ILC ARTICLE

New report positive about whiplash reforms

29th April 2022

A new report has been published that provides a detailed insight into the impact of the Whiplash Reforms in the first 10 months since introduction.

Produced by SX3 in partnership with Glenesk, the report is based on the real-world experiences of 19 organisations, nine claimants and 10 compensators.

To date, 200,000 claims have been submitted through the OIC Portal and three sets of quarterly results published, but they have offered little insight into the ground-level experience of the claims industry. By speaking directly to those involved on both sides of the claim, this report seeks to identify what is working, where there is uncertainty, common areas of concern, and where there were opportunities to improve.

Among its conclusions, it found that complex cases involving multiple passengers and insurers were ‘more challenging’, while: ‘For hybrid injuries, a range of approaches have been tried by claimant representatives and insurers to overcome the lack of clarity on how hybrid injuries should be valued. Some firms have agreed protocols based on advice from Counsel, others have employed their own tariff-plus models of valuation as a basis on which to advise clients and make offers.”

However, the report is generally positive.

It concluded, “Most firms interviewed considered that the reforms had helped place a focus on the customer journey and making the claims process simpler and in some cases, it was now possible to go from initial call to submission in one session. It was also clear that claimants still value professional support to help them through the process both for their expertise and also to help those who are less confident interacting digitally.

“Whilst it is clear there were teething problems when the process first went live ʹ as would be expected of any major process or IT change ʹ it would be fair to say that both claimant representatives and compensators have been able to make the new process work. Yes, there are still some processing challenges being reported by the claimant representatives (less so by the compensators), and it is likely that only the simpler claims that are reaching conclusion at the moment, but the early signs are encouraging.”

The report can be downloaded from here.