A decision by the Court of Appeal to revise its original decision in the case of Simmons v Castle has been welcomed by the Association of British Insurers (ABI).
The ABI applied to re-open the judgment on the grounds that it would upset the package of Government reforms to the civil litigation system by introducing the 10% increase in general damages ahead of other measures.
Under the original decision, the 10% increase would have applied to all cases decided after 1st April 2013.
However, following the ABI’s successful appeal, the increase will not be introduced on cases where the claimant has entered a conditional fee arrangement before 1st April 2013.
For any cases started after this date, the 10% increase will be balanced by reductions in legal costs.
The ABI’s assistant director of motor and liability, comments: “We are pleased that the Court recognised that the original judgment upset the package of measures which feature in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and which were originally intended by Lord Justice Jackson to maintain a careful balance between the interests of claimants and defendants.
“We are also pleased that the Court now acknowledges that it should have sought submissions from ABI and other interested parties before announcing the increase.”
Category: ABI News, Business Insurance News, Car Insurance News, Insurance News, Legal News
