Charlotte HughesThe Sun newspaper, the UK's most widely clicked tabloid, has posted pre-tax losses of £53 million for the financial year to June 2025 — up from £18 million the previous year. Revenue fell 8 per cent to £273 million, battered by Google algorithm changes and spiralling legal bills that reached £36.7 million. For anyone who has ever had a false story written about them by a tabloid, this raises a pressing question: does a newspaper's financial health affect whether you can claim compensation?
The short answer, according to media law specialists, is no — but timing matters more than most people realise.
What Is Happening at The Sun in 2026?
News Group Newspapers' (NGN) latest financial accounts, published in spring 2026, lay bare the scale of the problem. Revenue at The Sun fell to £273 million, down from £296 million the previous year, according to Companies House filings reported by Press Gazette. Legal costs jumped to £36.7 million — up from £14.1 million — driven in significant part by the landmark January 2025 settlement with the Duke of Sussex and former MP Sir Tom Watson, in which NGN admitted unlawful activities at The Sun including phone hacking.
Despite reaching 20.2 million Britons online every month as of February 2026 — making it the UK's fourth-biggest news brand by reach — engagement metrics tell a different story. By the measure of time spent reading, The Sun does not feature in the top ten UK news websites. Advertising revenue continues to drain away as major brands redirect budgets to social platforms and streaming.
For ordinary readers, the numbers are striking. For those who have suffered at the hands of tabloid journalism — false allegations, invasive stories, published lies — the figures raise a more urgent question: is it still worth pursuing legal action against a paper that is haemorrhaging cash?
The Legal Framework: Losses Do Not Erase Your Rights
The Sun's phone hacking scandal established a critical legal principle that remains fully in force in 2026: the financial position of a publisher does not extinguish your right to claim. NGN continued settling cases — paying substantial sums in damages — even as its losses mounted year on year. Solicitors specialising in press intrusion won awards for clients long after it became clear that The Sun's finances were under strain.
Under the Defamation Act 2013 and the Human Rights Act 1998, individuals who can demonstrate that a newspaper published a false and damaging statement, or unlawfully obtained private information, retain the full legal right to seek redress in the courts. A company trading at a loss is not exempt from litigation. So long as it continues to operate as a going concern, its assets remain subject to court judgements.
IPSO (the Independent Press Standards Organisation) offers a separate, cost-free complaints route. Under its Editors' Code of Practice, publications must not publish inaccurate, misleading or distorted information. A successful IPSO complaint can compel a newspaper to issue a prominent correction and, in some circumstances, a formal apology — though IPSO cannot award financial compensation. For monetary damages, court action remains necessary.
Three Legal Routes Open to You
In England and Wales, three distinct claims are available to someone whose private life or reputation has been damaged by false or intrusive tabloid reporting.
Defamation applies when a newspaper publishes a false statement of fact that damages your reputation. The Defamation Act 2013 introduced a "serious harm" test: to succeed, you must show the statement has caused, or is likely to cause, serious harm to your reputation. For a business, the harm must have caused — or be likely to cause — serious financial loss. Crucially, claims must be brought within one year of publication.
Misuse of Private Information (MPI) applies when a newspaper publishes details of your private life that you had a reasonable expectation would remain private. This covers medical records, financial information, private communications, personal relationships, and home addresses. MPI claims have grown in prominence since the Leveson Inquiry and now form the backbone of many tabloid-related actions.
Data Protection claims under the UK GDPR are available when a newspaper has unlawfully processed your personal data — including via illegal phone tapping or by directing private investigators to obtain information through deception or theft. These claims can run alongside defamation or MPI actions.
In every route, the financial losses of the publisher are irrelevant to your legal entitlement. What matters is evidence that the harm was caused by their publication.
Legal advice note: the information in this article is for general guidance only and does not constitute legal advice. For advice specific to your situation, consult a qualified solicitor with experience in media law.
