Spencers Solicitors News

• 8th May 2012
  The Lawyer: The drive to dismiss whiplash
  John Spencer writes for The Lawyer on the whiplash injury "bandwagon" and the government's crusade against insurance cheats.
  
  "The whiplash bandwagon has again rolled into town and many have hopped aboard. As Transport Secretary Justine Greening and Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke announced claims reforms last week (2nd May) at what was the second summit of motor insurers in Whitehall, the great, the good and the not especially well-informed sought to make their views on whiplash known."
  
  "The bandwagon is in danger of being driven so badly that accident victims have little or no chance of redress. That may be good news for the insurance industry - and the many government ministers who have a financial stake in it - but it is a poor return for the man in the street."
  
  Read the full article The drive to dismiss whiplash on The Lawyer website.
  
  
• 3rd May 2012
  The Times: Real cost of whiplash to accident victims
  The Times' Frances Gibb reports that the government's attempts to cut the soaring rates of motor insurance may also cut access to justice for genuine cases.
  
  "John Spencer, Director of Spencer Solicitors, said that the latest plans had the "distinctive stench of influence by the insurance lobby" while the "real experts, like the doctors, are shockingly absent".
  
  "The insurance lobby's relentless drive to stamp out whiplash claims in their entirety is a grossly misguided approach which will do little more than deny access to justice for real victims of accidents".
  
  Read the full article Real cost of whiplash to accident victims on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 2nd May 2012
  Post Online: Legal and insurance experts at loggerheads ahead of second whiplash summit
  John Spencer speaks to the Post Online on the second motor insurance summit taking place at Whitehall.
  
  "John Spencer, director of Spencers Solicitors, has described the latest government announcement on plans to tackle the whiplash 'epidemic' as having the "distinctive stench" of insurance influence."
  
  "One has to remember that it was insurers themselves who created the model of settling personal injury claims where the claimant had no medical evidence or legal representation. Insurers initiated this practise on a wide scale, however they lacked the foresight to anticipate the resulting rise in claim numbers - consequently they now seek to argue that whiplash injuries are widely exaggerated."
  
  Read the full article Legal and insurance experts at loggerheads ahead of second summit on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 27th April 2012
  Insurance Age: Referral fee ban lacks definition and will damage access to justice
  The LASPO Bill represents "a litany of missed opportunities for the personal injury system" according to John Spencer, director of Spencers Solicitors.
  
  "The Government has tragically missed the target, and will deny access to justice for many injured people, and most poignantly the most seriously injured."
  
  Read the full article Referral fee ban lacks definition and will damage access to justice on the Insurance Age website.
  
  
• 17th April 2012
  Legal Futures: High-powered group to advise on introduction of contingency fees
  Spencers Solicitors Director John Spencer is part of an 11-man expert working party advising on how to introduce contingency fees for court work in England and Wales.
  
  The working party, chaired by Michael Napier, has been set up by the Civil Justice Council (CJC) and is due to report back by the end of July. Its findings will then be presented to the Ministry of Justice and the regulatory bodies for the legal professions.
  
  The contingency fee model recommended by Lord Justice Jackson is modelled on that operating in Ontario, Canada. It is a hybrid in that costs are recovered and set off against the contingency fee, rather than being a pure cut of the damages as in the US. Any excess will be paid by the client, in line with the end of recoverability for success fees in conditional fee agreements (CFAs) introduced by the bill.
  
  Read the full article High-powered group to advise on introduction of contingency fees on the Legal Futures website.
  
  
• 11th April 2012
  Spencers Solicitors becomes an accredited Headway law firm
  Headway are the UK's leading brain injury charity promoting the understanding of all aspects of brain injuries as well as providing information, support and services to people with a brain injury, their families and carers.
  
  Spencers Solicitors have a dedicated team of specialist lawyers experienced in dealing with all types of head injuries and brain injury claims, and are proud to now be an accredited Headway law firm.
  
  Headway accreditation ensures that accredited solicitors have the relevant experience in the field of brain injury. Anyone choosing a Headway Personal Injury Solicitor can have confidence in the law firm’s quality, expertise and commitment in addressing their particular needs and circumstances.
  
  To find out more about Headway, please visit their web site at www.headway.org.uk
  
  
  
• 30th March 2012
  Law Society Gazette: Fraud fears over RTA portal fee cap
  John Spencer speaks to the Law Society Gazette on the government proposal to cap the fee for low-value road traffic claims handled through the RTA portal.
  
  "Stage two of the portal requires up to five-and-a-half hours of work. Once the costs of running a business properly are taken out, there is nothing left from £300.
  
  If you shave costs to these rates people will cut corners or not apply a professional approach. This does nothing to cut spurious claims - indeed it can only spread the risk of fraud."
  
  Read the full article Fraud fears over RTA portal fee cap on the Law Society Gazette website.
  
  
• 29th March 2012
  Post Online: Legal boss airs concern as first three ABSs are revealed
  Spencers Solicitors director John Spencer has responded to the identity of the first three Alternative Business Structures (ABS) licensed by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) by raising concerns over the impending referral fee ban.
  
  "The SRA's announcement is striking because two of the three firms which have become ABSs clearly undertake personal injury litigation work. There is currently no policy from either the SRA or the government in relation to how ABSs will deal with the upcoming ban on referral fees. The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Bill (LASPO), which includes a ban on referral fees, does not take into account the myriad of potential loopholes which ABSs will create."
  
