Compensation culture
Question
I heard on the news that there are changes coming in to lower compensation for injuries in road traffic accidents. My wife was rear ended on her bike a couple of weeks ago at some traffic lights and is going through a claim for whiplash. Will she now get anything for her injuries or will it simply be a case of less money?
Andrew Reed, by e-mail
Answer
This is to do with the Government cracking down on a perceived “compensation culture”. In fact the Government is wrong about there being a “compensation culture” because their own official figures actually show the biggest sources of cases, motor claims, fell by 17% this year to around 650,000; the 5th year on year reduction!
The legislation is still in draft format but is expected to come into force spring or summer 2019. It will cap the amount someone can claim for a minor whiplash injury. This will reduce the average whiplash pay-out from £1,850 to a maximum amount of £425. It will also ban insurance companies settling claims before a medical report is obtained, known as “pre-med settlements”.
The good news for bikers is the draft legislation excludes them from the whiplash reforms although I rarely see only whiplash injuries as often they are alongside other more serious injuries.
Your wife (and anyone injured before the new legislation is implemented) will fall under the current rules so she will receive more compensation as compared to someone injured after the law is passed.
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