tell your bank straight away

If you’re worried about fraud, you can find more information on the Stop! Think Fraud website: stopthinkfraud.campaign.gov.uk.

Alternative formats

Do you need this newsletter in a different format? We can provide large print, another language, or other formats. Let us know by:

• calling 0141 726 2397
• emailing ibcaenquiries@ibca.org.uk
• writing to PO Box 384, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE98 1XY

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