Jack Straw calls for complete reform of motor insurance industry
4:25pm Friday 13th January 2012 in News
By Jon Livesey, Reporter
COMMUNITY COMPLAINTS Blackburn MP Jack Straw
BLACKBURN MP Jack Straw said he would ‘not rest’ until there had been a complete reform of the motor insurance industry.
Last year Mr Straw revealed the industry’s ‘dirty secret’ – that companies themselves were selling on clients’ details to personal injury firms for between £200 and £1,000 a time – was to blame for rocketing motor insurance premiums in East Lancashire.
The MP’s findings inspired a campaign for referral fees to be outlawed; the no-win-no-fee system overhauled; the law on whiplash damages changed to require a stricter burden of proof; a clampdown on the trade in personal data; and tighter regulations of claims companies.
Yesterday, a report on the cost of motor insurance by the Transport Select Committee supported a number of Mr Straw’s calls, but said referral fees should not be banned altogether.
Stepping up his campaign, Mr Straw said: “The reason I am on to this is because of complaints from members of all the community in Blackburn about the high level of insurance premiums, and the fact that for young people, it is sometimes impossible to get insurance at all, except for ridiculous costs, which are pricing them out of the market.
“Recently I had a case where a lady was in the Tesco car park and, as can happen, she put it in reverse by mistake and went into the back of the car behind her.
“She had only moved two yards, so she hadn’t got up to speed, but she slightly damaged the other guy’s bumper.
“She said she would pay and exchanged details with the guy to avoid going through the insur-ance companies, but the next thing she received letters from three firms of solicitors saying there were four occupants in the car and that they were all suing for whiplash.
“She has actually settled in one of the cases.
“According to the data, people in the North West have much weaker necks than people in the South of England and Scotland, which is just ridiculous.
“The whole series is an interlinked racket, and the insurance companies know this is the case. I’m not going to rest until it is sorted.”
Following Mr Straw’s comments on national radio, thousands of people lent their support through social networking site, Twitter.
Nick Starling, director of general insurance at the Association of British Insurers, said: “Referral fees should be banned altogether and not made more transparent – and that ban should apply to all organis-ations receiving them, not just insurers.”
Comments(23)
ste.g
says...
4:38pm Fri 13 Jan 12
while your at it my buildings and contents insurance went up just over £200.00 this year.the reason they gave was its the bb postcode?????looks to me they are trying it on because they have got away with it to long with the car insurance racket..
needless to say i went else where.
ghanto
says...
4:45pm Fri 13 Jan 12
slight bump and goes straight to solicitors next day for whiplash
i think from my view there should be no such claim for personal injuries from 3rd party but only can claim under thier own insurances
mistakes can be discussed internally between both insurance co
Izanears
says...
4:55pm Fri 13 Jan 12
Coeur de Lion
says...
5:50pm Fri 13 Jan 12
happycyclist
says...
6:23pm Fri 13 Jan 12
Jack, you're so EPIC.
Diogenes The Cynic
says...
7:14pm Fri 13 Jan 12
Michael@ClitheroeSince58
says...
7:40pm Fri 13 Jan 12
QuarryGang78
says...
8:47pm Fri 13 Jan 12
Michael@ClitheroeSinUnbelievable..
ce58 wrote:
Police to question Jack Straw over torture in Libya: Former ministers in Tony Blair's government are expected to be questioned by police over their alleged role in human rights abuses, in a new Scotland Yard investigation into how dissidents were sent to Libya to be imprisoned and tortured by Muammar Gaddafi's regime. The focus of the inquiry will be the involvement of MI6 in the arrest and rendition of two men.
retired one
says...
11:12pm Fri 13 Jan 12
My insurance used to be less each year until these unscrupulous scammers came on the scene. They need to be sorted out once and for all.
cod_fillet
says...
11:28pm Fri 13 Jan 12
This shows the collapse of the society..
Lawyers and solicitores are the very low of the society. Stop injury claims now and we'll instantly have a fairer world.
nil bye mouth
says...
