Cap on medical reporting costs will drive down the cost of claims but more is needed to fix the market
Insurers and defendant lawyers have welcomed the latest Ministry of Justice (MoJ) reforms to lower the costs of whiplash claims.
The MoJ announced yesterday that it would fix the cost of obtaining whiplash reports at £180 and would also ban medical professionals from assessing an injury and treating it, a move well received by Allianz.
Allianz motor claims manager Sarah Mallaby said: “We welcome the MoJ’s proposals to create a robust and efficient process for obtaining medical evidence on soft tissue injury claims.
“The proposed fixed fee within the civil procedure rules represents a saving on the current Medical Reporting Organisations rate that accounts for 75% of whiplash reports. Where we will see significant savings is on reports that are obtained outside this agreement, which can be £400 or more.”
Simon Denyer, partner at law firm DWF, said the reforms were a step in the right direction, but that more was still needed.
“The reforms at this first stage for whiplash claims new to the portal from October look worthwhile in terms of moving towards independence of reports and medical experts, and in restricting the number and cost of the reports,” he said. “Hopefully, the further changes later in the year will take independence further forwards too.”
Join the debate at our Insurance Times Regulation Forum on LinkedIn
No comments yet