The Prison and Courts Bill, which will set up online civil courts and introduce fixed tariffs to cap compensation for whiplash claims, has passed the second reading stage without amendment.
Compensation will be limited to £225 for injuries lasting three months, rising to £3,725 for an injury that lasts for two years.
The Bill also bans the settlement of whiplash claims without medical evidence, provides for more investment in IT in courts, and ends the cross-examination of domestic violence victims by their abusive ex-partners in the family courts.
Speaking in the debate, justice minister Oliver Heald noted there had been a 50% increase in claims over the past decade.
“These cases are obviously exaggerated to some extent, and perhaps fraudulent,” he said.
“No government could ignore these sorts of statistics and not take action. We have not taken extreme options but gone for moderate options such as a tariff of damages for the very minor cases.”
Earlier in the week, Neil Sugarman, president of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, warned: “The government’s so-called solution to high motor premiums is to reduce how much compensation people with genuine injuries will receive to derisory levels, and make the claims process more difficult and off-putting for the public.”