  Read the full article Legal boss airs concern as first three ABSs are revealed on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 22nd March 2012
  John Spencer to chair the APIL Whiplash conference 15th May
  Spencers Solicitors' John Spencer will be chairing the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) conference "Whiplash: The Evidence" on 15th May 2012 at The Grange City Hotel, London.
  
  With all the media hype about whiplash, APIL has put together a one day conference to investigate the real truth and causes of whiplash injuries, with the overarching objective of dispelling the myths and focusing on the evidence.
  
  While various commentators have stated that "people in the UK have weaker necks than our Continental cousins", the reality of the situation is somewhat different. Indeed, in terms of actual numbers of whiplash claims, the UK is a distant second to Italy; Italy has 558,000 compared to the UK's 375,000. In terms of the average cost per claim we are far below the European leader Switzerland where a whiplash claim will cost approximately €35,000 (compared to the UK's €2,878). And don't believe the suggestion that whiplash doesn't exist in Germany – they have about 200,000 claims!
  
  Full details on the conference can be found in the Whiplash: The Evidence programme on the APIL website.
  
  
• 21st March 2012
  Spencers Solicitors Craig Gravil examines the evidence behind Whiplash injuries
  In response to government concerns about the rising cost of motor insurance, the Transport Select Committee met in October 2011 to explore the issue as to why the volume of claims for whiplash injuries in the UK, exceed those of other European Countries. During the meeting evidence was given by the Rt Hon Jack Straw and, reading between the lines, the question that was really being asked was...does whiplash exist?
  
  Craig Gravil, section head of complex injury at Spencers Solicitors, goes through the arguments and examines the medical evidence behind Whiplash injuries.
  
  Read the full article Whiplash: the evidence
  
  
• 1st March 2012
  Actuarial Post: Reform and Personal Injury Living in Interesting Times
  Spencers Solicitors Director John Spencer writes for the Actuarial Post on the reform of the personal injury system.
  
  "Reform was the by-word of 2011. The personal injury (PI) system, like the NHS, education systems, local government and police force, was no exception to the Coalition’s zeal for change. In March 2011 it was announced that Lord Justice Jackson’s recommendations on reform to Civil Litigation should herald the overhaul of the PI system as we know it."
  
  Read the full article Reform and Personal Injury Living in Interesting Times on the Actuarial Post website.
  
  
• 14th February 2012
  Post Online: Law firm accuses PM motor premium war of limiting access to justice
  Spencers Solicitors fears the Prime Minister's approach to tackling the rising cost of motor insurance will "chip away at the public's right to justice under the law".
  
  "It's not hard to see that the government's current approach is at best one-sided and at worst potentially devastating to the individuals the entire system is designed to protect: the legitimate victims of accidents. Cutting claims may be good business for insurers, but it's most certainly not good for people injured in accidents."
  
  Read the full article Law firm accuses PM motor premium war of limiting access to justice on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 10th February 2012
  The Times: Moral renewal needed over motor insurance claims?
  The Times Law Central Blog reports on the Spencers Solicitors www.shouldtheyclaim.co.uk campaign.
  
  "Spencers Solicitors - which campaigns against abuses in the insurance market - cites the development of an entitlement culture in Britain in which insurance claims are just another form of unearned income."
  
  "For example, a claim was made for a car accident which was caused by the claimant being distracted by 'Waving to a man whom he had struck with his car the previous week'. Then there was the man who attempted to pursue a personal injury claim despite admitting he was not actually in the car at the time of the accident. Add to that a lack of candour – such as by the claimant who had twelve previous PI claims which he had not disclosed – and we are in very murky moral territory. And, of course, there is also full blown criminality such as by the London gang which made £3 million worth of false claims against insurers in three years, for car accidents they caused deliberately. If they believed the damage to their cars post-crash was insufficient, they would take a baseball bat to the car just to clinch the point."
  
  Read the full article "Moral renewal needed over motor insurance claims?" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 9th February 2012
  The Times: Injured Feelings?
  The Times "In the City" column, Edward Fennell speaks to Spencers Solicitors' John Spencer on Alternative Business Structures (ABS) and the banning of personal injury referral fees.
  
  "So do you want your personal injury claim to be business process outsourced? John Spencer, the campaigning anti-referral fees lawyer, has his doubts. 'It is already apparent that the new world of alternative business structures stands to undermine the Government's objective in banning referral fees,' he says. 'The introduction of private equity at Parabis will potentially be more concerned about commercial performance than it will about the rights and welfare of injured people.'"
  
  Read the full article "Injured Feelings?" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 6th February 2012
  Post Online: Greening's proposals put the 'cart before the horse'
  Post online reports on John Spencer's reaction to comments made about the personal injury system by Transport Secretary Justine Greening.
  
  Greening said "The first challenge will be to get the insurance industry to acknowledge that everybody has a collective responsibility to tackle this. It is not good enough to agree there is a problem, but then claim it is everyone else's fault."
  
  But John Spencer, director of Spencers Solicitors, said that Greening's proposed reforms to the personal injury system have all the hallmarks of "putting the cart before the horse". “It is striking that the proposal, particularly in relation to accidents at low speeds, appears to have been drawn up exclusively at the behest of insurers. More comprehensive consultation with medical professionals and solicitors would have revealed to the Transport Secretary that serious injuries can occur, even at low speeds."
  
  Read the full article Greening's proposals put the 'cart before the horse' on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 2nd February 2012
  London Evening Standard: Campaign launched today to crack down on bogus personal injury claims
  London Evening Standard reports on Spencers Solicitors www.shouldtheyclaim.co.uk campaign.
  
