Claims Farmers: Boleat report casts doubt on council's potential role as industry regulator

The future of claims farmers has been left up in the air after the government refused to back the Claims Standards Council (CSC) for the role of industry regulator, amid concerns about lack of structure and funding.


The government-commissioned Boleat report on the CSC, which represents 139 organisations including 41 law firms, said it did not entirely dismiss the body as a contender, but said it fell down in areas including poor resources, lack of support from the big players, and poor input from members in running the organisation.


It also said the CSC's administrative and legal structures were not solid enough and argued that it needed to establish a firmer code of conduct, making sure that all members signed and adhered to it.


The CSC said it was trying to operate in a 'unique environment', which included hostility to any form of regulation and lack of funding. However, it argued that it could still provide a 'bespoke model' for dealing with any problems.


It said it would be looking to access more funding and other resources, get rid of trade union activities, and extend its membership to include experts and lay members. The council also said it would fine-tune its company and legal structure and withdraw from commercial sponsorship activities.


However, the Law Society urged the government to move at a faster pace. Chief executive Janet Paraskeva said 'rogue' claims farmers were encouraging people to bring spurious claims. 'We hope the regulation of claim farmers will be implemented without delay,' she added.


Claimant solicitors outside the CSC also expressed concern that the government had not used the opportunity to rein in claims farmers more quickly. Andrew Twambley, partner at Manchester personal injury firm Amelans, said nobody else appeared to want to step into the breach. 'The CSC does need to rid itself of [some of its members] and have effective and stringent enforcement powers. It also needs funding - or it will all be a waste of time.'