Solicitors' drive to reclaim the personal injury market from claims management companies stepped up a gear this week with the launch of another three marketing networks.

The largest is Your Accident Lawyer (YAL) in the north-west, the first major expansion of the brand set up by Wakefield firm Lister Croft, with 14 members so far.

They are: The Thrasher Walker Partnership, Collings Solicitors, Graham Riley & Co, Dickson Haslam, Widdows Pilling & Co, Stripes Solicitors, Law Direct, Glaisyers, Colemans, Inghams, Chestnutt Spruce, Carter Hodge, Davis Blank Furniss, and Berry & Berry.

Carl Marston, a partner at The Thrasher Walker Partnership in Stockport, said: 'This is a great opportunity for local law firms to provide an alternative to the claims companies by professionally marketing their services under what is set to be a national consumer brand.'

Meanwhile, eight firms in Dorset and Hampshire have come together to form Wessex Accident Link.

Accident Link was set up in Kent and last July tied up with YAL to form a national grouping, although local networks are able to choose which brand they go with.

The firms are: Biscoes, Churchers, Dickinson Manser, Glanvilles, Knight & Co, Lawcomm, Steele Raymond, and White & Bowker.

And five firms have joined forces to form Accident Line Staffordshire, the latest group to use the brand of the Law Society-endorsed personal injury referral scheme.

They are: Chesworths, Dicksons HMB, Knight & Sons, Lichfield Reynolds, and Salmons.

- Money going to good causes from new marketing consortium Community Claims comes from the fixed monthly payment member firms make towards marketing, and not referral fees as stated in [2004] Gazette, 15 January, 4.