A leading personal injury defendant lawyer called for 'no after the event insurance and no referral fees' at the Claims Standards Council conference in Manchester last week. David Fisher, injury claims technical manager with Axa Insurance, acknowledged 'not everyone has before the event insurance' but said there were 'increasing attractions to contingency fees' in terms of being 'more consumer focused' and reducing costs. He said referral fees debilitated reform of the claims process, while warning he had an increasing sense that he would be 'underwhelmed' when the government finally unveils its plans for reform.