The UK government has responded to a consultation about changes to the medical reporting process for road traffic accident (RTA) personal injury claims worth up to £5,000. The consultation, held from July to October 2023, included feedback from 49 groups, including medical experts, solicitors, insurers, and medical reporting organisations (MROs).
The consultation focused on updating rules for MROs, auditing standards for agencies supporting medical experts, and reviewing the fixed costs for medical reports.
While many respondents supported the proposed changes, criticisms were directed at the slow pace of government decision-making, particularly on inflationary adjustments to fixed fees.
What’s on the cards for medical reporting organisations?
The government has proposed an 18.3% increase to fixed costs, raising fees last set in 2014, but these will only come into effect in 2025. This delay has raised concerns about how MROs will continue to operate.
Matthew Maxwell Scott, executive director of the Association of Consumer Support Organisations, voiced these frustrations, stating:
“Despite it being almost 18 months since the original consultation, we still do not know when any inflationary increases to fixed costs medical reports will be implemented, other than ‘in 2025’. Given that these were first set in 2014, that is a remarkable gap and one which may have done lasting damage to the confidence of the medico-legal sector.”
He pointed out the drop in MROs, blaming it on the falling number of claims after the Civil Liability Act and the difficulties of running a business with outdated fees. He added:
“Across civil justice, the only consistent thing is inconsistency, with some costs, fees or disbursements uprated and others left where they are for many years. Motor insurers can simply raise prices whenever they want to, and as can be seen from record high premiums, this is not something they are shy about doing. We hope that the ongoing motor insurance taskforce will acknowledge and examine the problems that sluggish government decision making can have, and note the imbalance that fixed costs can impose between defendant insurers and consumer representatives.”
What’s next?
The government plans to work with MedCo to finalise the updates and put the changes into action. Stakeholders have called for more consistent reviews of costs to prevent similar long delays in the future.
The slow pace of reform has left people waiting for real action. The main worry is whether these delays will make it harder for injured people to get good-quality medical evidence for their claims. As reforms unfold, the balance between sustaining medico-legal services and ensuring equitable cost structures remains a contentious issue.
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