Road Traffic Accidents: the whiplash reforms
The RTA reforms, more commonly known as the whiplash reforms, will change the way low-value personal injury claims arising from road traffic accidents are handled.
Acting as an update of the Civil Liberty Act 2018, the package of measures were initially scheduled to come into force in April 2020; however, last month the Government announced it was pushing back the implementation of the reforms until May 2021. But what are the reforms and how will they affect claims going forward?
WHAT IS EXPECTED TO CHANGE?
The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) announced it was planning on bringing in the long-awaited increase of the small claims limit for road traffic accidents from £1,000 to £5,000 at the start of 2020. This means that those claiming for incidents with a compensation value of less than £5,000 would no longer be able to recover the costs incurred by hiring legal representation, meaning many claiming motorists will have to represent themselves.
Further legislative changes include banning claims being settled without a medical assessment. The MoJ states the aim for the changes is to reduce insurance costs for motorists by tackling the continuing high number and cost of whiplash claims. However, there are concerns that these will mean, due to the lack of experience people have within a legal setting, significantly fewer people will receive compensation for injuries incurred from an accident that wasn’t their fault.
In order to help mitigate this, the MoJ has rolled out plans for an online self-service portal, Official Injury Claim, for managing RTA claims under £5,000 that hopes to streamline the process for future claimants.
HOW CAN WE STILL HELP?
At Hampson Hughes, we are committed to supporting our clients throughout their claim; however, once the reforms come into place we understand that some people will be forced to follow a different legal path with their claim. Because of this, we have put together this handy RTA guide, which explains in plain English what an RTA claim is, how you can access support and what the new process will look like.
ADVICE FROM THE EXPERT
Should the worst happen and you are involved in a road accident that wasn’t your fault, you’re likely to be eligible for justice in the form of compensation. Motorists are often rewarded substantial amounts of compensation, dependent upon the severity of the injuries caused, for both loss of earnings and covering the cost of medical expenses.
This means that people who suffer serious injuries – from whiplash right through to brain damage or loss of limbs – are able to access justice and, crucially, have legal experts guide them along the way.
Head of civil litigation at Hampson Hughes, Niamh Wilson, said: “The whiplash reforms that are coming into force this year mean hundreds of thousands of claimants each year will be forced to navigate the process alone, without the support of a qualified personal injury specialist.
“We have fought against these changes due to the impact they could have people’s access to justice.
“We are also concerned, as personal injury specialists that it will go against the notion that everyone should be treated equally in the eyes of the law.”
Despite this, Hampson Hughes remains committed to delivering five-star service to our clients and continue to fight for the very best outcomes.
