Article 3 – Right to understand and to be understood

1) Member States shall take appropriate measures to assist victims to understand and to be understood from the first contact and during any further necessary interaction they have with a competent authority or organisation assisting victims in the context of criminal proceedings, including where information is provided by that authority.  

2) Member States shall ensure that communications with victims are accessible to all users taking into account the personal characteristics of the victim including any disability and the impact of trauma. Communications shall be accessible in particular where they are: 

a) provided through multiple sources and formats, including orally, in writing and digitally; 
b) accurate, simple and easy to understand allowing information to be acted upon; 
c) provided in a timely manner and repeated over time; and 
d) adapted to changing individual needs of victims. in simple and accessible language, orally or in writing. Such communications shall take into account the personal characteristics of the victim including any disability which may affect the ability to understand or to be understood.   

3) Unless contrary to the interests of the victim or unless the course of proceedings would be prejudiced, Member States shall allow victims to be accompanied by a person of their choice in the first contact with a competent authority where, due to the impact of the crime and individual circumstances, the victim requires assistance to understand or to be understood. 

The European Commission has not amended the right to understand and to be understood in its proposal. However, an amendment to Article 26a (Protocols through national coordination and cooperation) introduces new principles through which Member States should provide information to victims and organise information provision mechanisms. This proposal is a key improvement in defining and harmonising how information should be communicated and ensuring that victims understand it and can act on it. However, VSE suggests these guiding principles should be added to the Right to understand and be understood: they better clarify this right and what it means for a victim to have access to understandable information. VSE’s suggestions use language similar to that of the Commission, though with additional principles (e.g. accurate, provided through multiple sources), so as to achieve a more comprehensive delivery of information.

At this time, a variety of quality issues prevent victims effectively understanding the information communicated to them, thus impeding their ability to act on it and exercise their rights. Quality issues range from the use of complex and technical language to the lack of accessible information or its untimely delivery. To address such challenges, guiding principles must be established and integrated within the Directive. For further information on individual principles, please refer to VSE’s policy paper ‘Transforming how we communicate with victims’ (2023)[1], which examines the barriers victims face when accessing information, and provides recommendations on addressing them.

[1] Transforming how we communicate with victims, Victim Support Europe, 2023, available at: https://victim-support.eu/wp-content/files_mf/1681918001TransformingHowWeCommunicateWithVictims_compressed.pdf