There was further hope for the personal injury sector as the Justice Minister, Helen Grant released a statement last week confirming that the government will await the findings of the Transport Select Committees (TSCs) whiplash inquiry before deciding on the next course of action regarding whiplash reform.
Ms Grant also confirmed that they would be reviewing the impact of the recent civil reform programme on motor insurance premiums.
“The government believes that, prior to taking any final decisions on whiplash reform, it should give due consideration to the views of the Transport Committee. The government also believes that the impact of its recent civil reform programme on the price of motor insurance premiums need to be assessed. Consumers should be rewarded with the lower litigation costs being reflected in lower premiums.
“For these reasons the government has decided to defer publication of its formal response to the consultation until after the Committee has reported.”
A decision had been expected by the government regarding whiplash in the spring after they opened a consultation on the 11th December 2012 regarding the concerns over the alleged disproportionate growth in whiplash claims.
But these plans were put off when the Transport Select Committee announced they were opening a whiplash inquiry and since doing so the Committee has already learned that the figures being quoted by the insurance industry was dated and effectively irrelevant.
This news offers a dim light at the end of a dark tunnel, littered with unfair reforms that has caused havoc and despair for some personal injury firms. It remains to be seen now how the whiplash inquiry’s findings will be reported and, if they turn out to be in favour of the personal injury sector, whether or not the government will adopt the same approach they did with their own adviser Paul Fenn and choose to ignore it anyway.