The Whiplash Injury Regulations must be reviewed every three years with any changes applying for the following two years. Accordingly, the Lord Chancellor has now completed the first statutory review.

The Key decisions made are as follows:

Tariff Structure Refined

The current framework has been maintained - particularly the split structure for whiplash claims between claims with and without psychological damage. There is clearer guidance on minor psychological injuries. 

Financial Adjustments 

A 15% tariff increase aims to address economic challenges, aligning compensation with current inflation rates, however, the adjustment has sparked debate within the personal injury claims sector. Some experts argue that the uplift is simply not enough and that the uplift fails to fully restore the real-terms compensation levels experienced in 2021.

Judicial Flexibility 

The review upholds important legal discretion by keeping the 20% maximum judicial uplift for exceptional circumstances and maintaining existing medical evidence requirements. 

Next steps 

The implementation process will involve consultation between the Lord Chancellor and Lady Chief Justice, an introduction of a parliamentary statutory instrument, and a detailed rollout to be announced in the future. The full report is available to download here. 

Kirsten Roberts, Director at Box Legal Limited commented:

“Whilst the Whiplash Injury Regulations must be reviewed every three years, it is disappointing when the assessment suggests giving with one hand and taking away with another. Giving just a 15% tariff increase suggests a ‘sitting on the fence’ approach to a review that could potentially have made a huge difference to injured people.”

At Box Legal, we have been arranging cover for road traffic accidents since 2004. For more information about our RTA whiplash policy, please contact us using the form here.