Personal injury marketing consortium Your Accident Lawyer (YAL) is looking to enlist some 25 firms to push forward the brand name in the north-west of England, it emerged this week.

The recruitment drive, to begin next month, will focus on medium-sized firms with partners who are members of the Law Society personal injury panel, or the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, and who are based in the Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire areas.

It will be spearheaded by Stockport firm the Thrasher Walker Partnership.

The move signifies the second phase of the development of 18-strong YAL - set up in the Yorkshire region earlier this year by Wakefield firm Lister Croft - which follows from an alliance with fellow southern network Kent Accident Link.

The two consortiums eventually hope to roll out across England and Wales.

Lister Croft partner Alan Benstock said YAL had decided to expand as the consortium was already exceeding all expectations.

'In just three months the YAL brand has come a long way and is moving closer to becoming a national name which will benefit all consortium members,' he added.

Thrasher Walker partner Carl Marston said: 'We intend our scheme to be run by the member firms on a non-profit basis.

It will be open and transparent, provide a good quality service and more importantly restore public confidence which has dropped due to national claims companies.'

Paula Rohan