  "It is aimed at re-educating the public to claim legitimately. Lawyers say dubious practices blight the entire field. The campaign features a website with YouTube clips for people to guess what constitutes a justifiable claim."
  
  Read the full article on the London Evening Standard website.
  
  
• 30th January 2012
  ShouldTheyClaim.co.uk - Spencers Solicitors launches campaign against spurious personal injury claims
  Law firm Spencers Solicitors puts the spotlight on absurd claims as part of campaign to reform the personal injury system
  
  The campaign features the microsite www.shouldtheyclaim.co.uk which aims to educate the public on what constitutes a legitimate claim and to draw attention to the serious side of PI work. The microsite hosts a game where players are shown clips of accidents and have to decide whether a claim would be justifiable. We hope that the campaign will change the public's attitude towards PI claims.
  
  Read the full details on our Should They Claim? page or visit the website www.shouldtheyclaim.co.uk
  
  
• 14th January 2012
  The Independent: Car cover costs must be cut, MPs demand
  John Spencer speaks to The Independent on personal injury referral fees and their relation to the rising cost of motor insurance.
  
  Desmond Hudson, chief executive of the Law Society, said: "The insurance industry itself is fuelling the costs of accidents and passing them back to motorists. The fact that it sells accident details to third parties inevitably fuels the number of claims. Some firms have a record of seeking to pay off the victim of an accident whether or not that victim has been injured."
  
  John Spencer, director of Spencers Solicitors, said: "Insurers often make offers without requiring any medical evidence. Their hope is that they can 'buy off' a claim before the injured person seeks independent legal advice and is properly represented."
  
  Read the full article Car cover costs must be cut, MPs demand on the Independent website.
  
  
• 6th January 2012
  Post blog: The Year Reform Hit the Road
  Spencers Solicitors Director John Spencer writes for the Post Online reviewing the Personal Injury system over the last year.
  
  "The reform of the personal injury system may not be as significant as the major events of 2011, such as the Arab Spring, Eurozone crisis or death of Osama bin Laden, it will have a dramatic impact on all those involved in the system."
  
  Read the full article Post blog: The year reform hit the road on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 23rd December 2011
  Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
  Wishing a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our clients, colleagues and suppliers.
  
  This year we are donating the amount we usually spend on printed Christmas cards to Headway, a charity set up to give help and support to people affected by brain injury.
  
  Visit the Headway website for more information on the Charity.
  
  
• 9th December 2011
  Spencers IT team raise over £780 for Movember Cancer Charity
  During the month of November Spencers Solicitors IT team participated in Movember. An annual moustache growing event to raise awareness and vital funds for prostate, testicular and other cancers that effect men.
  
  Martyn Gilbert (Chief Information Officer) said "Along with the IT team's moustache growing and individual sponsorship, other activities such as an IT bake off were also organised. This contributed to the team raising a fantastic £780 for the Movember charity!"
  
  "On behalf of the team I'd like to thank all our colleagues, friends and family for their generous donations and support throughout the month."
  
  Visit the Spencers Solicitors facebook page for photographs of the final moustaches.
  
  
• 17th November 2011
  The Law Gazette: Is the government's preference for 'industry-led' solutions tipping the scales in insurers' favour?
  John Spencer speaks to The Law Gazette on the RTA Portal and the Jackson civil litigation reforms.
  
  "The Jackson report was very much what the insurers wanted. It is poignant that the Association of British Insurers (ABI) is saying “implement the whole of Jackson”, with not a modicum of opposition to any of its facets. If a government is getting a policy right, it is healthy that both sides should be a little upset."
  
  Read the full article Is the government's preference for 'industry-led' solutions tipping the scales in insurers' favour? on The Law Gazette website.
  
  
• 10th November 2011
  Spencers in the Sheffield Hays 5 a side tournament
  Spencers Solicitors entered the annual Hays 5 a side tournament on 8th November held at Goals in Sheffield. The tournament consisted of teams entered by employers from both the private and public sector within the Derbyshire and South Yorkshire regions.
  
  A total of nineteen teams entered the competition with the winning team being awarded the annual trophy. After a gruelling six matches Spencers eventually finished third in the group but unfortunately did not progress to the semi finals stage.
  
  Visit the Spencers Solicitors facebook page for more details and photographs of the Spencers Solicitors FC.
  
  
• 9th November 2011
  Chesterfield Volunteer Centre - Volunteer of the Year Awards
  November 4th saw the Chesterfield Volunteer Centre AGM and Volunteer of the Year Awards. Two of Spencers Solicitors' senior employees are Trustees of the Centre and were in attendance at the event.
  
  Rob Landman (Chief Financial Officer) and Craig Gravil (Complex Injury Solicitor and Section Head) were once again hugely impressed by the commitment and selflessness shown by those who volunteer their services and provide help to those in need. Rob said "The time and commitment these volunteers are prepared to give to others in the local community is nothing short of remarkable. The Centre does a tremendous job of establishing and running community programmes and engaging the volunteers necessary to deliver them, all carried out on a very tight budget."
  
  Visit the Spencers Solicitors facebook page for photographs of the Volunteer of the Year Awards.
  
  
• 8th November 2011
  John Spencer published in the Journal of Personal Injury Law on the RTA Portal
  John Spencer writes in the Journal of Personal Injury Law (JPIL), on the Road Traffic Accident (RTA) Portal and the lessons learnt prior to considering vertical and horizontal extension of the process.
  
