Britain's Compensation culture is costing councils more than ever before, new research has warned. A total of £200m in compensation was claimed from councils in 2001, the first time such figures have been collected. The bulk of claims are housing-related.

The report, compiled by the Local Government Association and insurance company Zurich Municipal, showed that 81% of the 212 councils surveyed had seen an increase in costs since the 1995 introduction of conditional fee arrangements.

These arrangements allow solicitors to waive their fees if a case is lost, but also permit them to increase their charges by up to 100% if the case is won.

A further 87% of councils said the number of claims had risen and two in three authorities (68%) said fraudulent claims had increased. However, less than half had changed their methods of handling claims.

Alan Hunter, technical claims manager at Zurich Municipal, said: "The compensation culture in Britain is a big problem but it is one that can be cut down dramatically if councils sharpen up by improving records and speeding up the process."

Conditional Fee Arrangement is available from www.lga.gov.uk.

Source

Housing Today