Whipping up a storm

A leading personal injury lawyer has accused government ministers and the Association of British Insurers of “stoking” the myth of the compensation culture.

A “stream of prejudice” against personal injury (PI) claimants has given rise to measures such as the Jackson reforms which, he argues, will make it more difficult for injured workers to claim compensation, and the government’s reining in of whiplash claims.

Writing in NLJ, Patrick Allen, senior partner at Hodge, Jones & Allen, says: “It seems that it is not the consequences of the banking collapse which is holding back the economy but British businesses that ‘every day battle against a tide of risk-assessment forms and face the fear of being sued for massive sums’.

“In fact, precisely the opposite is true in terms of the effects on the economy, as you can find a few clicks away on the Health and Safety Executive’s website. In 2010-11, 26.4 million days were lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury. 1.2 million people were suffering from an illness which they believed was caused or made worse by their work. Workplace injuries and ill health (excluding cancer) cost society an estimated £14bn in 2009-10.”

Allen notes the Transport Select Committee wants the “bar raised” on the proof required for a whiplash claim. He asks whether the committee may be “overreacting”.

The Ministry of Justice announced last week that the implementation of the Jackson reforms, which are likely ro reduce the number of PI claims, will be delayed until April 2013. The legal aid provisions of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill have also been delayed until that date.

NLJ columnist Professor Dominic Regan, of City Law School, says: “The postponement is welcome. It is essential, given the enormity of the reforms, that measures are thoroughly prepared. The current Pt 36 mess is due to implementation with undue haste in 2007.”