A male survivor of human trafficking has had to wait more than 10 years to be compensated for injuries he sustained whilst trapped in forced labour.
While Gyula* has waited years for redress – a process which is mentally and emotionally demanding for victims of modern slavery – his traffickers have already been released from prison.
After being exploited, Gyula was supported to bring a civil compensation claim. But the case collapsed as the business where he was exploited went into administration, and the insurers successfully cancelled the insurance sold to the business on the basis that they had not disclosed that they were employing victims of trafficking. As a result, his only option for obtaining compensation was through an application to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA).
Gyula was forced to work overnight in a factory for nine months. The job was exhausting and arduous – he worked 16-hour shifts, sometimes seven days per week, for just £10 per day.
He was trafficked from his home in Hungary on the promise of a well-paid job and accommodation. He was given a one-way ticket to the UK and taken to a house in the north of England. He was made to live in a cramped space with several other men, all being held against their will. His freedom was taken away from him. His own hard-earned money was pocketed by the traffickers. He was barely given enough food to eat.
Gyula was finally able to leave the situation after one of the other victims alerted someone about their exploitation. The individual contacted Hope for Justice and our investigators were able to support the men to leave the property. Gyula reported his trafficking to the police and officers determined that he had been a victim of modern slavery. This was later supported by a positive decision via the National Referral Mechanism (NRM), the UK Government’s process for formally identifying victims of modern slavery and providing a support mechanism.
Hope for Justice was able to provide advocacy for Gyula over several years. This included advocating for subsistence and safe accommodation upon exiting the NRM, access to legal advice in relation to immigration and compensation and supporting Gyula through the criminal prosecution of his traffickers. Our Independent Modern Slavery Advocates (IMSAs) also assisted Gyula to access community-based support, improve his English language skills and find employment.
In 2014, Gyula began trying to claim compensation – to recover some of the money that had been wrongfully withheld from him and to obtain redress for the injuries he sustained at the hands of traffickers.
With the support of ATLEU, a charity providing legal advice and support to survivors of modern slavery, Gyula launched a High Court civil claim for damages. This claim was against the business where he had been forced to work. But the process was long and drawn out. Particularly, as it took almost three years for the Legal Aid Agency to agree funding for his claim.
Gyula told us: “It was very difficult because the process for applying and waiting for compensation was very long. I was debating about it and thinking about it lots. I tried to distract myself and focus on work. When the solicitor first told me that they were unable to get any money from the company, I almost gave up. I would get so upset – annoyed that nothing was happening – so I felt it best to let it go.”
The High Court ruling left Gyula with no option but to re-start the process of applying for compensation via alternative means.
Jamila Duncan-Bosu, a solicitor at ATLEU, said: “Compensation is often vital to a survivor’s recovery, yet many struggle to secure compensation directly from their traffickers. Gyula’s case highlights the importance of alternative routes to compensation. We are glad that ATLEU’s CICA Project was able to assist Gyula as he continued to fight for redress.”
Hope for Justice had previously notified CICA of the survivor’s eligibility to claim for compensation for personal injury, financial loss and other harm that he had suffered during his forced labour.
Claimants in the UK cannot claim for the same loss twice, so we had asked CICA to put the case on hold while Gyula was pursuing a compensation claim via the High Court.
When this option was no longer viable for Gyula, Hope for Justice wrote to CICA in early 2022 to update them and asked for time to send evidence to support his application.
We applied in August 2023, which was rejected by CICA two months later. So we worked alongside ATLEU and a pro-bono law firm as part of our joint CICA project to submit a review in January 2023.
Thankfully, CICA accepted our reconsideration request and asked for further evidence. Over the next year, Hope for Justice worked alongside Gyula to prove that he was a victim of violent crime. We showed that he had suffered injury in the form of acute mental health issues because of the crimes committed against him. He has suffered from disabling anxiety, PTSD, insomnia, stress and trauma, all caused by his trafficking situation. He was also fearful for his and his family’s lives, having received threats.
Gyula has finally been awarded compensation of £13,500 – more than 10 years after his exploitation ended. He said: “I am not someone who wanted millions of pounds. I just wanted to be paid my salary. I worked for nine months, and this is payment for when I worked. I am very happy that this has been paid. At the start of this process, I was really looking forward to something coming of it but as the years went by, I kind of gave up. I have always worked and been able to provide for myself on a basic level. I just had to wait and see what would happen.”
The survivor told us that he will put the money into savings so that he can spend it on his children or on any unforeseen emergency.
He added: “I would really like to thank Hope for Justice for all your help – without you, I would never have gotten this compensation. You were there from the first steps.”
Hope for Justice has written extensively about the improvements we believe are needed to give victims of modern slavery improved access to compensation.
Ellie Russell, Hope for Justice’s Advocacy Manager, said: “It is a harsh reality that many survivors of modern slavery wait years to receive compensation for their exploitation and face many challenges along the way. Whilst we are really pleased that there has finally been a positive outcome in Gyula’s case, it is still incredibly difficult for many other survivors and often impossible without assistance from an advocate or legal representative. At Hope for Justice, we will continue to advocate for changes to the CICA scheme and other avenues of compensation and call upon the UK Government to improve the access to compensation for modern slavery survivors.”
ATLEU said: “We are really pleased with this result. We hope that the compensation award assists Gyula in building a bright future for himself and his family.”
Gyula said: “I think there are a lot of people in the same situation I have been in; they are waiting a very long time for compensation. I hope that by sharing my story it leads to other people getting the help they need.”
*Name and image changed to protect the identity of the survivor
