PI CaseTrack

PI CaseTrack – 4 Legal innovative answer to Personal Injury claims process reform in England & Wales

The Personal Injury problem

• The personal injury compensation process costs the insurance industry approximately £4.5bn per year in compensation and £2bn per year in associated costs.¹
• The average time taken to settle a personal injury claim is approximately three years for employers’ liability claims and two years for motor claims².
• There is consensus that this process needs reform because:
  • Simple cases take too long and cost too much to resolve - the adversarial process involves unnecessary and costly tasks that duplicate work;
  • Genuine claimants do not receive the access to justice they deserve and not enough attention is given to their care and rehabilitation needs.

In response and in anticipation of the recent Ministry of Justice (MOJ) paper ‘Case track limits and the claims process for personal injury claims’³, 4 Legal launched PI CaseTrack.

The Personal Injury solution

A complete start-to-finish, medically driven, non-adversarial process for settling personal injury claims, which addresses the concerns and requirements of all key stakeholders and is based on three principles:

• Genuine claimants receive access to justice and a fair, transparent settlement, including a medical assessment and treatment at the beginning of their claim;
• Each stage of the process is delivered by experts, is necessary and sufficient and based on best practice, avoiding duplication and thereby ensuring proportionate costs;
• Stakeholders agree in advance to a consensual approach.

How PI CaseTrack works

There are six simple steps:

• Comprehensive data capture
• Telephone medical assessment (initial medical assessment⁴ or IMA)
• Assigned to a pre-defined pathway, as illustrated in the diagram below, according to medical need
• Rehabilitation
• Further medical assessment if required – determined by the IMA
• Settlement

Claims suitable for PI CaseTrack

PI CaseTrack is intended for simple personal injury cases in England and Wales. It is not intended for high value claims, those involving clinical negligence or mainly psychiatric injuries, minors or patients, or the CICA⁵.

Early intervention and rehabilitation – a unique feature of PI CaseTrack

PI CaseTrack has been created to ensure the claimant receives not only their compensation, but early medical intervention and treatment. This not only benefits the claimant, but assists insurers and claimant solicitors, helping them assess quantum in line with the MOJ timelines⁶.

Each claimant has an IMA. The IMA determines which treatment route or ‘pathway’ is suitable for the claimant and also provides advice on further reporting or treatment needs. The four pathways A, B, C and D refer to the level of medical reporting, ranging from simple injuries where an IMA is sufficient (pathway A) through to complex injuries which require a consultant’s report (pathway D). The pathway remains under review as treatment progresses. Pathway C or D claims will go through all six stages of the PI CaseTrack process. Pathways A and B do not require all stages and so are quicker to settle.

Benefits and evidence

Since its launch 18 months ago, independent verification has shown PI CaseTrack:

• Ensures the claimant receives full redress, including early rehabilitation, and helps them return to work sooner
• Keeps costs down – savings of over 50%⁷ vs. other ‘predictable costs’ regimes
  • Fixed fees
  • Proportionate medical and legal input
  • Removes duplication by both sides
  • Web-based, so anyone can use it
• Enables faster settlement times
  • Reduced by 18 months – average 13 weeks⁸
  • Some settled in three weeks⁹
• Provides flexibility
  • Four pathways depending on medical need
  • Can accommodate referral fees, ATE etc
• Delivers legal finality

Case Study¹⁰ – PI CaseTrack in action

• Claimant was involved in a road traffic accident
• Claimant stated ‘too unwell to drive and return to work’
• IMA suggested early rehabilitation and cognitive behavioural therapy resulting in claimant returning to work and driving again
• Insurer had reserved £80,000 for loss of earnings, compensation and treatment
• Approved settlement totalled £5,000
• Cost of settlement <£1,000