Injury to feelings compensation: what you need to know

If you're in the process of making an Employment Tribunal claim, you may be curious about injury to feelings compensation. You might also be wondering if your case could qualify for this type of award. 

You’ll find everything you need to know about injury to feelings compensation in this guide.  

What is injury to feelings compensation?

‘Injury to feelings’ is a specific type of compensation that an Employment Tribunal can award in certain circumstances. It’s designed to compensate for emotional distress in discrimination and whistleblowing cases.

An award for injury to feelings is designed to compensate the claimant for worry, stress, anger or any other hurt feelings that resulted from the event(s) outlined in their claim.

What types of claims could qualify for an injury to feelings award?

Injury to feelings compensation can be awarded for successful claims in the following scenarios:

• Discrimination based on a protected characteristic
• Whistleblowing claims for either detriment or dismissal
• Certain other types of detriment, such as detriment for attending jury service.

Real examples of injury to feelings awards

 In each of the following cases, the claimant was awarded injury to feelings compensation by the judge:

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• Mrs J Bedford v Black Mouse Cheese and Wine Emporium Ltd (in creditors voluntary liquidation) and Mr A Wheeler: 1804634/2020

In this case, the claimant was subjected to age-related and sexual harassment through a number of comments and actions over a period of time. This included her boss telling her she was “thick and old” for not being able to use icloud.

The Tribunal awarded this claimant £8,000, plus interest, for injury to feelings.

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• Ms R Duggal v HBOS plc: 2202084/2019 

The claimant in this case had a sensitivity to light that amounted to a disability. The Tribunal found that her employer failed to make reasonable adjustments to her work surroundings. This affected the claimant’s work and personal life, compromising her physical and mental wellbeing. 

The Tribunal awarded this claimant £10,000, plus interest, for injury to feelings.

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• Mr K Oppong v DHL Services Ltd: 1302640/2016

In this case, the claimant was subjected to victimisation when he raised a grievance about race discrimination. The claimant’s employer failed to respond to him and stopped his pay. At Employment Tribunal, his claims of victimisation and race discrimination succeeded in part. 

The Tribunal awarded this claimant £3,000 for injury to feelings.

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An injury to feelings award is designed to compensate the employee rather than to punish the employer. The key focus of the judge’s decision is always on the effect of the discrimination on the individual claimant. The judge will assess the evidence of the hurt they have suffered, along with any arguments from the employer for reducing the award.

How is an injury to feelings award calculated?

To calculate the value of an injury to feelings award, the Tribunal uses a degree of judgment and discretion. It also takes the specific facts and circumstances of each case into account. 

The Vento bands framework

Injury to feelings compensation is generally awarded within one of three “Vento bands”, depending on the severity of each case.

Vento bands provide a framework for judges to assess injury to feelings awards. The bands are as follows:

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For exceptional cases, awards may exceed £58,700.

How judges decide the amount of compensation to award 

When determining how much to award a claimant for injury to feelings, the judge will assess:

• The impact and effect of the discrimination on the claimant
• The vulnerability of the claimant
• The severity and duration of the discriminatory treatment
• Any medical conditions or psychological impact
• The degree of distress, humiliation or upset caused
• The impact on the claimant's career
• How the employer handled any grievance.

The amount that the judge awards for injury to feelings will depend on the specific circumstances and impact on the claimant. 

For a one-off incident, claimants might be able to expect an award of around £5,000. For anything more sustained, they might receive £15,000-£25,000 or even more, depending on the severity of the case.

If a claimant wins their claim on more than one type of discrimination, the judge will issue a single award based on overall injury to feelings.

The impact of aggravating features

If there are aggravating features in the case (e.g. if the employer’s behaviour has been particularly bad), the judge can increase the amount of the award.

In England and Wales, claimants receive a separate award called aggravated damages in this scenario. In Scotland, aggravating features are factored into injury to feelings compensation - there is no separate award.

How to calculate injury to feelings compensation for your discrimination case

If you suspect your case will qualify, you might be wondering how much compensation you could expect to receive for injury to feelings.

Our on-demand video, “How to calculate injury to feelings compensation for your discrimination case”, is designed to help. 

By watching the one-hour video, you’ll gain: 

• a deeper understanding of the Vento bands
• an overview of how the Employment Tribunal evaluates Vento when awarding discrimination claims
• real-world insights from two experienced Valla coaches
• a framework for analysing your own case and justifying injury to feelings compensation

Get access to the video

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