£126m for abuse victims as ‘same-roof ’ rule ends

Up to 7,500 victims of child abuse or domestic violence will be able to claim compensation worth as much as £126million from today after ministers abolished the “same-roof ” rule.

Compensation has been denied for decades under a rule that blocked victims of violent crime from receiving money if the attacker was a family member with whom they were living at the time of the incident.

After a court of appeal test case decided the rule was incompatible with human rights, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has abolished it and agreed to compensate victims.

Internal MOJ documents suggest impact assessments estimate there are 7,500 people entitled to £16,500 to £22,000 each after being denied justice.