Personal Impact Analysis - Intangible damage

Groningen Mining Damage Institute

At the IMG, there is the Intangible Damage Scheme (IMS), where people can receive compensation if they have suffered stress, anxiety or other psychological symptoms due to the earthquakes. For IMS, applicants can fill in a questionnaire (the personal impact analysis (PIA)) to describe the impact of the earthquakes on them.

Last change on 16th of October 2024, at 12:10 (CET) | Publication Standard 1.0

• Publication category: Impactful algorithms
• Impact assessment: DPIA
• Status: In use

General information

Theme

• Law
• Health and Healthcare
• Nature and Environment

Begin date

2021-06

Contact information

[e-mail] en [e-mail]

Link to publication website

https://www.schadedoormijnbouw.nl/regelingen/immateriele-schadevergoeding

Responsible use

Goal and impact

Purpose: The PIA is used by the IMG to determine how much (mental) harm a person has suffered from the earthquakes. This is important for the compensation an applicant should receive. Completing the PIA questionnaire is not mandatory when making an application. Moreover, the outcome of the PIA can only lead to equal or higher compensation.

Impact: The PIA has an effect on the amount of compensation. Each answer to a question from the PIA list is given a score. Based on all the scores from the PIA questionnaire, a so-called PIA profile is created. This PIA profile can make a claimant entitled to more compensation.

Sometimes claimants may find the PIA intense, as they are reminded of the feelings of fear and terror they experienced during or after an earthquake.

Considerations

Benefits:

• The PIA makes it possible to assess individual cases
• The PIA does justice to an individual claimant's situation
• The PIA allows a claimant to describe his personal situation and the impact it has made on him in his application for immaterial damages.

Disadvantages:

• The PIA has to be completed by the applicant himself. In doing so, the PIA says something about an applicant's experiences. Thus, the outcome of the PIA cannot tell whether the applicant actually suffered immaterial damages, only how the applicant experienced the circumstances.
• Filling in the PIA can be intense for an applicant, as there is a chance that it will re-induce anxiety and stress.

Human intervention

The outcome of the PIA affects the amount of compensation an applicant is entitled to in an IMS application. The outcome of the PIA can only ensure equal or higher compensation, never lower compensation. The PIA contains a number of questions and statements, the applicant has to give a mark for each question or statement. The mark 1 means the applicant does not agree with the statement at all or the situation does not apply to the applicant, 5 means the applicant agrees with the statement or the situation does apply to the applicant. A score is assigned to each answer from the PIA. These scores are added together. The sum of the scores determines whether and how much the applicant is entitled to an increase in compensation. The scores are always copied, so no human verification takes place. No human verification is needed either, because the PIA score is really just a sum of the answers someone gives while filling in the PIA. The outcome is therefore easy to calculate and will also be the same in similar cases.

Risk management

A DPIA was carried out during the development of the PIA. Risks emerged from this DPIA. Based on this, IMG decided to develop the PIA in such a way that the outcome can only ensure that the compensation the applicant is entitled to remains the same or increases.

Risk: Completing the PIA may create feelings of anxiety and stress for an applicant because the questions are about an applicant's experiences. Measure: this risk cannot be removed at this time.

Legal basis

Article 2(3)(a) under 3 Groningen Temporary Act: The Institute shall have the duty and power to deal with damage and for this purpose to determine the amount of compensation for damage or, if the applicant so wishes and the damage lends itself to it, the measures to be taken in kind.

Links to legal bases

Artikel 2 lid 3 sub a onder 3 Tijdelijke wet Groningen: https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0043252/2023-07-01

Elaboration on impact assessments

A DPIA has been conducted on the Intangible Damage Scheme.

No Fundamental Rights Impact Assessment has been carried out on the Personal Impact Assessment because the calculation method is not an AI system. This is because the algorithm does not meet the definition of an AI system and no AI techniques are used.

Impact assessment

Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA)

Operations

Data

Data to be completed by an applicant:

• Name
• Address
• City
• Answers to the questions from the PIA (including health data)

Data produced by the PIA:

• PIA scores
• PIA score profile
• 
  

Technical design

During an application for intangible compensation, the applicant is given the opportunity to complete the PIA questionnaire. For each question, an applicant can choose between a number of response options. These options indicate the extent to which the situation from the question applies to the applicant. There are different answer options for each subset of questions. In general terms, the options range from 'not at all' or 'never' to 'almost every day' or 'constantly'. Questions from a PIA deal with depression or anxiety, for example. A score is associated with each response option. These scores can be found in a table in Microsoft Excel. With a fully completed PIA questionnaire, the scores of all answer options are added together. This addition determines an applicant's PIA score. That PIA score then determines whether and to what extent the compensation to be paid should be increased.