For decades, compensation for death and serious injury in the UAE was anchored to two fixed concepts: diya (blood money, customarily set at AED 200,000 for wrongful death) and arsh (scheduled compensation for specific injuries). Courts could be conservative about awarding anything beyond them — however catastrophic the real financial loss to a family.
That ceiling has now been formally lifted.
What changed
The new Civil Code — Federal Decree-Law No. 25 of 2025, effective 1 June 2026 — is the most wide-ranging rewrite of the UAE's law of obligations in decades. For accident victims, one provision stands out. Article 259 provides that where diya or arsh is due, the court may, at the victim's request, award additional compensation if the death or injury caused material or moral damages not fully covered by the diya or arsh.
In plain terms: diya is now a floor, not a ceiling.
What "additional compensation" can capture
Every serious case we handle involves losses the fixed amounts never matched:
- Lost income — a breadwinner's salary that supported a family for what would have been decades;
- Ongoing medical and care costs — rehabilitation, home care, prosthetics, therapy;
- Loss of future earning capacity for a survivor who cannot return to their profession;
- Moral damages — the recognised harm of bereavement, disfigurement and diminished quality of life.
Under the new Article 259, each of these can be pleaded, evidenced and awarded on top of the diya or arsh — if the claim is built properly.
Why "at the victim's request" matters
The court does not add these damages automatically. They must be claimed, quantified and proven: salary certificates, medical reports, actuarial projections, expert evidence. Families who settle quickly for the standard diya figure, or who plead their case without the supplementary heads of damage, will leave the difference on the table. This is precisely where experienced counsel changes the outcome.
What to do if your case is pending now
If your accident or a family member's death occurred recently, the timing of proceedings relative to 1 June 2026 may materially affect the compensation framework applied. Do not settle or discontinue anything before taking advice.
Our insurance and accident team pursues the full measure of compensation — diya, arsh and the supplementary damages the new Code now recognises. Use the compensation calculator on this site for a first estimate, then speak to us before you speak to the insurer.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its facts.