The Civil Liability Bill ("the Bill") has passed
through the House of Lords and is expected to receive Royal Assent
within the next 2 weeks.
Continued lobbying by claimant representatives is now likely to
focus on reducing the proposed increases to small claims track
limits. However, in the expectation that these changes will
proceed, the focus will now divert to the likely impact of the
reforms on claimants, claimant solicitors and insurers.
Claims numbers
With other pieces of legislation, we have seen a surge in claims
prior to the legislation coming into effect and thus, a subsequent
drop-off. The Civil Liability Bill will be no different in
the motor volume arena. Claimant solicitors will see profit
margins for low value motor claims likely fall off a cliff once the
full package of reforms take effect. Unscrupulous claimants
and third party agents will see their damages for whiplash claims
fall dramatically too.
