QUICK ANSWER
Police officers and staff who developed post-traumatic stress disorder from traumatic incidents on duty — deaths, serious assaults, firearms incidents, disasters and distressing investigations — can claim compensation where the force failed to protect or support them. Severe PTSD attracts £73,050–£122,850 under the Judicial College Guidelines. The time limit is 3 years from your date of knowledge under the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973, and the police service has never had Crown immunity. Scottish Claims Helpline works on a no win no fee basis — complete the short form for a free assessment.
Could You Be Owed Compensation?
Check My Eligibility
A solicitor will call you back. Free, no obligation.
Living With PTSD After Police Service? You Could Be Owed Thousands.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is a recognised psychiatric injury, not a weakness. Flashbacks, nightmares, being constantly on edge, avoiding anything that brings the memories back, anger that arrives from nowhere, feeling cut off from the people closest to you — for many serving and retired officers, this is daily life. Because the injury is invisible, and because police culture has long expected people to just carry on, many officers assume they have nothing to claim for. They are wrong.
PTSD is a compensable injury under Scottish law. Police Scotland owes its officers and staff a duty of care for psychiatric injury just as it does for physical injury. Claims typically arise where the force knew you had been exposed to trauma or were showing signs of psychiatric injury and failed to provide proper support, monitoring or adjustments — or where avoidable failures in equipment, systems or planning caused the traumatic incident itself. PTSD can follow a single incident or build from years of repeated exposure; both are recognised.
Do these sound familiar?
- Flashbacks, intrusive memories or nightmares about incidents you attended
- Feeling constantly on edge, jumpy or unable to relax
- Avoiding places, sounds, crowds or conversations that bring it back
- Anger, irritability or feeling emotionally numb and cut off
- It started during or after your service and never went away
If several of these sound familiar, speak to your GP about support — and it costs nothing to find out whether you can claim.
Scottish Claims Helpline handles police PTSD claims across Scotland on a no win no fee basis. Claims can be brought against Police Scotland or the legacy forces that merged into it in 2013, and the police service has never had Crown immunity — so there is no cut-off date on the service you can claim for. Where your PTSD followed an assault on duty, the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) route may also be open to you.
How Much Could You Receive?
| Severity | Typical Award |
|---|
| Severe PTSD (permanent effects, unable to work or function as before) | £73,050 - £122,850 |
| Moderately severe PTSD (significant disability for the foreseeable future) | £28,250 - £73,050 |
| Moderate PTSD (largely recovered, remaining effects not grossly disabling) | £9,980 - £28,250 |
| Less severe PTSD (virtually full recovery within 1-2 years) | £4,820 - £9,980 |
Based on Judicial College Guidelines for general damages (pain, suffering and loss of amenity).
That’s not all. Most claimants also receive special damages on top of the figures above — the cost of trauma-focused therapy such as CBT and EMDR, medication, care and support from family, and lost earnings where PTSD forced restricted duties, early retirement on medical grounds or an exit from policing altogether. The career and pension impact can form a substantial part of the claim.
Who Can Claim?
Any serving or former police officer, special constable or member of police staff whose PTSD was caused by their service and involved a failure by the force can claim. This includes response and traffic officers, firearms officers, public order units, family liaison officers, child protection and major investigation teams, custody staff and control room operators — call handlers exposed to traumatic incidents down the line are increasingly recognised. You do not need to still be serving, and retirement does not prevent a claim as long as you are within 3 years of your date of knowledge.
Police PTSD Claims — Frequently Asked Questions
Severe PTSD attracts £73,050–£122,850 under the Judicial College Guidelines, with moderately severe PTSD at £28,250–£73,050 and moderate PTSD at £9,980–£28,250. Special damages for therapy, medication, lost earnings and the impact of early retirement on medical grounds are paid on top.
Yes, in the right circumstances. Police Scotland owes officers and staff a duty of care for psychiatric as well as physical injury. Claims typically arise where the force knew an officer had been exposed to trauma or was showing signs of psychiatric injury and failed to provide proper support, monitoring or adjustments, or where avoidable failures in equipment, systems or planning caused the traumatic incident itself. The police service has never had Crown immunity, and claims can cover service in the legacy forces that merged into Police Scotland in 2013.
Common causes include attending deaths and fatal road accidents, serious assaults on duty, firearms incidents, major disasters and public order events, death messages and body identification, and the cumulative toll of child protection and other distressing investigations. PTSD can follow a single incident or build from repeated exposure over years — both are recognised, and delayed onset is common.
Yes. Where you were assaulted on duty you may have a civil claim if failures by the force contributed to the attack, and separately you can apply to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), which compensates victims of violent crime including for disabling psychiatric injury. A CICA application has a 2 year time limit from the incident, so act quickly. We can point your claim down the right route.
3 years from your date of knowledge under the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 — not from the date of the traumatic incident. The date of knowledge is usually when a GP, psychiatrist or psychologist first diagnoses PTSD and links it to your service, so serving and retired officers diagnosed recently can still claim. CICA applications have a shorter 2 year limit. Contact us as soon as possible so no time limit passes.
A report from a consultant psychiatrist or clinical psychologist diagnosing PTSD and linking it to your service is the key evidence, usually alongside your medical records, occupational health and welfare records, incident reports and anything showing what the force knew about your exposure or symptoms. Your solicitor arranges the psychiatric assessment as part of a no win no fee claim.
How Do I Start My Claim?
It takes 2 minutes. Fill in our short form and one of our specialist Scottish solicitors will call you back at a time that suits. They will listen to what happened, tell you straight away if you have a claim, and explain exactly how much you could receive — all completely free, in confidence, and with no obligation. If you decide to go ahead, everything is handled for you on a no win no fee basis from start to finish. You pay nothing unless you win.
Could You Be Owed Compensation?
Check My Eligibility
A solicitor will call you back. Free, no obligation.
About this page: Written by
David Gildea, Scottish Claims Helpline. Last reviewed: August 2026. Scottish Claims Helpline is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (
FRN 830381).