To ask what happens if you can't afford to do jury service?

[AvocadosBeforeMortgages]

Let me start off by saying that I always thought I'd like to do jury service one day.

Now I've discovered that not only do my employers not pay you when you're on jury service, the rates courts pay you for loss of earnings are paltry - the sum I'd get for the first 10 days would be less than half what I'd actually lose, and rates from day 11 are still less than my wages so I couldn't actually afford to do it www.gov.uk/jury-service/what-you-can-claim

Can you refuse to do jury service on the grounds that you can't afford the loss of earnings? I'm single and have rent to pay, for context.

“But 'I don't want to use childcare!' doesn't cut it, I'm afraid, sometimes you have to use childcare.”

Wrong ! No I bloody don’t HAVE to if I don’t want to put my child into childcare . Why should I upset and cause upheaval to a child unused to it ? Nope , my child’s needs come first. Besides which, it is next to impossible to find last minute daycare for hours you aren’t certain of 🤦‍♀️

I got called up when my husband was away and I was the sole carer of my two children, one of whom was a baby. I was excused and have never been called again. Do you have kids? If there is no-one else to look after them you should be excused.

If the government want people to do this then they should fund it properly or make it mandatory for employers to pay top up to full wage during jury duty! If it is so important then it needs funding doesn’t it !

both myself and DP have been excused for different reasons, we have never been recalled

I would find it impossible because of my asd son. He cannot access mainstream childcare at all. Would they cover the cost of a nanny

Think JS should be something you can opt into at a time that suits you. I was a paye employee for a decade where my employer would have covered my salary.

Then a year after I went freelance I got called up. The only advantage of a crippling chronic pain condition is that it gave a cast iron reason why I couldn't do it.

I’ve been called twice. First time I served two weeks and my employer paid me.

The second time I was called my eldest was about to start school and it was over his settling in period. You are allowed to defer once, which I did, but you have to provide the dates in the next year that you CAN do. You cannot defer then.

I filled in the form and received a summons for 5 months later (when I could do the 2 week stint with some help from my parents).

However the trial I was called up for was due to last 6 weeks. You should have seen most jurors faces! Eek! They had a huge pool of jurors to choose the 12 from, around 50 I’d say. My name was called and I went to the judge and explained I couldn’t do a 6 week trial as a) I don’t work Fridays and have no childcare for my 2 year old dd and b) i can arrange cover for my kids for 2 weeks but not 6 as my parents were due to go travelling.

he excused me for childcare reasons.

He was reasonable and excused for caring/health reasons, pre booked (and paid for) holidays, owners of businesses (where business would falter/fail) and also for people where they are the only person with that particular skill in their organisation.

How much notice do you get of needing to be there?

It’d be fine once my DD starts school (as long as it was term time!) as the expenses cover the cost of breakfast club and after school club (£15 per day) but it would be a nightmare at the moment as I only work three days a week. My employer pays full salary for jury service but it’s very unlikely DD’s nursery would have space for the extra two days a week for x weeks (they also don’t offer that degree of flexibility - if they did have space and I booked it I’d have to pay for it even if I didn’t end up serving on the jury). I’ve occasionally asked for extra days to cover work or visiting grandparents in hospital and I tend to get about 1 in 8 of the ones I ask for. We don’t have any family back up.

And also, nursery costs £85 per day, which is the norm round here. So the expenses don’t even cover that. I do think that if the govt want people to do jury service they should cover the expenses of doing so.

I’ll never be able to do it because of my profession which I am pleased about as I would also not be able to afford it. The expenses are shite. You’d have to be either very civic minded or very rich not to be bothered by that.

I’ve done it, recently. Although I knew it was important, my initial reaction was still that I did not want to do it, as I was worried about getting a distressing case. However I had no reason to defer. I did in fact get a case that was upsetting, but although it was upsetting i felt reassured that justice had been done. The jury I was on was very fair and it was all taken seriously.

You can defer if you really can’t do it, but it’s an important thing to do.

