Vaccine Damage Payment

If you're severely disabled as a result of a vaccination against certain diseases, you may be able to get a Vaccine Damage Payment, a one-off tax-free payment of £120,000.

Who can claim?

You may be able to get a Vaccine Damage Payment if you have a severe disability and your disability was caused by vaccination against any of these diseases:

diphtheria
tetanus
pertussis (whooping cough)
poliomyelitis
measles
mumps
rubella (German measles)
tuberculosis (TB)
haemophilus influenzae type B (HIB)
meningococcal group C (meningitis C)
pneumococcal infection
human papillomavirus
pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 (swine flu) - vaccination up to 31 August 2010
smallpox (up to 1 August 1971)

You may have had a combined vaccination against a number of the diseases listed. For example, you might have been vaacinated against DTP (diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis) or MMR (measles, mumps and rubella).

You may also be able to get a payment if you're thought to be severely disabled because either:

your mother was vaccinated against one of the diseases in the list while she was pregnant
you've been in close physical contact with someone who's been vaccinated against poliomyelitis with a vaccine that was given orally

What counts as 'severely disabled'?

Disablement is worked out as a percentage, and 'severe disablement' is defined as a disability of at least 60 per cent. This could be a mental or physical disability.

For example, total loss of sight or hearing is usually counted as a 100 per cent disablement.

When and where the vaccination must have taken place

To be eligible for Vaccine Damage Payment, you must normally have been vaccinated before your 18th birthday, unless it was against:

poliomyelitis
rubella
Meningococcal group C
human papillomavirus
pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 (swine flu)

The vaccination must have been given in the UK or the Isle of Man.

If the vaccination was given outside the UK, you may get a payment if you were vaccinated as part of Armed Forces medical treatment.

When to claim

If you're claiming on behalf of a child, you must wait until they're at least two years old before claiming.

The claim must be made by the later of the following dates:

the disabled person's 21st birthday (or if they've died, the date on which they would have turned 21)
within six years of the date the vaccination took place

How much do you get?

The amount is £120,000, tax free.

How it's paid

A payment will be made to you or, if you're under 18 or cannot manage your own affairs, to your trustees. If you live with your family, your parents may be appointed as trustees.

Effect on other benefits

Your Vaccine Damage Payment can affect other benefits and entitlements like:

Income Support
Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
Employment and Support Allowance
Working Tax Credit
Child Tax Credit
Pension Credit
Housing Benefit

The effect the payment will have depends on a number of things, including whether the payment is put into a trust and the payments made from it.

You should let the office that deals with your benefit or tax credit claim know if you've got a Vaccine Damage Payment. They will be able give you more information and advice.

How to claim

You can contact the Vaccine Damage Payments Unit to ask for a claim form:

Vaccine Damage Payments Unit
Palatine House
Lancaster Road
Preston
PR1 1HB

phone: 017 7289 9944
textphone: 0845 604 5312

You can also use Text Relay.

Lines are open from 8.30 am to 5.00 pm, Monday to Thursday, and 8.30 am to 4.30 pm on Friday. You can also call using RNID Typetalk. Or, you can download a claim form to print off and fill in. If you're under 18, your parent or guardian should claim on your behalf.

What happens after you've sent off the claim form

Once your claim has been received, the Vaccine Damage Payments Unit will get medical evidence from the doctors or hospitals involved in your treatment.

A claim will be successful if it's accepted that:

your disablement was caused by vaccination
the level of your disablement that can be directly attributed to the vaccination is at least 60 per cent

The result of the claim will be given to you in writing.

How to appeal

If you disagree with the decision of the First tier Tribunal you can ask for the decision to be looked at again. You can ask the Vaccine Damage Payment Unit, or you can request an appeal to the Upper Tribunal.

If your claim is turned down and you disagree with the decision, you can ask for the decision to be looked at again. You can ask the Vaccine Damage Payments Unit, or you can appeal to an independent First-tier Tribunal.

If you think that relevant information has not been taken into account you can ask for the decision to be looked at again. You can also ask if new information becomes available. The decision will be looked at by the Vaccine Damage Payments Unit.