  The author identifies the lessons learnt from the set-up, governance, funding and project management of the RTA Portal to date, and considers the proposed extension of the portal process to other areas of claim, and the raising of the value of RTA claims dealt with through the portal.
  
  Read the full article The RTA Portal: Lessons Learnt Prior to Considering the Vertical and Horizontal Extension of the Process which first appeared in JPIL Issue 3, 2011 published by Sweet & Maxwell.
  
  
• 28th October 2011
  Over £200 raised for Wear it Pink Day 2011
  Spencers Solicitors were delighted to support the Breast Cancer Campaign's "Wear it Pink Day" for the 6th consecutive year. As part of the awareness event, the whole office went pink with staff donning an array of pink clothing in a combined effort to raise money for the charity. Donations were made throughout the day and an impressive assortment of home baked pink delights were made and sold.
  
  The enthusiasm of staff was, as always, remarkable and we were delighted to be involved in raising over £200!
  
  Visit the Spencers Solicitors facebook page for photographs of the event.
  
  
• 21st October 2011
  The Lawyer: Putting the brakes on the referral fee merry go round
  John Spencer writes for The Lawyer on the sale of accident victim information and a culture of profiteering within the personal injury system.
  
  "As you read this, a personal injury lawyer somewhere in the country will be signing off a payment which secures drivers' details from an insurer, a garage or, most probably, a claims management company. En route, data protection laws will most likely have been breached – did you really consent, when you renewed your insurance policy a decade ago, for your mobile phone number to end up on an accident claim marketer’s database? But no matter: the show must go on. And so claim after claim is made, creating a vicious cycle which sees the insurance companies pass on their increased costs by setting higher premiums for all drivers, irrespective of whether they have made a claim."
  
  "To put an end to these practices, a holistic approach is needed. The current system is complex, with any number of strands going off in any number of directions, and we must beware of piecemeal solutions. What, for example, is the Government’s definition of a referral fee? How will the advent of Alternative Business Structures (ABSs) influence the personal injury and insurance markets?"
  
  Read the full article Putting the brakes on the referral fee merry go round on The Lawyer website.
  
  
• 20th October 2011
  John Spencer's Blog
  In addition to his role as Director of Spencer Solicitors, John Spencer is one of the UK's leading personal injury solicitors with over 27 years of experience. He is also a prominent advocate for claimant rights and believes that wholesale reform to the personal injury marketplace is needed to ensure transparency, access to justice and the protection of accident victims.
  
  John writes regularly about these issues in his Blog.
  
  
• 14th October 2011
  Chesterfield in Bloom Awards
  Spencers Solicitors (formally CS2 Lawyers) once again supported the 2011 Chesterfield in Bloom competition, the third year it has done so, sponsoring the Best Front Garden category. The awards ceremony was held at Ringwood Hall Hotel in Chesterfield and representing Spencers Solicitors were Section Heads Lee Foster and Jane Gittins.
  
  Robert Landman, Chief Financial Officer at Spencers Solicitors:
  "It's obvious to see just how much work goes into the competition each year, on the part of both organisers and competitors alike. Spencers Solicitors is once again delighted to have been able to help support the event, and is proud to be associated with it."
  
  Lee Foster presented the prizes along with the Mayor of Chesterfield, Councillor Peter Bar.
  
  Visit the Spencers Solicitors facebook page for photographs of the presentation.
  
  
• 13th October 2011
  The Times: Into the Fast Lane
  The Times' "In the City" column reports on the name change to Spencers Solicitors.
  
  "The anti-referral-fee campaigner John Spencer has decided to write off the name of his firm CS2 Lawyers and to invest instead in a new model, the eponymous Spencers Solicitors."
  
  "Spencer, formerly of Shoosmiths, has become the mouthpiece for those parts of the profession who feel outraged at the abuse of the referral fee arrangement."
  
  "In recent years he has painstakingly fought for his convictions in his role as chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society (of which he is now vice-chairman)."
  
  Read the full article "Into the Fast Lane" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 12th October 2011
  Post Online: Claims Management Companies verging on "criminal"
  Giving evidence to the Transport committee, alongside Spencers Solicitors director John Spencer, Jack Straw former home and justice secretary, said that claims management firms and credit hire companies are "parasites in the system".
  
  John Spencer argued in the session that unless the government tackles systemic failings within the personal injury industry, a ban on referral fees alone may do more harm than good:
  
  "A key component of any ban will be adequately defining what a referral fee is and consequently what it covers," he said. "For example, will the government include ancillary services which are also involved in personal injury claims, such as car-hire companies, in the ban?"
  
  He added: "There are also a myriad of question marks over advertising standards and data protection, with unsolicited texts, cold calls and adverts which encourage litigations, being used to the detriment of the public and the injured party alike.
  
  "We also need answers as to what the advent of Alternative Business Structures, will do to the personal injury system. Could a claims management company or insurer take over a law firm? Market rumour is indicating that a vast majority of CMCs have expressed interest in doing just that when the time comes.
  
  "The practice by which insurers intercept claimants before they have access to independent legal advice, also needs to be properly regulated.
  
  "A culture of profiteering within the system has created these corruptions. While they remain unaddressed accident victims will continue to be treated as commodities and the public will continue to pay the price."
  
  Read the full article CMCs verging on "criminal" on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 11th October 2011
  John Spencer provides evidence to Parliament's Transport Committee on the rising cost of Motor Insurance
  Director of Spencers Solicitors, John Spencer, provided evidence to the Parliament’s Transport Committee on their probe into the rising cost of motor insurance. He disputed that car insurance premium rises were solely due to legal costs and further highlighted the referral fee profiteering undertaken by various ancillary parties that provide no value to the accident victim.
  
