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• Nuclear Liability & Damage Compensation Contacts

Liability and Compensation for Nuclear Damage

The Nuclear Installations Act of 1965 governs liability and compensation arrangements for nuclear damage for which a UK nuclear licensee is responsible. The Act requires compensation to be paid for damage to persons or property up to a limit of £140 million by the liable operator. This limit is kept under review. For ten years after the incident causing damage, this obligation is met by the operator; between ten and thirty years afterwards, the Government must meet the obligation. Under the Act, insurance arrangements for a nuclear site must be approved on behalf of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry before a site licence is granted to the operator of a nuclear installation. The licensee requires £140 million of insurance or other financial security to cover his liability under the Act, including for transport of nuclear materials. Two OECD Conventions on liability for nuclear damage - the Paris Convention and the Brussels Convention - are implemented by the Act.

The Paris Convention on Third Party Liability in the Field of Nuclear Energy is an OECD Convention on liability and compensation for nuclear damage. The following countries have ratified this Convention: the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Greece, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Turkey. The Convention ensures compensation for nuclear damage that crosses borders. It imposes no-fault liability for nuclear damage on a designated operator of the nuclear installation causing damage and channels all liability to that operator, in order that victims may sue an identifiable party. The operator's liability under the Convention may be limited in time and amount. Finally, victims in all Parties to the Convention should have equal access to compensation.

The Brussels Convention supplementary to the Paris Convention is an OECD Convention on supplementary compensation for nuclear damage. All these countries agreed, through the Convention, to pay supplementary compensation if a nuclear incident were to cause damage totalling more than 175 million Special Drawing Rights (SDR) - the equivalent of approximately £150 million - up to a maximum of 300 million SDR (approximately £260 million). This supplementary compensation would be paid from public money provided by the eleven countries between them. The following countries have ratified the Convention: the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway.

The Paris and Brussels Conventions are currently being revised to provide higher amounts and a broader scope of guaranteed compensation for victims in the unlikely event of a nuclear accident. Under existing UK law, parliament may vote additional funds for victims as it deems necessary.

The Vienna Convention on Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage is a UN Convention on liability and compensation for nuclear damage similar to the Paris Convention. It was recently revised by means of the 1997 Protocol and a new Convention on Supplementary Compensation was agreed to provide additional compensation, although this has not yet entered into force. The Vienna Convention and Paris Convention are linked by the Joint Protocol relating to the Application of the Vienna Convention and the Paris Convention.