Injured claimants should not be subsidising the insurance industry, says Karl Tonks
In February 2010 the then government said it was “persuaded that an Employers’ Liability Insurance Bureau (ELIB) should form part of the package of measures to improve the lives of those who are unable to trace an old employer or their insurer”. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in its consultation, Accessing Compensation, said that the ELIB would be a fund of last resort to ensure that injured workers would receive their rightful compensation. That consultation closed on 5 May 2010, the day before the general election. As a consequence of the election result, the responses landed on the desk of the incoming coalition. Now it is more than 18 months since the new government came to power and yet we still have not had a response to the consultation.
Difficulties exacerbated
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has said previously that “insurers remain fully committed to paying fair compensation claimants as quickly as possible”. However, the insurance industry has not matched these fine words with sufficient action.
Victims
