Newly-elected Forum of Insurance Lawyers (Foil) president Andrew Parker has warned that insurers and lawyers have a number of gruelling issues to deal with in the coming year.
Parker, of Beachcroft Wansbroughs, was voted in by Foil's 1,600 members recently, with Tim Wallis, of Crutes, elected vice president.
Parker said he would focus on alternative dispute resolution and rehabilitation in the coming year, which he expects would be one of the toughest Foil had ever faced.
He said the forum would also launch a campaign against contrived claims of success fees and after-the-event insurance (AEI) under conditional fee agreements (CFA).
“We've already demonstrated that CFAs and after-the-event premiums (AEP) represent add-ons,” Parker said. “We've given insurers the opportunity to take a hard line on non-payment of AEPs pre-proceedings.”
He said that AEI providers needed to understand that add-ons undid much of the good achieved over the past two years in bringing insurers and lawyers together on issues such as rehabilitation.
Parker said Foil also needed to move into other areas of insurance law, such as professional negligence and reinsurance, and begin communicating with insurers about issues developing in health and safety.
