Advantages of Setting Personal Injury Claims through the PIAB
The Personal Injuries Board Ireland or the PIAB was set up in 2004 and with the intention of devising a method to deal with personal injury claims that were uncontested. The processing of the claim would prove to be far less expensive in comparison to the regular modes of litigation. It had already become evident that the legal expenses involved in personal injury cases were too high. As per the reports published by the MIAB or the Motor Insurance Advisory Board, the overhead costs involved in litigation had remarkably risen by 46 cents on every Euro that was being paid as part of the compensation package.
The objectives of the PIAB were to considerably reduce the additional expenses, the overhead charges involved in providing compensation to personal injury victims and that too without affecting the amount of monetary compensation in any way. It also sought to speed up the process of litigation and thus to resolve cases in quick time. The amount of money that was eventually saved in the process would then be transferred to the consumers as savings in insurance costs.
Over the years, the Injuries Board in Ireland has been quite successful in achieving this objective. The litigation costs have been reduced substantially and now constitute only 10% of the overhead charges on top of the compensation amount. The reduction in the number of litigation cases over the years along with the attendant costs has also resulted in a substantial drop in the insurance premiums. It has been seen that the personal injury case files that are settled by the BIAB are resolved 4 times faster than cases that tread the path of traditional litigation. Moreover, the amount of compensation received by the injured individuals is not affected in the process.
One of the chief benefits of settling a claim through the PIAB is that you can view a detailed account of the costs incurred. The process is thus absolutely transparent and you can also make a more or less precise assessment of the amount that you are likely to receive as compensation. The plaintiff is required to pay a standard fee of ‚¬50 for case registration. The respondent, on the other hand, is liable to pay an administrative fee of ‚¬850. The respondent is also supposed to bear the charges for the medical report which amounts to ‚¬150.
On the other hand, the cost of the court based system continues to be much higher and the process of litigation more and more complicated. The cost of the litigation process also depends on a number of other factors including the total tenure of the case, the court in which the case is being heard, the number of expert witnesses and also the fact whether a liability was actually contested or not. If the liability was admitted in favour of the plaintiff, then the respondent would also have to bear the cost of the legal processes for the plaintiff as well apart from their own. If the costs turned to be a matter of dispute, then the issue would be resolved by Taxing Masters.
The objectives of the PIAB were to considerably reduce the additional expenses, the overhead charges involved in providing compensation to personal injury victims and that too without affecting the amount of monetary compensation in any way. It also sought to speed up the process of litigation and thus to resolve cases in quick time. The amount of money that was eventually saved in the process would then be transferred to the consumers as savings in insurance costs.
Over the years, the Injuries Board in Ireland has been quite successful in achieving this objective. The litigation costs have been reduced substantially and now constitute only 10% of the overhead charges on top of the compensation amount. The reduction in the number of litigation cases over the years along with the attendant costs has also resulted in a substantial drop in the insurance premiums. It has been seen that the personal injury case files that are settled by the BIAB are resolved 4 times faster than cases that tread the path of traditional litigation. Moreover, the amount of compensation received by the injured individuals is not affected in the process.
One of the chief benefits of settling a claim through the PIAB is that you can view a detailed account of the costs incurred. The process is thus absolutely transparent and you can also make a more or less precise assessment of the amount that you are likely to receive as compensation. The plaintiff is required to pay a standard fee of ‚¬50 for case registration. The respondent, on the other hand, is liable to pay an administrative fee of ‚¬850. The respondent is also supposed to bear the charges for the medical report which amounts to ‚¬150.
On the other hand, the cost of the court based system continues to be much higher and the process of litigation more and more complicated. The cost of the litigation process also depends on a number of other factors including the total tenure of the case, the court in which the case is being heard, the number of expert witnesses and also the fact whether a liability was actually contested or not. If the liability was admitted in favour of the plaintiff, then the respondent would also have to bear the cost of the legal processes for the plaintiff as well apart from their own. If the costs turned to be a matter of dispute, then the issue would be resolved by Taxing Masters.
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