Cork County Council paid out more than €1.1m in compensation for 34 slips, trips, and falls in the first nine months of 2022, an average of €33,387 per claim.
This was compared with 42 claims settled in the 12 months of 2021, at a cost of €930,364. The average payout last year was €22,151.
In 2020, the council’s personal injury compensation bill for slips, trips and falls was €1.69m, relating to 69 claims. The average payout was €24,561.
The figures were provided to the Irish Examiner by the council.
Peter Boland, director of the Alliance for Insurance Reform, is concerned by the increase in the average payouts, given new guidelines on personal injuries claims were introduced in April 2021 to bring more consistency in awards across the country.
The guidelines were drafted by the Personal Injuries Guidelines Committee of the Judicial Council, to provide guidance for the Personal Injuries Assessment Board and the courts to assess damages.
For example, the new guidelines introduced a range of compensation payments for neck injuries, from the most minor (€500) to the most severe (€150,000). The guidelines replaced the Book of Quantum.
In cases where the Personal Injuries Assessment Board and the courts do not stick to the guidelines, they must give reasons for not doing so.
Ms Boland said: “Ireland cannot afford to continue paying awards for minor injuries that are way in excess of payments in other countries. There is clear evidence that the Personal Injury Assessment Board is assessing personal injury claims for substantially less since the implementation of the judicial guidelines in April 2021.”
The amount paid out in personal injuries awards by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board in the past two years has fallen by €118m, according to the board’s annual report, which was published in July.
The annual report noted the fall in payouts was partly driven by a decrease in the volume of claims received, and a reduction in accidents during the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, Mr Boland raised concerns that not enough was being done to tackle costs of personal injury claims.
There is no evidence as yet that local authorities or the courts are reflecting the new guidelines in their settlements — the onus is on judges, local authorities and insurers to do so in the public interest.”
Last month, the Alliance for Insurance Reform called on Government to “get serious with the insurance industry following confirmation from the Personal Injuries Assessment Board that the new Judicial Personal Injuries Guidelines continue to have a very positive and improving impact on personal injury claims costs”.
The total number of claims received by the Personal Injuries Assessment Board in the first half of 2022 was 8,989 — down from 13,569 in the first half of 2021.
The agency predicted the total number of 2022 claims will be lower than for 2021, when 21,410 claims were received for assessment.
If you would like an assessment of a claim, you can use the online form available here without obligation or alternatively you can use the automatic claim calculator.
