Victims of terrorism: compensation from the Victims Guarantee Fund - You've been hurt

Verified 15 novembre 2021 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister), Ministry of Justice

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  • You've been hurt
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A terrorist act can cause damage to property and persons at the place where it occurs.

For example, a subway explosion can cause property damage, injuries and fatalities.

If you are injured in a terrorist act, you can be fully compensated by the FGTI.

You can combine the compensation paid by the FGTI with the compensation received from an insurance contract.

It depends on whether the terrorist act took place in France or abroad.

In France

All victims and their beneficiaries can be compensated by the FGTI, regardless of their nationality.

Abroad

Only victims of French nationality and their beneficiaries can be compensated by the FGTI. It is not necessary for the beneficiaries to be of French nationality.

You can claim compensation up to 10 years after the date of the consolidation of the damage.

The request can be made on the Internet or in writing.

On the Internet

The request is made using the following online service:

Online claim for compensation - Act of terrorism

The claim must indicate the precise amount of damage for which you are seeking compensation.

You must attach any supporting documents proving the origin of the damage (police report, court seised) and the extent of the damage (medical certificate, invoices).

If you have already obtained reimbursement for certain expenses, you must also indicate this (for example, social security and mutual insurance reimbursement).

Finally, you have to justify your identity and marital status.

By mail

You must complete the claim form - terrorism act and mail it to the FGTI.

Claim for compensation - Act of terrorism

Who shall I contact

  • Compensation for victims of terrorist acts and other offenses.

    By telephone

    +33 (0)1 43 98 77 00

    By E-mail

    Access to contact form

    By mail

    64 Defrance Street

    94682 Vincennes Cedex

    By fax

    +33 (0)1 43 65 46 38

You must indicate in the claim the precise amount of damage for which you are seeking compensation.

You must attach any supporting documents proving the origin of the damage (police report, court seised) and the extent of the damage (medical certificate, invoices).

If you have already obtained reimbursement for certain expenses, you must also indicate this (for example, social security and mutual insurance reimbursement).

Finally, you have to justify your identity and marital status. For example with an identity card, a residence card, a passport or a family booklet.

In order to expedite the case, the FGTI may request any public or private service to disclose information that may assist in redressing the injury.

The services concerned may not invoke professional secrecy to refuse to communicate the information to the FGTI.

FGTI should inform you of this and seek your consent when requesting information that may relate to you or your situation.

This information may only be used for the purpose of investigating the claim. Persons having knowledge of documents and information provided to the FGTI must respect professional secrecy.

FGTI may decide that you meet or do not meet the conditions for compensation.

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You qualify for compensation

If the FGTI determines that you meet the compensation conditions, it must pay you an initial reserve within 1 month of receiving your claim.

The FGTI then orders expert opinions that will allow it to determine the final amount of your compensation.

You do not qualify for compensation

If the FGTI determines that you do not meet the compensation conditions, you can appeal the decision. The appeal must be brought before the Tribunal Judiciaire de Paris, which has sole jurisdiction to examine the appeals filed by the victims against the FGTI's proposals.

Who shall I contact

If FTGI has determined that you qualify for compensation, it must send you a written offer of compensation within 3 months of your application being filed.

You can accept this offer, discuss it with the FGTI or decline it.

If you wish to reject the FGTI proposal, you must send a registered letter with notice of receipt within 15 days of the proposal.

You can then refer the case to the Paris Court of Justice, which has sole jurisdiction to hear victims’ claims against the FGTI’s proposals.

Who shall I contact

The FGTI will then be obliged to pay you the amount of compensation that will be determined by this court.

You may refer your request to the FGTI Ombudsman if you feel that your request has not been properly processed by the FGTI. For example, if your application was rejected on time or if attachments were not considered.

However, the Ombudsman has no jurisdiction to decide on the amount of compensation. It can only monitor the quality of the FGTI's processing of the case.

To enter the mediator, you must complete the following form and send it by email or registered letter with AR.

Victims of terrorist attacks and offenses: refer the victims' guarantee fund to the Ombudsman

The Ombudsman must give an opinion within 2 months of receiving your request. The FGTI is not obliged to follow the Ombudsman's advice.

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