Third-party assistance, often abbreviated as ATP, refers to the human help a victim needs due to injuries to manage daily life. This assistance can be provided by a professional or a close person, such as a spouse, parent, child, or friend. The concept is defined by the Dintilhac nomenclature, from a report submitted in July 2005 by a working group chaired by Jean-Pierre Dintilhac. It was recommended to courts by a circular from the Ministry of Justice on February 22, 2007, and serves as a common reference for judges, experts, insurers, and lawyers. According to this nomenclature, third-party assistance compensates for the cost of a third party being present with the victim for three reasons: to help with daily life activities, to preserve their safety, and to restore their dignity by compensating for loss of autonomy. It is a patrimonial damage, compensating for a cost even when it is not actually incurred because a close person helps for free. The reasoning is based on the principle of full compensation for the damage, without loss or profit for the victim, derived from Article 1240 of the Civil Code. This applies regardless of the basis of the compensation: traffic accident, medical accident, assault, fall, accident of life. The Court of Cassation emphasized that third-party assistance does not limit itself to the victim's vital needs but compensates for the loss of autonomy in all daily activities. It had already ruled that the help of a third party allows the victim to make up for their loss of autonomy while restoring their dignity. All compensation for bodily damage is organized around a key date: consolidation, when the health status stabilizes, and the injuries take on a permanent character. The expert physician sets this date. Before consolidation, it is called temporary third-party assistance, ranked among "miscellaneous expenses" but now most often isolated in a separate item. It covers returns home, weekends between two stays in rehabilitation, convalescence. Hospitalization does not necessarily eliminate this need, and the Court of Cassation censured an appellate court that had excluded all human help during hospitalization periods on principle. After consolidation, it is called permanent third-party assistance, covering the entire life of the victim. Its compensation is divided into two periods: the "matured" sums between consolidation and the date of the judgment or settlement, and the "to mature" sums for the future. Helping, monitoring, and stimulating are all needs that count. Three forms of help overlap: active help includes actions done instead of or with the victim; monitoring corresponds to a protective presence; and stimulation concerns victims of brain trauma or injuries who need reminders, encouragement, and structure. The need also covers social life and is not limited to people in wheelchairs, as amputation, chronic pain, cognitive disorders, or severe post-traumatic stress can justify it. The distinction between non-specialized and specialized help affects the hourly rate. Medical expertise, conducted by judicial or amicable experts, is the decisive step in evaluating the need. The expert must describe the nature of the need, the required qualification, the number of hours per day or week, and the periods concerned. Preparation by the victim and their close ones is essential, including keeping a log of the help received and gathering attestations from close people. The judge is not bound by the report, and an insufficient report is discussed by statements addressed to the expert, then before the court. In the vast majority of cases, it is the close ones who help, and the insurer often objects that no expense has been incurred. The Court of Cassation rejects this reasoning, stating that the amount of compensation for third-party assistance cannot be reduced in the case of family assistance or conditioned on the justification of actual expenses. The same principle applies before administrative courts. The Court censured an appellate court that refused to include paid leave and holidays in the calculation, on the grounds that the help came from the family and not from an employee. The compensation is calculated by multiplying the number of hours of help by the hourly rate by the number of days per year. The hourly rate varies according to the region, required qualification, and mode of use. The annual base is often raised to 410 or 412 days instead of 365, as the victim's need never stops. For the matured period, the compensation is paid in one lump sum. For the future, two payment modes are possible: capital or annuity. The capital consists of paying immediately a sum covering all future needs, while the annuity consists of paying a regular sum for the entire life of the victim. Social benefits, such as the PCH (Personalized Autonomy Allowance), are not deductible from the compensation, as they open no recourse against the responsible party. The APA (Allowance for the Elderly) has been judged compensatory and therefore deductible in an ONIAM compensation. Work accidents fall under Book IV of the Social Security Code, which provides for a lump-sum compensation. For the third party, Social Security pays an additional benefit for recourse to a third party (PCRTP), reserved for victims whose permanent incapacity rate reaches at least 80%. In case of inexcusable employer fault, the victim can claim the damages not covered by Book IV. However, the third party after consolidation is covered by Book IV, even restrictively. If the needs increase over time, a compensation fixed at a time T does not freeze life: the sequelae can worsen, and the needs can evolve. The law provides for these evolutions. In case of medical aggravation, the victim can request a new compensation after a new expertise. The deadline is ten years from the consolidation of the aggravated damage. In the matter of traffic accidents, Article L. 211-19 of the Insurance Code allows the victim to directly address the insurer who paid the initial compensation. Jurisprudence also admits a so-called "situational" aggravation, where the health status has not changed, but the living situation creates a new need. In summary, third-party assistance is a position where the law strongly protects the victim, provided that her needs are properly described and quantified. Key points include that all daily activities are compensated, the help of a close person does not reduce the compensation, paid leave and holidays are taken into account, the need does not disappear during hospitalization, and the PCH is not deductible. If the situation changes, a medical or situational aggravation can be compensated within the deadline of Article 2226 of the Civil Code.