A government taskforce scrutinising motor premiums has largely opted to leave the market alone – despite lobbying from the insurance industry.

The taskforce, made up of the transport, business, justice and treasury departments, was formed just over a year ago to consider how to stabilise and reduce insurance premiums.

A supporting cast of stakeholders included consumer groups and motor and insurance representative bodies, but notably no claimant lawyers.

The taskforce published its final report and actions last week, where it was revealed that the Financial Conduct Authority and insurance industry stakeholders had both proposed that the taskforce should consider reducing the damages available for injuries other than whiplash. They also suggested a review of the small claims limit for RTA claims to account for inflation and a further reduction in the legal costs that insurers are required to pay.

The FCA and insurance industry stakeholders further flagged concerns about the quality and reliability of medical reporting.

Despite such petitioning, none of these proposals were included in the report’s final recommendations. Instead the taskforce said the FCA should work with the Association of British Insurers and law firms to ‘consider how claims can be better managed to ensure greater efficiency and cost control, without adversely affecting customer outcomes’.

Read more

There is still the possibility that the lower-value claims market could be subject to reform. In October this year the Ministry of Justice published a call for evidence on the post-implementation review of the Whiplash Reform Programme.

This review will consider the aims and objectives of the whiplash reform programme and assess the impacts and effectiveness of all its elements, including the small claims limit and introduction of the whiplash portal. Once complete, the Ministry of Justice will publish a report detailing the reviews findings along with any recommendations for future action.

To a certain extent, the objective of the insurance taskforce had already been completed without its intervention.

The latest data from the ABI shows that the average cost of motor insurance premiums has decreased, following the peaks seen between 2022 and 2024. The average annual premium paid by motorists fell between Q3 of 2024 and Q3 of 2025, from £607 to £551.

One sweeping change not on the agenda is a non-fault compensation system as exists in some other jurisdictions. The taskforce concluded that existing tort law supports individual accountability and a change would represent a ‘fundamental shift’ in how the UK legal system deals with compensation claims.

Following the publication of the report, Stuart Hanley, director of legal practice at claims firm Minster Law, said: ‘The report confirms that bodily injury costs have not been a major driver of motor claims inflation, and in our view underscores the importance of not intervening further in this section of the market.

‘Ministers have handed the baton on to the MoJ, which is consulting on the impact of the whiplash reforms, but we are pleased that ministers have not adopted calls to increase the small claims limit or further erode damages for non-whiplash injuries.’