Increased court costs will restrict access to justice, warns Apil

Proposals to increase civil court fees could limit access to justice for thousands of accident victims, said the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (Apil).

In its response to a consultation paper on fee changes, Apil warned that a hike in court fees could lead to reluctance among insurers to cover personal injury cases, because of the increased financial risk.

“Apil firmly believes that the court service, which operates for the public good, should not have to be paid for by its users,” said Apil secretary Mark Harvey.

“In many cases there is no other way to resolve an issue other than going to court. Why should people have to pay for the privilege?

“The fact that the government wants to hike the fees even more concerns me deeply,” he said.

“We have a very serious access to justice issue here, which could affect thousands of people. Many insurers may not be willing to offer cover if fees increase as the cost of losing will be higher.

"This could potentially leave personal injury victims unable to take their case to court.”

Apil said the county court, in which most personal injury cases were heard, already took more money in fees than it spent.

“It simply cannot be justified. It is bad enough that people have to pay to have their case heard in the first place, but charging more money when there is a risk that access to justice will be under threat is totally unacceptable,” said Harvey.