The rules around whiplash claims have been reformed

18 June 2021

The government has made changes to the rules on car insurance claims for whiplash due to the “unacceptably high” number of annual claims.

In a recent press release, the Ministry of Justice and The Rt Hon Robert Buckland QC MP announced that new reforms will create savings of £1.2 billion per year, which will be given back to drivers – giving them a saving of up to £35 each year on their car insurance.

The reforms, which include a new user-friendly online portal for road traffic accident claims under £5,000 and a ban on settling whiplash cases without medical evidence, have been put into place as data showed that there was 550,000 whiplash claims made in England and Wales in 2019/20 alone.

The changes are as follows: 

• A new digital portal to make a claim for any road traffic-related personal injury valued at under £5,000, including claims for whiplash. This means claimants can settle their own claim without the use of a lawyer if they wish. It is anticipated that the majority of road traffic accident claims will use the portal in future.
• Increasing the small claims track limit for road traffic accident-related (RTA) personal injury claims from £1,000 to £5,000. Therefore, the majority of all RTA related claims will now proceed through the cheaper small claims track where legal costs are not recoverable.
• A new fixed tariff of compensation for whiplash injuries setting out how much can be claimed for an injury, depending on how long it impacted the claimant with the duration up to two years. It provides claimants with a clear guide to how much their injury would be worth when they make their claim.
• A ban on the practice of seeking or offering to settle whiplash claims without first obtaining medical evidence.

The Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland QC MP said, “For too long the system for making whiplash claims has been open to abuse by individuals looking for an easy payday – with ordinary motorists paying the price.

“Our changes, which come into force today, will put an end to this greedy opportunism and ultimately see savings put back into the pockets of the country’s drivers.”

Chief Executive of Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB), who operate the new Official Injury Claim online claims portal, Dominic Clayden said, “We are pleased to have delivered on our remit to build a service that meets the requirements of these important policy changes.

“MIB’s focus has always been about making sure the new legal process is as easy and straight forward as possible for anyone who might need to make a claim.

“To make sure the service works well for everyone we will continue our work with the Ministry of Justice to listen to feedback and to make further enhancements.”

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