Dodgy solicitors target 'deafness' compensation gravy train
Rocketing number of claims, yet vast majority are unsuccessful.
Thousands of people are being tricked into making claims for hearing loss that they won’t win by solicitors keen to cash in on Britain’s compensation culture.
That's according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), whose latest figures reveal that while hundreds of thousands of compensation claims have been made for noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) in recent years, very few are successful as most cannot provide the necessary evidence.
The number of insurance claims for NIHL rose by 189% between 2011 and 2014, with 200,000 claims being made in the last three years alone. The ABI blames the huge increase on unscrupulous solicitors wanting to cash in on the high fees they can pocket from these cases.
James Dalton, the ABI’s director of general insurance policy, said that thousands of people who worked in noisy environments in the 1960s and 70s without the right protection were rightly compensated in the decades which followed. These claims then tailed off following the introduction of better health and safety measures.
“The recent spike in claims can only be a result of claimant lawyers spotting the potential to earn sizeable fees from these cases after their sky-high earnings from whiplash claims were reduced. The claimant lawyers and claims management firms are intent on exploiting the new source of income which deafness claims represent, irrespective of whether the claims they put forward are genuine,” he added.
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Most claims are unsuccessful
Of the 200,000 claims submitted since 2012 less than a fifth have won compensation, according to ABI figures.
The main reason most claims fail is an inability to provide solid evidence that the hearing loss is due to noise in the workplace. But the high rate of failure isn’t going to put off the lawyers. Excessive legal costs mean that, on average, for every £1 paid out in compensation £3 is paid in legal costs to the solicitors, making it a highly lucrative area for the legal teams.
False claims clogging up the process for genuine victims
The huge number of unsuccessful compensation claims for noise induced hearing loss is slowing down the process for genuine claimants. They are now having to wait a lot longer for the compensation they deserve.
For a claim to stand a chance of being successful, you would need to be able to provide evidence of where you worked and the results of an audiology test that proves your hearing loss is due to exposure to noise in the workplace. You would also need to submit your claim within three years of becoming aware that your hearing loss was due to working in a noisy environment.
ABI calls for reform
In order to reduce the problem the ABI is calling for fixed legal fees for noise induced hearing loss claims like there are for whiplash claims. This would reduce the number of solicitors encouraging people to make claims and also prevent them from running up excessive legal costs.
The ABI also wants greater regulation of the audiologists carrying out the hearing tests to make sure they aren’t motivated by financial gain.
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