  John Spencer also called for proper regulation around the practice of insurers intercepting accident victims before they can gain independent legal advice.
  
  A full video of the session can be viewed on the www.parliament.uk website.
  
  
• 11th October 2011
  Post Online: CS2 Lawyers re-brands in honour of company director
  The Post Online reports on the re-brand of CS2 Lawyers to Spencers Solicitors
  
  "A leading campaigner behind the recent government ban on referral fees has seen the personal injury law firm where he is director named after him."
  
  Read the full article "CS2 Lawyers re-brands in honour of company director" on the Post Online website.
  
  
• 10th October 2011
  CS2 Lawyers becomes Spencers Solicitors
  CS2 Lawyers, one of the UK's leading personal injury law firms, will be known from today as Spencers Solicitors. The firm has adopted the name of its Director John Spencer, a prominent personal injury solicitor and a steadfast advocate for reform of the personal injury system and the protection of claimant rights.
  
  The Derbyshire based firm was originally founded as Cutts Shiers Solicitors in 1975, later becoming CS2 Lawyers in 2000. The firm now employs over 110 people and specialises in claims arising from road traffic, workplace or public area accidents.
  
  John Spencer, Director of Spencers Solicitors, said:
  
  "Whilst today's change clearly marks the start of an exciting new chapter for our firm, it also reflects an evolution that has been underway for some time. Our steadfast belief in placing 'duty before profit' reflects a relentless commitment to put the well-being of claimants and their access to justice as our foremost consideration."
  
  Read the full press release CS2 Lawyers becomes Spencers Solicitors.
  
  
• 8th October 2011
  The Derbyshire Times: Lawyer backs changes to personal injury process' cases
  John Spencer speaks to The Derbyshire Times on welcoming Government plans to ban referral fees.
  
  A TOP north Derbyshire lawyer has welcomed Government plans to ban insurance and claims-management companies from selling personal injury victims' cases to solicitors.
  
  John Spencer, of CS2 Lawyers, of Chesterfield, has been campaigning for years to bring in a ban on controversial referral fee payments for personal injury claims which he believes have been undermining civil justice reform.
  
  He feels referral fees damage the system by creating questionable commercial incentives which create costs elsewhere and push up insurance premiums for others.
  
  Read the full article "Lawyer backs changes to personal injury process" on The Derbyshire Times website.
  
  
• 7th October 2011
  CS2 Lawyers to become Spencers Solicitors
  From the 10th October 2011, CS2 Lawyers are changing name and will be known as Spencers Solicitors.
  
  We will be taking the name of our Director John Spencer, one of the UK's leading personal injury solicitors and a prominent advocate for reform of the personal injury system and protection of claimant rights.
  
  Contact details will remain unchanged however our web address will be updated to www.spencerssolicitors.com.
  
  
• 22nd September 2011
  The Times: End of the road for selling victims' cases
  Leading Personal Injury Lawyer John Spencer quoted in The Times article on the Personal Injury Referral Fees Ban - "End of the road for selling victims' cases"
  
  Trade unions, garages and insurers themselves were all entrenched in what John Spencer, a leading PI lawyer, calls "an industry of dysfunction".
  
  So is Spencer, the director of Spencers Solicitors (soon to be rebranded as Spencers), pleased by the ministry’s announcement? "Yes," he says, "but the devil is in the detail. Referral fees create perverse commercial incentives that add no value to claimants.
  
  "They help to line the pockets of many market participants, such as insurers and claims management companies. But a timescale for the ban has not been stated. We also need to be very careful to ensure that referral fees do not appear in another guise. And to ban them properly, we need to define exactly what they are."
  
  Read the full article "Bar chief attacks legal regulator over referrals" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 14th September 2011
  Daily Mail: Greedy insurance companies probed over illegally flogging your details
  John Spencer quoted in the Daily Mail and thisismoney.co.uk on Insurance companies selling customer information.
  
  John Spencer, who works as a personal injury lawyer for Spencers Solicitors, says: "This dysfunctional industry is fuelled by the secretive trade in customers’ personal information. It is welcome news that it is finally being investigated."
  
  Read the full article Greedy insurance companies probed over illegally flogging your details on the Daily Mail website.
  
  
• 12th September 2011
  Insurance Times: Lawyers at odds over referral fee ban
  John Spencer speaks to the Insurance Times on a personal injury referral fees ban for their article "Lawyers at odds over referral fee ban"
  
  Claimant firm Spencers Solicitors director John Spencer said "glaring questions" hung over the implementation of any ban, threatening to derail it. However, he said Djanogly’s annoucncement was a "powerful first step" in putting right what he described as a "dysfunctional personal injury system".
  
  He said: "I have long argued that referral fees represent the root cause of dysfunction, and create perverse commercial incentives which add no value to claimants and help to line the pockets of many market participants such as insurers and claims management companies.
  
  "As to whether the implementation of today’s ban will successfully achieve the goals of the reform, the devil is truly in the details. Absolute clarity must be pursued by the Government in codifying how and when a ban will be implemented in order to truly purge the marketplace of corruption and shoddy practices."
  
  Read the full article Insurance Times: Lawyers at odds over referral fee ban on the Insurance Times website.
  