As important as it is I just cannot believe the people saying you should just get onto it. My DH would not get paid for jury service and it would be mega inconvenient to lose that amount of money if he did, I say inconvenient, it may be that we would need to cancel a trip or put some stuff on an interest free credit card, we would still be able to pay bills however there potentially could be people who are financially ruined by this.

There should be a way of funding it or alternatively use people from employers that do pay, any non front line public sector employees (this is a wide range of people across the UK), people could opt in to do it also.

I just don't think the current system is fair. My dad said that when he was on jury service there were people there more interested in getting home for their tea and weren't really interested in ensuring justice was done one way or another. I think it is scary TBH.

"According to figures from the Ministry of Justice, there is about a 35% chance of people in England and Wales being summoned for jury service over the course of their lifetime. Only about half of those cited spend any time in court."
Self-employed - You should take out insurance.
Employee where the employer will not pay you - talk to the employer about flexible working as you often have to turn up at court on Monday morning and you will be immediately dismissed and told to come back later in the week or next Monday (my colleague had to turn up on 4 mornings, was dismissed 3 times and spent 1 day in court). There may also be the option to take paid holiday if money is more important than time off. As others have said, your home insurance may pay something - especially if you take the legal services optional extra.
Carer (inc SAHP) - ask to be excused or defer - DO NOT LIE.

I certainly don’t think you should lose your house/job/business because of doing jury service!

I did jury service (Scotland). I wasn't working so didn't have to claim loss of earnings thankfully. Nobody should be out of pocket, wages or meal allowances!
We were fed (caterers) very good food.
It was a murder trial that lasted almost seven weeks! After which we were all excused for 10 years!!

There isn’t insurance available for jury service if YOU are the business

There’s no insurance to cover a complete loss of your business

There are some people (like me) who can’t do it. Wish I’d been called up when I had the previous jobs I had with the government.

Complete loss of your business? So, the business will collapse entirely if you take 2 weeks off, so if you had a holiday, dying relative or got sick, that's very very insecure, surely, and a small minority. Almost no one NEVER takes holiday.

Googling 'jury service insurance' brings up plenty of options for self-employed individuals.

If you 'think' that you know the person on trial, you can't serve on the jury. I know someone that got called 3 times but was dismissed within 2 hours each time because of this.

Can't you get an exemption as a sole trader? I think DH got one on these grounds. We're in Ireland though. I got two. Once due to being a student and another due to being very pregnant.

People are called for jury service, rather than it being filled by volunteers in order to attempt to get a wider cross section of society on each jury.

Fair enough, but then we should bring in conscription for the police, army, school teachers, and other areas of life where a diversity of opinions and types of people would be beneficial.

I got called up 2 days after my 18th Birthday. I had lost my job 2 weeks earlier so was grateful for the money. I’m so pleased I have had the opportunity to do it. 30 years later I’m hoping I will get the chance to do it again.

If you are a parent and not working, the official line is that you are not excused and have to use the crèche. However, I was called up when DC was 2 and I wasn't working. I wrote and explained so was excused.

Im so glad ive never been called. I wouldnt cope mentally or financially
Id not be able to do a rape case, be too traumatic as im a rape victim myself, child abuse, better not put me on a priests case, i wont be impartial.
Plus we couldnt afford to get me there every day, thankfully i think distance also excuses us here, we more than 150km away. Im dd primary carer, dp has ptsd and managing that at times means im it for care. We have no local friends or family, not even a childcare center close for 80km

I think in aus your chosen from the election roll.

I was excused when I was breast feeding my 4 th child. I was called again a couple of years ago when my employer gave me my full wage. I doubt my present employer would pay me I did like doing it though.

I’d genuinely love to know how they select people for jury service. I only personally know 2 people who have done it and I wonder how some can be called (and even serve) 4 times!

It's random off the electoral roll.

So like a virtual raffle where your number goes back in after each draw, hence why many never get picked and some do multiple times.