Injury Claim Specialists Attack New Government Proposal

The government is trying to cut its costs as it is faced with a huge national debt and spiralling expenditure as the population grows and we continue our military efforts oversees. However, a new proposal by Lord Justice Jackson has been met with anger from injury claim specialists and victims of injury alike. Lord Jackson has proposed that in an injury case, the defendant should not have to pay the claimant’s legal fees if they lose their case. Instead, the claimant will have to pay their lawyers out of the compensation money they receive, and in compensation, the compensation paid out will rise by 10%. It is hoped that this will reduce the number of cases brought to court, and thus cut the amount of money the government has to spend on paying out victims when they are injured due to the fault of local councils, the NHS or other government agencies.

The amount that the government pays out on medical negligence cases alone reached £796 million pounds last year. With figures like this flying around, the new proposal has been lambasted by many as a way to cut the amount of money the government pays out whilst paying little attention to the needs of the victims. Some have even gone so far to say that it benefits the defendant who no longer has to pay the claimant’s legal fees and will probably have insurance to cover the compensation costs.

The government on the other hand sees the proposal as a way to cut down on the ‘no win, no fee’ claiming culture which has gripped the nation over the past decade. False claims and minor claims which could have easily been settled have gone to court and cost the country millions of pounds as third party ‘claims farmers’ charge huge fees to pass on cases to injury claim specialists. Whilst there is definitely a case for these riskless claims to be reduced, the proposal will affect the most seriously injured claimants worst of all.

For example, someone who experiences pain and suffering because of an injury in the Yorkshire region can get a maximum compensation payout of £250,000. With the extra 10% this would take the pay out to £275,000. However, for a legal case of this scale the legal fees are likely to reach a figure higher than £25,000 and therefore the claimant is the net loser. Not only has the defendant escaped paying any legal fees, the victim is then forced to use a massive amount of their rightful winnings on the legal costs incurred trying to get the money in the first place.

Whilst the figure of £250,000 may seem large, you have to look at it from the victim’s perspective. For a civil case to grant the claimant that amount of money, they will be able to demonstrate that the pain and suffering caused by the injury will affect them for the rest of their life. Pain, medical costs, care if needed, these are what the compensation winnings go towards, it is not as though the winnings are a lottery win that can be blown at once.

Lord Justice Jackson has received mounting criticism for his proposal but nevertheless, the government has approved it. It is still unclear whether the full proposal will be put into action, however the results are clear. Should this report be made reality, the victims of injury and medical negligence will be the losers.

By: Sarah Boothman

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Sarah Boothman is a writer from England. She likes to discuss current affairs including government proposals and legislature. For more information about injury claim specialists and compensation, visit www.raleys.co.uk today.