12:10am Sat 14 Jan 12
dford,Nelson, etc all areas with lots of asians all with sky high premiums i wonder why that might be ?
dianeakala
says...
8:39am Sat 14 Jan 12
happycyclist
says...
9:18am Sat 14 Jan 12
Dave139
says...
9:50am Sat 14 Jan 12
sonny
says...
12:14pm Sat 14 Jan 12
my driving history is 100% clean, full 10 years no claims, never been involved in an accident or car theft,ect.... and only drive a standard sizer car , yet in the last few years my car insurance has gone from around £250 a year to around a £1000 a year.
i only earn minimum wage and need a car to get to work and back every day, i do shop around very hard every year to find the lowest qoute i can.
I cant really afford to be driving anymore but their is no other reasonable straight forward way for me to get to work and i also like having a car to get out of this rotten town when i get the cahance.
Although im not a fan of politics, i have commend Jack Staw for taking on problems that really effect the normal working person.
i think car insurance shouldnt cover minor injuries like whip lash, bumps and scrapes,etc... unless you want to add it to your policy as an extra and pay a premium for it and also the postcode lottery involved in car insurance is completly unfair and lazy
sonny
says...
12:22pm Sat 14 Jan 12
the most dangerous thing in the modern world-An Idiot with an opinion and a platform to shout it from.
RAyzer
says...
2:55pm Sat 14 Jan 12
district01
says...
9:58pm Sat 14 Jan 12
sonny wrote:“the most dangerous thing in the modern world - An Idiot with an opinion and a platform to shout it from“
All the comments criticing jack straw for various things are completly off point and its the people that write these sorts of things that stop anything good happening, all because a tiny minority of small minded cynicism people cant keep their dum opinions to themselves.
the most dangerous thing in the modern world-An Idiot with an opinion and a platform to shout it from.
Please, stop calling Jack Straw names. The lies that caused our troubles in Iraq was just a mistake, some wsuld say?
Jack Straw - The self congratulating trumpeter!
sonny
says...
11:33pm Sat 14 Jan 12
but in this instance he has to be commended for trying to tackle an issue that effects my day to day life in a big way financially.
sonny
says...
11:45pm Sat 14 Jan 12
RAyzer wrote:evrybody does know the 'type', but we live in a country run by hypocrtical PC bureaucrats and im not just talking about the politicians its more the stupid middle class 'white' PC hypocrits that ruin this country the politicans are only interested in pleasing them because they are mainly the highest active voters.
is this man for real????everyone knows the TYPE who scam the insurance company's,surely they should have to pay extra not us!!
district01
says...
12:12pm Sun 15 Jan 12
Give them a bone (extremely high salary with all of the extravagant expenses and a retirement pension that can only be described as astronomical) followed by a pat on the head and their happiness will prevail.
Tony Blair and Gordon Browns ‘New Party‘
was a diabolical mess pretending to have been a ‘Labour Party’ that we’re still paying for today both with their monetary mismanagement and the warlike tendencies that Jack Straw also supported. But unfortunately their children are still there smiles and all just like their now extremely well off leader Tony Blair. Laughter in his case would be a better description rather than a smile!
A true ‘Labour Party’ is what we need and not Tony Blair and Gordon Brown ‘The Ed brothers’ puppets on a string continuing the misery!
Jack Straw?
Sandy Shaw come to mind!
Good call
says...
10:30pm Sun 15 Jan 12
sonny wrote:Yes or no question.Do the cash for crash scammers do it because they are Asian:NO.People don't commit crime because of their race
RAyzer wrote:evrybody does know the 'type', but we live in a country run by hypocrtical PC bureaucrats and im not just talking about the politicians its more the stupid middle class 'white' PC hypocrits that ruin this country the politicans are only interested in pleasing them because they are mainly the highest active voters.
is this man for real????everyone knows the TYPE who scam the insurance company's,surely they should have to pay extra not us!!
RK says...
4:31pm Fri 13 Jan 12