SAMPLE TOO SMALL


Your recent article, 'Solicitors hurt PI claims, says insurers' (see 2006 Gazette, 13 July, 1) suggests that neither the Association of British Insurers (ABI) research, nor the profession's response, is cogent.



The ABI does not say what proportion the sample bears to the total of personal injury claims. The smaller the sample, the less reliable are the conclusions.



The sample is subject to selection that could distort it:



It excludes claims where nothing is paid. Instructing a solicitor may improve prospects of being paid something.

The minimum claim is £1,000. No information is provided as to the number of such claims. They may represent 50%, show an overwhelming correlation between a solicitor's involvement and payment, and alter the conclusion that a small selective sample argues for.

The maximum claim is £25,000. That may exclude claims where a solicitor was instructed but which would have been less if none had been.

We have no information as to the proportion of claims of more than £25,000 and what an analysis of those might show.

Of course, the full range of claims may have been analysed, with the published sample being selected as it suited the case to be made.



RA McCunn, Davies Johnson & Co, Plymouth