Wrongly Convicted Man Faces Losing Social Housing After Compensation Payment

Andrew Malkinson, exonerated after 17 years in prison, may lose his home due to rules treating compensation as income for state support assessments.

Andrew Malkinson, 59, was wrongfully convicted of rape in 2004 and spent 17 years in prison before his conviction was quashed in 2023.
He recently received an interim six-figure compensation payment but now risks losing his social housing due to rules that do not exempt such payments from state benefit assessments.
The current statutory compensation scheme includes a £1 million cap, which critics argue is outdated and does not reflect inflation or the severity of miscarriages of justice.
Fresh DNA evidence commissioned by the legal charity Appeal led to Malkinson’s exoneration after multiple missed opportunities by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC).
Malkinson has called for reforms to the compensation scheme, including lifting the cap and ensuring payments do not jeopardize access to housing or benefits for victims of wrongful convictions.