  
• 10th September 2011
  The Times: Bar chief attacks legal regulator over referrals
  John Spencer quoted in The Times article on Personal Injury Referral Fees Ban - "Bar chief attacks legal regulator over referrals"
  
  John Spencer, a solicitor who has campaigned against referral fees, said that there are "crucial unanswered questions" in relation to how a ban will be implemented and what actually constitutes a referral fee.
  
  "Any ambiguity as to how a referral fee is defined, whether by name or not, could completely undermine these reforms," he said. "Absolute clarity must be a priority of the Government in codifying how and when a ban will be implemented."
  
  Read the full article "Bar chief attacks legal regulator over referrals" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 9th September 2011
  Government ban on referral fees should be catalyst for further reform
  Leading personal injury lawyer urges further action on other shoddy practices to ensure access to justice.
  
  Today's announcement by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) of a plan to ban referral fee payments for personal injury claims marks a milestone in the battle to root out dysfunction across the industry, says leading Personal Injury solicitor John Spencer.
  
  However, glaring questions regarding how and when a ban will be implemented – as well as the need for a clear and accepted definition of what actually constitutes a referral fee – still threaten to derail these efforts and must be addressed urgently.
  
  Spencer has campaigned for years in support of a ban on referral fees, the controversial charges paid by solicitors to insurers, claims management companies and others for obtaining personal injury cases.
  
  Read the full press release Government ban on referral fees should be catalyst for further reform
  
  
• 23rd August 2011
  Lawyers Reach the Roof of Africa for Charity
  Louisa Chambers, a Personal Injury Solicitor at Spencers Solicitors, was part of a team that climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in August 2011 to raise money for a Tanzanian school. The team have raised over £5,000 to buy much needed Malaria nets and to refurbish the classrooms in the province of Chalinze.
  
  Read Louisa's story and see the climb pictures Lawyers Reach the Roof of Africa for Charity
  
  
• 29th July 2011
  New Law Journal: To ban or not to ban?
  John Spencer quoted in Professor Dominic Regan's "To ban or not to ban?" referral fees article in the July edition of the New Law Journal.
  
  "The other strand of this insipid report is that consumers do not mind the practice. Might they if they were to realise that substantial sums are being paid? It is inevitable that these payments ultimately are met by everyone who insures a vehicle. This point was made by that most highly respected road traffic solicitor, John Spencer, in a splendid recent interview in the Daily Mail (8 June 2011). If there is one publication that frightens the government then it is the highly influential Mail. The recent, massive hike in car insurance cover is, I suggest, going to encourage poorer people not to bother taking out insurance at all, meaning that those who do will face even greater costs to cover the uninsured."
  
  Read the full article To ban or not to ban? on The New Law Journal website.
  
  
• 18th July 2011
  The Legal Executive Journal: Expert Shopper
  Louisa Chambers, a Personal Injury Solicitor in Spencers Solicitors' complex injury team writes for the ILEX Journal. Expert Shopper - A Court of Appeal ruling that fetters litigation privilege in relation to expert reports could have far-reaching implications beyond personal injury.
  
  Read the full article Expert Shopper taken from The Legal Executive Journal website and publication.
  
  
• 8th July 2011
  The Law Gazette: Solicitors and others remain divided over desirability of the government's civil justice reforms
  John Spencer quoted in The Law Gazette on referral fees adding no value to Personal Injury claimants.
  
  "John Spencer, a partner at Spencers Solicitors, explains: 'It is broadly accepted that referral fees average £750, and Jackson was damning in his view that such fees added absolutely no value to the process.
  
  'Assuming that solicitors will therefore continue to pay referral fees as part of the cost of doing business in this market, available monies governing road accidents will continue to be spent - in a largely fixed costs regime - which would otherwise be available for firms to invest in service and time in representing the claimant.'
  
  Also retained, Spencer notes, are 'the inherently perverse commercial incentives which I believe undermine a claimant's right to choose their representation in a transparent and efficient market environment, jeopardising their access to justice'."
  
  Read the full article Solicitors and others remain divided over desirability of the government's civil justice reforms on The Law Gazette website.
  
  
• 29th June 2011
  The Guardian: Justice Secretary considers banning Referral Fees in car accident and personal injury cases
  The Justice secretary Ken Clarke says he may consider banning referral fees paid by lawyers in car accident and personal injury cases
  
  Welcoming the decision to consider banning referral fees, John Spencer, a solicitor who has campaigned against them, said: "I am thrilled that many legislators have finally woken up to the fact that referral fees are the rotten core of dysfunction in the personal injury market in this country."
  
  Read the full article "Ken Clarke announces £20m fund after criticism of legal aid cuts" on The Guardian website.
  
  
• 22nd June 2011
  Industry responds to Justice Bill
  John Spencer is quoted in the Post Online, Insurance Age and Insurance Times on the industry response to the Justice Bill.
  
  "Instead of seizing the opportunity to tackle one of the most glaring deficiencies in the personal injury market, the government has instead demonstrated a total disregard for the groundswell of calls to tackle the issue of referral fees. This is a profoundly disappointing choice which I believe undermines the entire aim of proper reform.
  
  Referral fees damage the system by creating a myriad of perverse commercial incentives which threaten access to justice and cost consumers dearly by pushing up insurance premiums to unsustainable levels.
  
  By skirting the issue of referral fees, we are now left with rushed-through, half-baked legislation which does not implement the transparency, regulation and outright ban of referral fees which the system needs.
  
