Avoid Marginalising Genuine Whiplash Claimants, say Clear Law Solicitors

After the House of Commons transport select committee stated that diagnoses of whiplash injuries are ‘subjective’ and are often exploited by lawyers or in ‘cash for crash’ frauds, solicitors have spoken out against what they see as a glib dismissal of a genuine issue.

“Although we acknowledge that fraudulent whiplash claims are an issue, it is unfair to deride such claims as a whole, or make them more difficult for people with genuine claims” said Andrew Kwan, Head of Litigation at Manchester’s Clear Law Solicitors.

“People are injured in road traffic accidents every day, often through no fault of their own, and in such situations they deserve to be compensated for things like medical bills and repairs to their vehicle.

“Anything that obstructs that process needs to be handled with care; we don’t want to encourage an insurance fraud culture, but at the same time we don’t want to marginalise people with a genuine need for compensation.”

Fraudulent whiplash claims are currently causing big problems for the UK insurance industry, with many companies arguing they are the main reason for rising car insurance premiums.

The AA told the Telegraph that whiplash claims currently cost the industry £2billion a year and add £66 to every premium, whilst claims for road accidents have risen from an average of 395,735 a year between 2000 and 2005 to 790,999 last year. This is despite a 33 per cent fall in road accident casualties during the decade starting in 2000 from 301,529 to 208,648.

However, new software in development at car security research centre Thatcham could put an end to fraudulent claims. Named the Whiplash Injury Toolkit (Witkit), the software weighs up details including the claimant’s sex, weight and height, and how many passengers were in the car, and indicates whether a whiplash injury is likely.

“Witkit could put an end to the whiplash claims debate” continues Andrew Kwan, “Not only will it improve turn around times on legitimate claims, it should also help insurers and lawyers to spot false claims.”

Manchester’s Clear Law Solicitors specialise in car accident claims, whiplash injury claims and road traffic accident claims. Call the firm on 0808 120 9608 or visit its website at: http://www.clearlawonline.co.uk

Contact Information

Andrew Kwan

Head of Litigation

Clear Law Solicitors

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