Greater Transparency In Road Accident Claims

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) April 6, 2011 -- The cost of running a car is rapidly rising. Of the many different costs associated with running a car, insurance is often the most expensive. Though it is a legal necessity in this country, the ambiguities of many insurance policies leave many people wondering ‘what are we actually paying for?’

Why Do We Need Insurance?

Car insurance is made mandatory to ensure that people involved in road accidents get the compensation they need to make their lives as normal as possible. If a road accident claim ends up going to court, as well as the compensation that the court awards, the legal cost also need to be covered. In cases of this sort, the insurance of the guilty party will normally cover the legal fees of both sides.

Why Does It Need To Be More Transparent?

When someone makes a road accident claim, or informs their insurance company of an accident, the insurance company will often enlist professional compensation claims lawyers to advise and represent them.

The argument put forward in a recent report by the House of Commons suggests that it is this aspect of insurance policy which is most in need of reform. Insurance companies very often have arrangements with particular accident claims solicitors who, in return for the work, pay the insurance company a substantial referral fee. This referral fee is on top of the premium that the customer has already paid.

What Does It Mean For The Customer?

The argument by the recent House of Commons report takes issue, not only with these underhand ‘referral fees’, but also the lack of choice given to the paying customers. Not all accident claims solicitors are the same. Some insurance companies will use fully qualified road accident claims solicitors and others will use inferior accident claims services. What the report argues for is more choice for the consumer and a greater level of transparency regarding legal fees when an insurance policy is sold.

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