Insurers attack ‘no win, no fee’ claims

A GROUP representing UK insurers have attacked the “no win, no fee” compensation culture, as it called for an overhaul of the claims system.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has joined forces with a number of companies, including supermarket Asda, bank Lloyds and catalogue chain Argos to form the Consortium for Compensation Reform.

The consortium claims the growth in “spurious and exaggerated” personal injury claims, which grew by 72 per cent between 2002 and 2010, has resulted in higher costs for consumers, local authorities and the NHS.

Otto Thoresen, ABI’s director-general, said: “Compensators, such as insurers, retailers and local authorities, are committed to paying genuine claimants as quickly as possible. But too often this happens despite the system, not because of it.”