When The Sun Gets It Wrong About You: A Concrete Scenario
Consider a realistic example from 2026: a self-employed plumber based in Coventry is named in an online article claiming he was struck off the Gas Safe Register following a faulty boiler installation. The article includes his name, his company trading name, and a photograph taken outside his van. In fact, the Gas Safe Register issued him no such sanction. The story was based on a case involving a different tradesman with a similar name in the same city.
Within two weeks of publication, the plumber loses three commercial maintenance contracts worth a combined £18,500 per year — clients who cite the article when terminating their agreements. A fourth client reduces a planned job from £4,200 to a basic call-out after seeing the story shared on a local Facebook group with more than 28,000 members.
The plumber contacts a media law solicitor. The solicitor identifies two parallel claims: a defamation claim under the Defamation Act 2013 (the article is false, it concerns his professional reputation, and it has caused provable financial loss) and a MPI claim (the article used a photo of the plumber taken outside his home address without consent).
Under the Defamation Act, the solicitor sends a letter of claim within 14 days of instruction, citing the £18,500 in lost contracts as documented serious harm. The newspaper has 14 days to respond before proceedings can be issued. If the newspaper is a member of an approved regulator and the plumber has not yet complained to that regulator, there is an obligation to attempt mediation through a CDFA-approved body before going to court.
If/then outcome: if the paper acknowledges the error within 28 days and removes the article, the plumber may accept a negotiated settlement covering his £18,500 losses plus a correction and apology — without the cost of a full trial. If the paper disputes liability, the solicitor can file at the High Court with documented financial losses that clearly meet the serious harm threshold. Either way, the plumber's rights are unchanged by The Sun's annual loss of £53 million.
The one-year limitation period is the key constraint: even if the plumber only discovers the article six months after publication, he must issue proceedings — or at least a letter of claim — before the 12-month window closes.
Does The Sun's Financial State Actually Affect Your Chances?
For most claimants, the answer is no. A creditor who obtains a court judgement can enforce against a company's assets even if that company is posting losses — provided it has not entered administration or liquidation. NGN operates as a trading company backed by News Corp, the global media group chaired by Rupert Murdoch. Its solvency is not currently in question, despite its reported £53 million loss.
The scenario in which a company's financial state becomes genuinely relevant is formal insolvency. If a publisher enters administration, unsecured creditors — which typically includes claimants who have not yet obtained a judgement — join a queue behind secured lenders and employees. In a worst-case insolvency, such creditors may recover only a fraction of what they are owed. This is why solicitors advising clients against loss-making publishers consistently emphasise early action.
A claimant who has already obtained a court judgement — rather than a pending claim — is treated differently in insolvency proceedings. The timing of your legal action relative to any deterioration in the publisher's finances can therefore have real financial consequences. For anyone sitting on an unresolved claim against a media company in financial difficulty, the message from media law specialists is clear: do not wait.
What To Do If a Tabloid Publishes a False Story About You
Acting quickly and in the right order gives you the strongest position, regardless of the newspaper's balance sheet.
- Preserve the evidence immediately. Screenshot the article with the full URL and publication date visible. Save a PDF copy. Note the exact date and time you first saw it.
- Send a correction request in writing to the editor within days of publication, citing the specific inaccuracy. Keep a record of all correspondence.
- File an IPSO complaint within four months of the publication date. IPSO is free, requires no solicitor, and can compel a public correction — useful even if you intend to pursue financial compensation separately.
- Consult a media law solicitor as soon as possible. The one-year limitation period for defamation claims can pass quickly, especially if the article resurfaces on social media months later. Many specialists offer a no-obligation initial consultation to assess whether your situation supports a viable claim. An ExpertZoom legal specialist can give you a rapid assessment and refer you to a solicitor with specific tabloid-litigation experience.
- Document your losses from day one. Keep records of any cancelled contracts, lost clients, or professional opportunities that can be linked to the article. These records form the foundation of a serious harm claim.
The Sun's financial turmoil is a story about the economics of print media. Your legal rights, should that media harm you, remain entirely separate — and fully intact.
