McCarthy slams insurersRECOVERABILITY ATTACK: APIL president raps back door attempt to stop premium pay-out

The president of the Forum for insurance Lawyers (FOIL) turned the other cheek to a strong attack over recoverability from his claimant counterpart last week, and countered with his own criticisms of personal injury lawyers.

Speaking at the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) conference in Wales, president Frances McCarthy launched an attack on insurers over their refusal to accept that after-the-event insurance premiums are recoverable from losing defendants on cases which settle pre-proceedings.

She accused them of trying to obtain through the back door something that they lost in argument with the government when the issue of recoverability was raised.

But FOIL president Andrew Parker said there was a danger that the recoverability issue would drive FOIL and APIL apart.

He said: Im promoting facilitation we must allow it to work.

The two groups and others are currently involved in a dispute resolution procedure facilitated by the Law Society and Association of British Insurers.

Mr Parker accused claimant lawyers of failing to obtain the best insurance deals, and assisting insurers in preserving artificially inflated premiums.

Ms McCarthy also addressed the collapse of insurance company Chester Street Holdings, which is liable for the claims of many asbestosis victims, but which has called in liquidators and can only give 5% of value for claims prior to 1990, with those preceding 1972 receiving nothing.

Ms McCarthy said insurers must be forced to remedy this situation, and called on the government to set up a body equivalent to the motor insurers bureau to deal with these and similar claims.

She also repeated APIL calls for the government to establish an accident disaster bureau, as well as a special police unit, to facilitate the operation of a new corporate manslaughter offence, the creation of which APIL strongly endorses.

She called for wholesale reform of the coroners inquest system, transparency in the appointment of judges and QCs, and greater training for judges.

Also at the conference, recently appointed District Judge Weaver of Newport County Court criticised the court modernisation programme, telling the conference that Caseman, a software programme used in the county courts, does not deliver, is out of date and that although it should does not correspond to practice directions.Ms McCarthy was re-elected to serve another year as APIL president.Jeremy Fleming