  It is my profound hope that the industry will pull together and fill the leadership vacuum sadly left by the government by challenging the deeply entrenched commercial interests which add no value to claimants, damage access to justice and present a bad and costly deal to consumers."
  
  Read the full "Industry responds to Justice Bill" article from the Post Online website.
  Read the full "Government says yes to referral fees" article from the Insurance Age website.
  Read the full "Ministers accused of ducking referral fee ban" article from the Insurance Times website.
  
  
• 22nd June 2011
  Law Society Gazette: Failure to ban referral fees will undermine reforms
  John Spencer writes for Law Society Gazette on the failure ban referral fees which will undermine reforms.
  
  "It appears that referral fees have been saved from the chopping block in the government’s new Justice Bill, unveiled today. Sadly, I believe this botched approach will undermine the aim to reform civil justice in the UK."
  
  Read the full "Failure to ban referral fees will undermine reforms" article from the Law Society Gazette website.
  
  
• 21st June 2011
  Failure to Ban Referral Fees in new Justice Bill will Undermine Reforms
  Leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer of Spencers Solicitors slams continued failure to address perverse commercial incentives at the root of Personal Injury market dysfunction
  
  
• 10th June 2011
  Post Magazine: Insurers in line for a £4.8bn windfall from referral fees
  Motor insurers stand to pocket billions in extra income a year if a recommendation to retain referral fees is acted on, leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer of Spencers Solicitors has claimed.
  
  "John Spencer, former Motor Accident Solicitors Society chairman and director at Spencers Solicitors, said the Legal Services Board report on referral fees published a fortnight ago spells good news for direct motor players that receive large sums for selling cases to law firms."
  
  Read the full "Insurers in line for a £4.8bn windfall from referral fees" article from the Post Online website.
  
  
• 9th June 2011
  The Times: Unethical backhanders or business in the real world?
  John Spencer quoted in The Times article on Referral Fees - "Unethical backhanders or business in the real world?"
  
  "Spencer's mission is to introduce a model in which referral fees are not paid but, instead, solicitors win work purely on the basis of quality and cost."
  
  Read the full article "Unethical backhanders or business in the real world?" on The Times website (subscription required).
  
  
• 8th June 2011
  Daily Mail: Are you being mugged by your insurer?
  Spencers Solicitors Director John Spencer speaks to the Daily Mail on the subject of Personal Injury Referral Fees.
  
  "The industry is riddled with referral fees. Insurers and other firms are trading in people's misery and making vast profits. There is no doubt this is pushing up premiums for ordinary motorists. It is disingenuous of insurers to call for a ban on these fees, while continuing to pocket huge fees themselves."
  
  Read the full "Are you being mugged by your insurer?" article from the Daily Mail website.
  
  
• 31st May 2011
  New Law Journal: Backhand of Justice
  Is the personal injury marketplace at odds with solicitor obligations? John Spencer of Spencers Solicitors investigates.
  
  An examination of the fundamental failings of the personal injury system, and how the government's response to Lord Jackson's proposed reforms has dodged the real issue.
  
  Read the full "Backhand of Justice" article from the New Law Journal.
  
  
• 27th May 2011
  Continued inaction on referral fees is hurting claimants
  Legal Services Board position on retaining perverse commercial incentives in personal injury market threatens access to justice
  
  Today's recommendation by the Legal Services Board to retain referral fees as a key commercial element of the personal injury marketplace is bad for claimants and a detriment to access to justice, argues leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer.
  
  According to Spencer, the LSB's recommendation is the latest example of continued industry-wide failure to tackle the critical issue of referral fees, the controversial charges paid by solicitors to insurers and others for obtaining personal injury cases.
  
  Rather than a ban, the LSB has instead recommended steps to 'manage the impact of referral fees and prevent abuses by strengthening transparency obligations.' It also cites the fact that 'the legal services market is on the threshold of substantial structural change' as a result of the Legal Services Act as a key reason for inaction.
  
  Lord Justice Jackson – in his comprehensive review of civil litigation costs completed in January 2010 – rightly identified the issue of referral fees as a detriment to the marketplace because they 'offer no real value to the process' for claimants. However, his recommendation for a ban or cap has thus far gone unheeded by the Ministry of Justice.
  
  Spencer, who is a Director of Spencers Solicitors, said:
  
  "Many players in the PI marketplace charge solicitors fees for introducing clients – essentially 'selling' accident victims to the highest bidder. Such perverse commercial incentives have resulted in a 'merry-go-round' of warped incentives and profiteering, and I find it unfathomable how such incentives cannot be viewed as a detrimental to consumers."
  
  "Only a genuine industry-wide commitment to challenging deeply entrenched commercial interests and eliminating elements which add no value to claimants is the only real solution to guarantee access to justice and the protection of clients."
  
  "It is also clear that the Jackson proposals were always predicated on a ban, or at least £200 cap on referral fees. The money he envisaged saving through this reduced cost will not now be saved. As a result the people who will suffer ultimately are the accident victims."
  
  A qualified solicitor since 1985, John Spencer is a leading authority in the personal injury marketplace and a steadfast advocate for protection of claimants. He serves on the Executive Committee of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, where he has been a Fellow since 2006, and is a Law Society PI Panel Member. He has served as Chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS) and is its RTA Portal Co Director as well as a member of its Management Committee. As part of a Transport Committee investigation into motor insurance costs, John provided testimony and evidence on 9 November 2010.
  
