Unfortunately, reforms in the civil justice system in recent years have driven up claims frequency, costs and compensation awards. These changes include:

the introduction of conditional fee arrangements, success fees and recoverable 'after the event' premiums, following the Access to Justice Act 1999
changes to the discount rate in 1998 and 2001
the increase in general damages under the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO).

On top of this, judgements interpreting the law often raise the bar for successful defence of a claim. Improved standards of care have improved longevity and annual care costs remain on a steep upward trajectory, driving damages awards ever higher.

There is no short-term easy fix to the problem of the rising costs of clinical negligence claims and their rising frequency. Risk management measures and improved standards of clinical care are important for patient safety but they have not reversed the deteriorating medico-legal climate. We must look to reform of the civil justice system to address this problem. It really is time everyone woke up to the grave issues we face under the current clinical negligence system and the consequences of it for doctors and patients.

The MDU is currently campaigning for a package of legal measures that will make the claims system more proportionate and sustainable.

An inconvenient truth

Dr Christine Tomkins

An inconvenient truth