Rehabilitating a market

The after-the-event market place is an ever-changing landscape,with high-profile claims management companies collapsing, insurers pulling out as a result, and continuing challenges to premiums from defendant liability insurers.

For a niche market, it certainly receives more than its fair share of publicity - and we must accept that we have a responsibility to restore confidence in the market.

In tackling this problem, firstly, we are in continual discussion with all stakeholders - solicitors, marketing groups and defendant liability insurers. It must be remembered that this is a young business that only really took off in 2000, and only now are we able to begin to understand the trends, claims settlement patterns and likely outcomes.

Secondly, we realise the need for transparency with stakeholders. They need to have the confidence that premiums are constructed to ensure long-term viability and not short-term gain, and that they are robust enough to withstand challenge.

Thirdly, we are ever mindful of the fact that ATE is all about access to justice - and that does not mean how much compensation one is entitled to. It means having the right partners and the foresight to ensure the injured party gets back to work, and back to their pre-accident condition, as quickly as possible.

Much has been said about rehabilitation, and quite rightly so, but what can ATE insurers do to support this? We are currently discussing with our business partners the potential for having cover built in to our product - possibly on multi-track cases that provide up-front payments for physiotherapy and assessment.

At the present time, depending on where you live, it can take up to 16 weeks to be referred to an NHS physiotherapist. We know that the longer it takes to get treatment, the more expensive it becomes. Anything that can be done to assist recovery should be seen as a step forward.

We have a major role to play in ensuring that justice means far more than compensation. It is about working alongside all concerned parties to ensure we get the injured party back to work and providing them with a real sense of worth.