Access to justice will be affected, says MASS chairman
The Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS) has knocked the ABI’s proposal for medical panels to assess whiplash claims.
The legal body said that the reforms in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (LASPO) Act will bring down costs for motor accident claims, but could also distort the balance of rights between claimants and defendants.
Further, MASS said that the ABI’s proposals to have whiplash claimants assessed by medical panels was sensible, but that these should not be overly complicated and create excessive cost.
MASS chairman Craig Budsworth (pictured) said: “The whole industry wants to see insurance premiums come down. Legal costs are being cut dramatically a result of the LASPO Act and Jackson reforms. The spotlight must now turn to the insurance industry, to ensure that they fulfil their promise to pass on the savings they are going to make to their customers.
“The ABI’s sweeping statements about dismissing claims where there is any suspected exaggeration is disingenuous and frankly unhelpful. It demonstrates that insurers know very little about how lawyers work with their clients to put forward an honest case, or the nature of living with a whiplash injury.”
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