High Court expands Eq Life compensation

More Equitable Life victims may now be eligible for compensation, following a High Court appeal.

In a hearing today, the High Court backed most of the Government's decisions, including the decision to only offer limited compensation to victims.

However, Ministers were criticised for not accepting more of the Parliamentary Ombudsman's findings, including rolling back eligibility to the date originally proposed.

The Government had planned to only compensate those who held policies from 1999 onwards, but today's decision will widen the scope back to the early 1990s, meaning many more people may now receive compensation.

However, payments will still be limited to those who were ‘disproportionately' affected by the scandal.

Sir John Chadwick has been appointed to define who will receive compensation, but has yet to outline how the scheme will work.