Warning issued as personal injury compensation claims nosedive

There is a ”cavernous justice gap growing between injuries and claims levels”, Mike Benner, chief executive at the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (Apil), has claimed.

Benner made the comments after UK government figures showed that personal injury compensation claims plummeted over the last few years.

According to the Department for Transport’s Reported road casualties Great Britain, annual report: 2023, published 26 September 2024, the number of road injuries increased by 15% between 2020 and last year.

However, during the same period, the number of registered motor injury claims fell by 29%, Apil highlighted.

Benner said the findings show that “fewer road injury victims are going on to claim”, suggesting a “cavernous justice gap growing between injuries and claims levels”.

That, therefore, “means many people who have suffered painful injuries and disruption to their lives are not receiving the compensation they need and deserve”, he added.

Whiplash reforms

The findings follow the UK government overhauling the system for claiming compensation for whiplash injuries in 2021, in a bid to make car insurance premiums cheaper.

Benner said the change “hasn’t worked and injured people have become the scapegoats”, while insureds are “all paying more for car insurance”.

Last year was a challenging year for motor insurance margins, although customers have seen some relief in terms of pricing in 2024.

For example, figures from the ABI showed the average motor insurance premium paid by customers fell by 2% quarter-on-quarter for the period between April to June compared to Q1 2024, after two years of increases.

However, Benner said: “The insurance industry’s costs in relation to injury claims have taken a nosedive because claims have dropped. But most motorists will tell you that their car insurance premiums have rocketed.

“It’s a lose-lose situation for injured people.”