The Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme 1983

Pensions to other dependants

39.—(1) Subject to the following provisions of this Article, any other dependant of a deceased person may be awarded a pension if he was, throughout the period beginning 6 months prior to the material date and ending with the death of the deceased person or throughout such other period as the Secretary of State may determine in the exceptional circumstances of any case, dependent on the deceased person and is in pecuniary need and is either incapable of self-support or is a juvenile dependant of that person.

(2) Not more than one dependant shall be awarded a pension under this Article in respect of the death of a person except in the case of juvenile dependants, and where an award under this Article to any dependant ceases for any reason to have effect no award shall be made under this Article to any other person unless that person is the wife or husband of that dependant.

(3) The decision of the Secretary of State shall be final on any question as to which of two or more eligible dependants should receive a pension under this Article.

(4) A pension awarded under this Article to a juvenile dependant shall be at such rate as the Secretary of State may determine, but shall not exceed the rate specified in Schedule 4, paragraph 11(a), for each juvenile dependant, so, however, that the aggregate rate of the pensions shall not exceed the rate specified in paragraph 11(b) of the said Schedule and shall not, in a case where a pension under Article 38 is in payment in respect of one eligible parent of the deceased person, exceed the maximum which, by virtue of paragraph (6) of this Article, is appropriate in such a case.

(5) A pension awarded under this Article to another dependant who is not a juvenile dependant shall be at such rate as the Secretary of State may determine, but shall not exceed the rate specified in Schedule 4, paragraph 11(c), and shall not, in a case where a pension under Article 38 is in payment in respect of one eligible parent of the deceased person, exceed the maximum which, by virtue of paragraph (6) of this Article, is appropriate in such a case.

(6) Where a pension under Article 38 is in payment in respect of one eligible parent of the deceased person, the rate of a pension under this Article to another dependant of the deceased person, or, as the case may be, the aggregate rate of the pensions to the other dependants of that person, shall not exceed the difference between the rate of the pension of which the parent is in receipt and the maximum rate which would be appropriate in that case under paragraph (4) of Article 38 if there were two eligible parents and the case were treated as an exceptional case under the proviso to that paragraph.

(7) In this Article, “juvenile dependant” means another dependant of the deceased person who is a brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, stepbrother, stepsister or grandchild of that person and who has not attained the age of 15: Provided that a juvenile dependant who has attained the age of 15 and was when he attained that age a student may be treated, for the purposes of this paragraph, as if he did not attain that age until whichever is the earlier of the following dates, namely—

(a) the date on which he ceases to be a student; or

(b) the 31st July which next follows the day on which he attains the age of 16, or, as the case may be, which is the day on which he attains that age.