First awards by personal injuries board announced

The Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Piab) has made its first awards, in what it says is a fraction of the time and cost that would have arisen with legal litigation.

Of almost 8,000 cases before the board, 25 offers have been made so far to claimants who suffered injury in motor and other accidents. The highest award disclosed yesterday was for €60,000 and the lowest €9,000.

Five of the 25 offers have been rejected, four by solicitors acting for claimants and one by an insurance company. Piab will now authorise these cases to go before the court system.

The board says the costs involved in assessing personal injuries cases have been cut drastically - from €23,000 to €1,250 in the case of a €50,000 award, or €9,200 to €1,250 in the case of a €20,000 award.

In addition, it says, awards are being made far faster than if legal proceedings were involved - from an average of three to four years, to under nine months.

"This is excellent news for accident victims who previously had to wait years to receive compensation," Piab's chief executive, Patricia Byron, said. "The results of our first awards clearly indicate a very high level of satisfaction with the new system."

Piab was set up last year in response to concern over spiralling insurance costs, partly driven by the high costs of settling compensation claims. It says legal, medical, actuarial and other costs added 46 per cent to the cost of the average compensation award.

Since it was set up, insurance costs have dropped to 1999 levels and solicitors have seen a large fall-off in personal injury business.

Minister for Enterprise and Employment Micheál Martin welcomed the level of Piab's first awards as "a good day for injured persons and all consumers".

"These awards clearly show that the vast majority of personal injury claims can be resolved within nine months of making a claim to Piab. Excessive litigation costs have been removed and the injured person receives fair and prompt compensation."

Piab was established in April 2004 and became operational last July. To date, 7,841 cases have been submitted to the board for assessment.

The board yesterday released outline details of some of the decided cases. In one, a worker who slipped and fell at work and suffered fractured ribs was awarded €25,000 in general damages and €1,891 for loss of earnings. The costs involved for administration fees and medical information came to €1,050.

In another case, a person who suffered whiplash in a road traffic accident was awarded €17,500 in general damages and €962 in vouched expenses. The costs here were €1,250. The claimant retained a solicitor in this case and will have to cover this cost him/herself as the board has no power to award legal costs or expenses.

The largest Piab award disclosed yesterday was €60,000, plus almost €4,000 in vouched expenses, for back injuries suffered in a workplace fall. No solicitor was retained in this case.

A worker who was injured when his finger got caught in a door received €9,000 general damages and no special damages. Meanwhile, in a public liability case, €12,500 in general damages were awarded for laceration and scarring under the chin, a toe injury and general bruising.

The time taken to assess claims varied between 20 and 38 weeks, according to Piab statistics.

Lawyers' organisations have criticised Piab, claiming it cannot be trusted to represent claimants' interests. Last January, the High Court ruled that Piab could not refuse to deal with solicitors engaged by claimants.