More than 2,000 Independent Insurance creditors are expected to raise about £1m in a bid to take a group action against the companies involved in the insurer's dramatic collapse.
Meanwhile, class action experts have said the company's failure has raised serious questions about corporate governance and industry regulation.
About 70 shareholders, employees, brokers and trade creditors met at London's Howard Hotel on Monday to discuss the class action, which is being organised by Class Law partner Stephen Alexander.
He said "several hundred" people who were unable to attend the meeting had already asked for information on the action.
They have formed a group called the Creditors of Independent Insurance Group (CIIG), which is headed by Argyll Insurance Holdings boss Kevin Young. Several institutional investors have also expressed interest in the action, on the proviso that their identities are not revealed.
Alexander said the first target of the action would be Independent's auditors KPMG, followed by government bodies such as the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
He said they could be pursued on grounds such as wrongful trading, negligence and breach of statutory duty.
Ratings agencies could also be a target, as well as Independent's directors, if their directors and officers' cover is high enough to ensure a substantial payout.
Actuaries Watson Wyatt would not be high on the hit list because their professional indemnity insurance is believed to have been with Independent, limiting any potential payout.
"It's not about whether you've got a good case, it's about whether you've got a good case against people who can pay," Alexander said.
"The action is not a witch hunt, it's not a vendetta, we're not seeking punishment. It's purely and simply to recover financial losses."
Alexander has already met with 150 employees from Independent's Manchester office, to gather evidence and gauge interest in the action, and will pass on any information to the Serious Fraud Office and liquidators Pricewaterhouse-coopers (PWC).
The CIIG will meet again on Monday to elect a committee and discuss a course of action.
Young said the group was likely to seek the support of trade groups such as the Association of British Insurers and the General Insurance Standards Council.
"The group will have the standing and status to lobby and try to influence the way things go," he said.
"We have a legitimate reason to lobby other bodies and the government and say, 'with the regulation you've got, it didn't protect 600,000 people and today that's not acceptable'."
Alexander said Independent's failure had "opened huge questions on corporate governance, issues such as the role of the chief executive, issues such as director's liability cover".
"These things need to be discussed," he said.
