Claimant lawyers say whiplash reforms cut claims but drove up premiums and blocked access to justice
The government has been told that the whiplash reform programme has failed the public and injured victims, amid evidence that car insurance premiums have risen sharply despite insurers making substantial savings.
Claimant lawyers said the reforms had delivered major financial benefits to insurers while undermining access to justice for those injured in road traffic collisions. The criticism was made in response to the Ministry of Justice’s call for evidence as part of its review of the whiplash reform programme and the operation of the Official Injury Claim portal.
The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers said insurers have saved £2.2 billion on injury claims since the reforms came into force, with the cost of such claims falling by 19 percent. However, data from the Office for National Statistics shows that car insurance premiums have increased by 69 percent over the same period.
APIL argued that rising vehicle repair costs, rather than injury claims, are the primary driver of higher insurance premiums. In the third quarter of this year, injury claims accounted for 23 percent of total motor claim costs, while repair claims made up 64 percent.
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The organisation commissioned two opinion polls carried out by Opinium. One surveyed 1,724 adults in England and Wales, while the second questioned 300 people injured in non-fault car collisions whose injuries lasted up to two years.
More than half of respondents, 55 percent, said compensation should be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Only 12 percent supported the tariff used by the Official Injury Claim portal, and just 5 percent considered the typical tariff award of £750 to be fair.
The polling showed that injuries covered by the reforms often had a significant impact on daily life. Fifty one percent of injured respondents reported anxiety or fear about driving again, while 43 percent said they had taken sick leave or reduced their working hours. Only 9 percent said they were able to continue day to day activities as normal.
APIL said insurers frequently portray whiplash injuries as minor, but the research showed they were not trivial for those affected. Two-thirds of respondents said their injuries were more than a minor inconvenience.
The organisation also criticised the Official Injury Claim portal. It said only 11 percent of claimants were unrepresented, a figure that includes those receiving assistance from at-fault insurers. For every ten unrepresented claims, more than six calls were made to the portal support centre, which APIL said showed the system was not user-friendly.
The claims process was described as more stressful than before the reforms. Seventy one percent of claimants using the portal found it very stressful, compared with 48 percent injured before the reforms. Only 27 percent said they would trust the at fault insurer to offer fair compensation without legal advice.
APIL said there was no evidence to justify extending the whiplash tariff to other injuries or increasing the £5,000 small claims limit. It called instead for reforms targeting repair and hire costs, alongside changes to improve the claims process for injured people.