First university Covid compensation battle heads to the High Court
June 13, 2024
A legal battle between University College London (UCL) and a group of students seeking tuition
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Students pay universities for in-person tuition and access to facilities. However, strikes and Covid led to cancelled classes, online learning, and restricted services, so many students didn’t get the experience they signed up for.
Universities did not refund affected students for the disruption, and legal experts think this is a breach of contract. They believe students deserve compensation for the gap between the traditional university experience they paid for and the online courses they received.
At a glance: what do we know about university breach of contract?
Many US universities offered students compensation for campus shutdowns during Covid lockdowns. We believe that UK students deserve the same.
Thousands of UK students are affected – are you one of them?
Could you be due compensation for breach of contract by your university? Find out instantly with our easy-to-use eligibility checker!
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May 2023
A legal action against UCL (University College London) was first heard in court. Lawyers claimed that, between 2018 and 2022, the university did not provide the service that students paid tuition fees for, and was therefore in breach of contract.
Jul 2023
A judge ordered a stay of proceedings, encouraging students and UCL to enter mediation to reach a settlement out of court. Judge Barbara Fontaine said some of the claimants’ concerns were “valid”, and ruled that students could sue UCL unless it paid compensation over Covid disruption.
Feb 2024
The two parties failed to come to an out of court settlement. Students seeking tuition fee compensation from UCL prepare to take their case to trial. Lawyers are preparing cases against almost 100 universities across the UK. They will be watching developments in the UCL case with interest.
We’ll provide more updates on the student group action claim as they occur.
The case involves students claiming compensation for breaches of contract by universities due to disruptions caused by Covid-19 and strikes. Students paid for in-person tuition and access to facilities, but many received online classes and restricted services instead, which legal experts argue violates the terms of their contracts. Despite these disruptions, universities did not refund affected students. Thousands of UK students have already joined no-win, no-fee group action claims, seeking justice and financial redress similar to what US students received.
Separate claims are being brought against different UK universities (the defendants). Cases have already been launched against:
The case against UCL is the first to go to court and could set a precedent for future actions against the UK universities.
Find out instantly with our easy-to-use eligibility checker.
Our simple eligibility checker provides instant clarity. Answer a few straightforward questions, and you’ll know if you could qualify to join a no-win, no-fee group action claim. If you have a potential claim, register your interest and we’ll keep you updated about this case. Your matchmaker for justice, if eligible, we’ll pair you with a regulated law firm running a suitable claim.
We cannot say exactly how much compensation you might get if the universities are ordered to pay compensation. Each claim is based on its merits and your solicitor will work to get the compensation owed to you. If successful, undergraduate claimants could receive around £5,000 each, with potentially higher compensation for postgraduate and international students.
In the UK, if a group of people have experienced loss, or otherwise been harmed by an organisation’s law breaking, they can come together to fight for justice. Levelling the playing field when standing up to big businesses, group actions prove that there is strength in numbers. At Join the Claim, we bring consumers and law firms together to ensure these group actions are as powerful as possible.
We won’t charge you a single penny. And we ensure any law firms we connect you with operate on a no-win-no-fee basis. If you win, the law firm will either take its fees from your compensation payment or recover these from the defendants.
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A legal battle between University College London (UCL) and a group of students seeking tuition
Over the last few years, strikes and Covid-19 have led to cancelled classes, online learning,
Join The Claim is not a law firm. We connect individuals with top law firms for group action claims, and our service is free to use. While we may receive a fee from the law firms we introduce you to, this will not affect your costs or compensation. We are not responsible for the advice or services provided by these firms. Please note, nothing on this website is legal advice, and while we check claim eligibility, we cannot guarantee a law firm will accept a case.
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