Civil Liability Bill to enter House of Lords today

The Civil Liability Bill is to be read in front of Lords today as the controversial Bill seeks to find its way through parliament.

While the Bill is to be read today, debate and deliberation will not begin until 10 May when it enters the committee stage.

The Bill is expected to be fiercely opposed by the legal profession, who have lobbied tirelessly to have details of the Bill changed or even scrapped completely.

Personal injury lawyers have held a particular objection to the small claims limit being raised from £1000 to £5000.

Donna Scully, a partner at Carpenters called the increase “excessive,” while Access 2 Justice’s Matthew Maxwell-Scott called the increase a “blunt instrument.”

Legal professionals think the increase will stop a lot of genuine claimants from getting the justice they deserve because fewer people will be able to claim back legal expenses.

But the government and industry believe the Bill will lead to lower premiums as the costs of paying claims will be smaller.

The ABI’s director general, Huw Evans called the Bill “a big step forward” and has “plenty of sensible measures which will result in a reformed civil justice system and benefit customers”.

Last week, the Motor Accident Solicitors Society sent a letter to the House of Lords committee, making recommendations for amendments to the Bill, which the committee backed up.

And yesterday, the government released figures which showed motor injury claims are at its lowest level for almost a decade.

APIL chairman, Brett Dixon said the figures “discredit the principles behind the Bill”.

The Bill’s expected to be debated for some time, and while Evans hopes it passes through parliament “sooner rather than later,” the target implementation date of April 2019 could be a tough ask.

The ABI and government will want to get the Bill passed before parliament breaks up for summer.