Unpaid Wages Compensation: Average Payouts, Highest Awards & Real Cases
Average payouts, highest awards and recent published tribunal decisions for unpaid wages compensation in the UK.
Highest-value judgments
| Respondent | Compensation | Date | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|
| £248,308 | 2022 | View | |
| £173,189 | 2023 | View | |
| £147,464 | 2026 | View | |
| £127,250 | 2025 | View | |
| £119,248 | 2026 | View | |
| £112,855 | 2026 | View | |
| £97,411 | 2025 | View | |
| £96,427 | 2024 | View | |
| £94,850 | 2024 | View | |
| £93,397 | 2024 | View |
Maxa London Ltd
2025
Edenbeck Ltd
2026
Foodstore Ltd
2026
Recent published decisions
| Respondent | Outcome | Award | Date | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Relltek Ltd | Respondent won | — | 2026 | View |
Oatlands Academy CIC | Claimant won | £2,775 | 2026 | View |
Tribu Hair Studio Ltd | Claimant won | £1,201 | 2026 | View |
Portofino London Ltd | Claimant won | £2,543 | 2026 | View |
Lantain Ltd and A G Sandry | Outcome unclear | — | 2026 | View |
Manger Moi Ltd | Partial success | £60 | 2026 | View |
Jasmin Thai Ltd | Claimant won | £807 | 2026 | View |
Wipro Ltd | Claimant won | — | 2026 | View |
Brickowner Ltd | Claimant won | — | 2026 | View |
Kanki Turkish Meze and Cocktail Bar Ltd | Claimant won | — | 2026 | View |
About unpaid wages compensation
Where these figures come from
Every figure on this page is drawn from published employment tribunal judgments where a compensation amount appears in the public record. Unpaid wages and unlawful deduction awards usually focus on sums the tribunal finds were due but not paid, such as wages, holiday pay or arrears. The median and highest awards are calculated from awarded cases only, so unpaid wages claims that settled privately or ended without a published figure sit outside this sample.
How to read the headline numbers
The headline stats separate the size of awards from how often unpaid wages claims succeed. A claim type can show a very high award in one exceptional case while the median across the wider sample stays much lower. Read the highest-value judgments table for the upper end of the record, then the recent decisions list to see how these disputes appear in current judgments — including cases where no compensation is visible.
What this page is not
These are documented examples, not a prediction of what a new unpaid wages claim is worth and not an estimate of a private settlement. The public record is selective and excludes most settlements, so treat large awards as unusual rather than typical. This is an intelligence page, not legal advice: to value a live claim, compare the facts, dates and losses in the underlying judgments with your own.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average payout for unpaid wages?
In the published awarded cases in this dataset, the average unpaid wages payout is £4,940 and the median award is £1,830. This is based on 3,038 cases with visible compensation.
What is the highest unpaid wages award in the UK?
The highest published unpaid wages award in this dataset is £248,308. Large awards are unusual and can be driven by long periods of financial loss, injury to feelings or other case-specific factors.
What percentage of unpaid wages claims succeed?
In the matching published judgments, claimants succeeded in 74.3% of cases. That is based on 4,847 documented outcomes, not every claim issued or settled.