PI Brief Update

How to Litigate and Win an RTA Case with an Allegation of Fraud - Andrew Mckie, Clerksroom

10/08/12. Insurance fraud is on the increase. Undetected general insurance claims fraud total £2.1billion a year adding on average £50 to the annual costs individual policyholder’s policy, on average, each year (Source: Insurance Fraud Bureau).

This is a problem not only for insurance companies but for the Claimant Solicitors who represent Claimants, involved in these type of collisions, where a case has to be dropped due to an allegation of fraud or in the rare instance that a finding of fraud is made at Trial. This results in wasted costs for the Claimant’s Solicitor who has sometimes expedited considerable expense to progress the matter to Trial in both the fee earner’s time and disbursements that are unlikely to be recovered from the Claimant’s ATE insurer or the Claimant himself.

In my experience, it is not unusual to see a Claimant’s base profit costs for an RTA case to Trial with an allegation of fraud to exceed £15,000. The question therefore is, how does one ensure that an RTA case, with an allegation of fraud, can be given the best possible opportunity to succeed at Trial?

This article will look at both investigations that can be undertaken where an allegation of fraud has been made, as well as tactical and procedural considerations for RTA claims where an allegation of fraud has been made or intimated by the Defendant.

Image ©iStockphoto.com/bagi1998

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