Infected blood update: what IBCA said on 4 June 2026

People waiting for infected blood compensation got a fresh progress update on Thursday 4 June. In its community bulletin, the Infected Blood Compensation Authority said it had opened its compensation service to 4,466 claims. It also said 52 more people claiming on behalf of a deceased infected person had been invited to start a claim over the previous two weeks, bringing that group to 158 in total, while claims for affected people nearing end of life were still being brought in. (gov.uk) **What this means:** this was not a blanket announcement that every remaining claimant can apply today. It was more of a progress check. IBCA said it expects all currently registered claims from living infected people and people representing deceased infected people to be brought into the service by the end of March 2027. (gov.uk)

The reason this authority exists is the infected blood scandal itself: men, women and children treated by the NHS were given infected blood and blood products, and the Infected Blood Inquiry published its final report on 20 May 2024. GOV.UK says IBCA is the UK-wide body set up to deliver compensation in response to the Inquiry and Sir Robert Francis KC's earlier work on redress. (gov.uk) If you're trying to work out whether the scheme is about you, the first distinction is between infected and affected claimants. The wider scheme covers both. Affected people can include partners, parents, children, siblings and some unpaid carers. For most applicants, compensation is worked out through a tariff-based core route, with a supplementary route available in certain cases where personal circumstances need fuller evidence. That design is meant to keep claims simpler than a court case. (gov.uk)

One of the hardest parts of this update is also the most important to understand: IBCA is not simply processing the easiest files first. It says it is still prioritising people in the order recommended by the Infected Blood Inquiry, starting with those nearing the end of life. It also says every claim has its own circumstances, so some cases take longer once record gaps or extra evidence appear. (gov.uk) That helps explain why the authority has built a specialist team to gather medical documents directly from the NHS and other healthcare providers. In the 4 June update, IBCA said claim managers can help where people do not have proof of diagnoses such as HIV, hepatitis C or hepatitis B to hand. **What this means:** part of the slower pace comes from trying to stop families doing all the document-chasing on their own. That is our inference from IBCA's description of how it now collects records. (gov.uk)

The update also tried to answer the question many families ask after compensation is mentioned: what happens to the money in real life? IBCA says it has refreshed its financial guidance to cover banking, fraud, benefits and tax, wills and estate planning, financial advice and mental health. It also says claim managers can arrange a paid session with a financial adviser or point people to free guidance, depending on their circumstances. (gov.uk) The government scheme documents add two important points. First, compensation paid through the scheme should not damage eligibility for means-tested benefits, and it is exempt from income tax, capital gains tax and inheritance tax. Second, living infected and affected people can choose a single lump sum or regular instalments over 5, 10 or 25 years, uprated each year with CPI. For families weighing immediate needs against longer-term security, that is a practical choice rather than a small technical detail. (gov.uk)

A lot of the 4 June bulletin focused on estates, and with good reason. IBCA repeated that if an affected person dies between 21 May 2024 and 31 March 2031, compensation should not simply disappear; their estate can still be eligible. It also said that if you represent the estate of a deceased infected person who was already registered with a support scheme, you still need to register that estate's claim with IBCA. (gov.uk) There are two more points worth putting in plain English. People with legal authority to act for a deceased affected person can now register an intent to claim, and eligible estates can reclaim up to £1,500 for probate or equivalent legal costs. More broadly, the scheme is open until 31 March 2031 for people diagnosed before 1 April 2025, and for later diagnoses it stays open for six years from diagnosis. (gov.uk)

IBCA's warning about legal firms deserves real attention. The authority says some people have been approached by solicitors offering 'no win, no fee' deals, but it also says claimants do not need a solicitor to register or make a claim. Free legal help is available once a claim begins, paid for by IBCA but provided independently of it. (gov.uk) The same goes for fraud. IBCA says suspicious calls or messages should be checked with the authority directly, and people who believe they have been defrauded should report it and contact their bank straight away. **What this means:** if someone is pressuring you to sign quickly or pay up front, the update itself gives you a reason to slow down and check before doing anything. (gov.uk)

There were also signs that the scheme is being watched more closely from outside. IBCA says its next public board discussion on business planning will cover how more claims are brought in, and on 4 June chief executive David Foley gave evidence to Parliament's Public Accounts Committee, which is examining how government compensation schemes are set up and run. (gov.uk) IBCA also confirmed that Sir Robert Francis, its interim chair, plans to leave at the end of November, with recruitment for a permanent chair due to begin. For people and families who have already waited decades, this may sound procedural. But procedure is the story now: who gets invited next, how evidence is collected, what support is free, and whether the state can finally run a compensation system that feels fair as well as fast. The first sentence is from IBCA's update; the final judgement is our reading of why that update matters. (gov.uk)