The Social Security (Recovery of Benefits) Regulations 1997

Structured settlements E+W+S

10.—(1) This regulation applies where—

(a) in final settlement of an injured person’s claim, an agreement is entered into—

(i) for the making of periodical payments (whether of an income or capital nature); or

(ii) for the making of such payments and lump sum payments; and

(b) apart from the provisions of this regulation, those payments would fall to be treated for the purposes of the 1997 Act as compensation payments.

(2) Where this regulation applies, the provisions of the 1997 Act and these Regulations shall be modified in the following way—

(a) the compensator in question shall be taken to have made on that day a single compensation payment;

(b) the relevant period in the case of the compensator in question shall be taken to end (if it has not done so already) on the day of settlement;

(c) payments under the agreement referred to in paragraph (1)(a) shall be taken not to be compensation payments;

(d) paragraphs (5) and (7) of regulation 11 shall not apply.

(3) Where any further payment falls to be made to or in respect of the injured person otherwise than under the agreement in question, paragraph (2) shall be disregarded for the purpose of determining the end of the relevant period in relation to that further payment.

(4) In any case where—

(a) the person making the periodical payments (“the secondary party") does so in pursuance of arrangements entered into with another (“the primary party") (as in a case where the primary party purchases an annuity for the injured person from the secondary party), and

(b) apart from those arrangements, the primary party would have been regarded as the compensator,

then for the purposes of the 1997 Act, the primary party shall be regarded as the compensator and the secondary party shall not be so regarded.

(5) In this regulation “the day of settlement" means—

(a) if the agreement referred to in paragraph (1)(a) is approved by a court, the day on which that approval is given; and

(b) in any other case, the day on which the agreement is entered into.