Preparing a Schedule of Loss
- Duration
- 40 minutes
- Format
- Video
- Template
- Included
Written by Julia Gidney · former leading employment lawyer.
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▸ Read the video transcript
The Schedule of Loss is the document that puts a financial value on to your employment tribunal claim. It can be a challenging document to create.
It must be produced and provided to the other side early on, after the ET1 and ET3 pleadings have been filed.
It's essential for settlement negotiations and is used by the Tribunal as the basis of its calculation of any final award.
In this video, we'll walk through how to compile this schedule, section by section, with a worked example.
You'll see how the basic award is calculated.
And how actual and future losses of net pay and benefits, damages for wrongful dismissal, non-financial losses and interest values, all accumulate to form the compensatory award.
You'll see the significant change that downwards adjustments can make to a loss value, perhaps for failure to try hard enough to replace losses or for the inevitability of the same outcome having resulted following a fairer process.
And where and how enhancement percentages are applied, for instance because of failure to follow the Acas Code.
We also show how grossing up for tax is done in our worked example.
Then, you'll see how a Respondent's Counter-Schedule can substantially change a loss value and you'll better understand how to respond to that.
And a downloadable schedule of loss template document is included with the video.
I do need to add that the guidance provided here isn't legal, tax or financial advice. Thanks for watching.
What This Video Guidance Covers
Understand how to calculate and present your Schedule of Loss, covering exactly what a Tribunal can and can't award.
Content includes:
- 1 The purpose of the Schedule of Loss
- 2 How to calculate the basic award
- 3 Wrongful dismissal losses and when they can be included
- 4 Immediate and future loss
- 5 Downwards adjustments
- 6 Upwards adjustments
- 7 Interest
- 8 Injury to feelings awards and the Vento bands
- 9 Grossing up for tax
- 10 The compensation cap
- 11 How the counter-schedule impacts
- 12 The downloadable/fillable template schedule of loss supplied with the guidance
Good to Know
Who is this video for?
Anyone with an Employment Tribunal claim in England & Wales who has been ordered to prepare a Schedule of Loss, or who wants to understand what their claim might realistically be worth before settlement discussions. It also walks through the Respondent's Counter-Schedule so you can see the arguments you may meet.
What's included?
A 40-minute video that takes you through all nine sections of a Schedule of Loss using a worked example: the basic award, wrongful dismissal, immediate and future loss, the downward adjustments (Polkey, contributory fault, failure to mitigate and the Acas Code), uplifts and interest, injury to feelings and the Vento bands, grossing up for tax, and when the compensation cap applies. It then shows how a Respondent's Counter-Schedule can cut the same claim dramatically and why that matters for negotiation.
What templates come with it?
A downloadable template Schedule of Loss and Counter-Schedule, with the calculation fields highlighted so you can drop in your own figures. It includes an assumptions section so the other side and the Tribunal can see how you arrived at your numbers.
Is this too complex for me to do myself?
This is one of the hardest tasks in the Tribunal process and the video doesn't pretend otherwise. But it's designed to be paused and worked through section by section alongside the template. It also points you to the Government tools that do some of the arithmetic, such as the basic award calculator, and where to find the latest Vento bands and the interest percentage.
Does it cover pension loss and personal injury?
Only briefly. Final salary pension losses and physical or psychiatric injury claims are specialist areas that need actuarial, medical or legal input, and the video says so rather than attempting them.
Is it up to date?
Employment law, the Acas Code and Tribunal rules change regularly. We monitor these changes closely and update our videos when they happen. If we update this video, the new version appears in your personal video dashboard automatically, at no extra cost. The figures used in schedules of loss — the weekly pay cap, the compensation cap, the Vento bands, the interest rate — change every year, so always check the current values before you finalise your own schedule. The video tells you where to find them.
How long will I have access?
Employment Tribunal cases can take a long time to reach a hearing, so your video stays available to you for 24 months. If you need longer, just email us at info@wdidi.org and we'll extend it for you. We want you to have our guidance for as long as you need it.
Is this legal advice?
No. None of our guidance is legal, financial or tax advice. If you need advice on your own case, please contact a solicitor or other qualified representative. The Law Society's Find a Solicitor service is a good place to start — or your local Citizens Advice if cost is a concern.
Anything else?
More questions? Our full FAQ is here.