  
• 26th May 2011
  Leading reform advocate and claimant representative to help standardise the use of technology in assessing personal injury damages
  
  Spencers Solicitors' John Spencer joins working group on predictable damages
  
  An ardent campaigner for reform and professional standards in the PI marketplace, Spencer has been a Fellow of APIL since 2006.
  
  Spencers Solicitors, a personal injury practice, today announced that Director John Spencer has been named to a newly established Working Group tackling the issue of predictable damages in personal injury (PI) claims. The Group has been tasked with establishing the consistent and fair standardisation of technology in efforts to reduce the cost of claims.
  
  Spencer joins other stakeholders representing the insurance, claimant, judiciary and technology perspectives to collectively establish a consistent and fair calibration of all existing software systems used to assess damages for pain, suffering and loss of amenity on personal injury claims up to £10,000. This mandate was established as a result of Lord Justice Jackson’s 2010 report into Civil Litigation costs, which the Government has committed to implement in a recent Ministry of Justice response.
  
  The Group will be chaired by Peter W. Smith, currently managing director of FirstAssist Legal Expenses Insurance Ltd. and member of the Civil Justice Council.
  
  Commenting on his appointment, Spencer – who is a Fellow and recently elected member of the Executive Committee of the Association of Personal Injury Solicitors (APIL) and also serves as Vice Chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS) – said:
  
  "I am honoured to join this group and tackle this very important issue in the personal injury marketplace."
  
  "Lord Justice Jackson saw predictable damages as an avenue through which access to justice could be increased and legal costs could be reduced, both laudable aims. I will work constructively within the Working Group to seek to deliver these aims, whilst also seeking to ensure that the rights of the accident victim are fully protected."
  
  
• 12th May 2011
  Spencers Solicitors in-house catering facility retains 5 Star Rating
  
  Spencers Solicitors in-house catering facility was recently the subject of a random visit from the Chesterfield Borough Council environmental team. We are delighted that once again we passed the inspection with flying colours and retained our maximum 5 Star rating.
  
  Not only does the café provide sandwiches and snacks for our own staff on Millennium Way in Chesterfield, but also provides catering to a number of other local businesses, supplying sandwiches as well as a buffet service. If anyone would like more information about the services we offer please call us on 01246 266666.
  
  
• 11th May 2011
  Spencers Solicitors donates furniture to local Chesterfield charity the Enable Group
  
  The Enable Group are a Chesterfield based charity that provides many different kinds of housing, support, care, social activities and training for people with learning difficulties. In April, Spencers Solicitors donated various furniture and equipment for use in their offices. Jackie King-Owen, the executive director of the Enable Group has said:
  
  "I would like to thank you most sincerely for the donation of the tables, chairs, desks and filing cabinets, along with other sundry items. You cannot believe what a difference it has made to our office. As a charity we managed to be able to renovate our premises last year but we had our existing furniture. Now we look a lot more corporate and I am sure we will enjoy the equipment for years to come."
  
  
• 6th May 2011
  Leading solicitor urges claims management companies to support reform of the PI marketplace
  
  Prominent consumer advocate addresses 2011 Claims Management Seminar
  
  John Spencer, Director of Spencers Solicitors, yesterday urged the UK’s leading claims management companies (CMCs) to be part of the effort to fundamentally rethink industry practices in the best interest of consumers.
  
  In his speech at the Claims Management Seminar 2011 in Manchester, Spencer pointed to various dysfunctions in the current system which he argues threaten access to justice and the protection of accident victims.
  
  Spencer, commenting after his speech, said:
  
  "Given this opportunity for dialogue with representatives from the nation's leading claims management companies, I felt it important to confront the hard truth of the systemic dysfunction within the personal injury marketplace. The entrenched commercial incentives and practices make many of us in the industry increasingly uncomfortable."
  
  "It is time for a fundamental rethink. I firmly believe that only a genuine industry-wide commitment to placing the well-being of accident victims at the centre of the entire system – and support for the changes required to make that happen – is the only real solution to guarantee access to justice and the protection of claimants."
  
  
• 18th April 2011
  APIL: Members elect new representatives to executive committee
  John Spencer of Spencers Solicitors has won a place on the APIL committee following the association's annual ballot.
  
  
• 15th April 2011
  Market reform advocate John Spencer elected to prominent personal injury law organisation
  
  John Spencer, Director of Spencers Solicitors, has been elected to the Executive Committee of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), it has been announced. APIL is the leading not-for-profit organisation engaged in the promotion and development of personal injury (PI) law.
  
  An ardent campaigner for reform and professional standards in the PI marketplace, Spencer has been a Fellow of APIL since 2006.
  
  On his election, Spencer commented: "I am truly honoured to have been elected by my colleagues to the Executive Committee of APIL."
  
  "We are all aware that the personal injury market is at a crossroads, facing a period of unprecedented change which could threaten professional standards and access to justice. In light of these challenges, I look forward to the opportunity to contribute and work with my colleagues to ensure that the rights of accident victims are protected and the highest professional values and practices are preserved and promoted."
  
  A qualified solicitor since 1985, Spencer is a leading authority in the personal injury marketplace and a steadfast advocate for protection of claimants. Spencer has served as Chairman of the Motor Accident Solicitors Society and is its RTA Portal Co Director as well as a member of its Management Committee.
  
  Closely involved with policy development for the PI marketplace, John participated in a series of workshops on Alternative Business Structures in 2010 run by the Legal Services Institute, and has engaged in Solicitors Regulation Authority workshops on this issue.
  
  A Law Society Panel Member since March 2002, John also recently provided expert testimony to the House of Common’s Transport Committee on the cost of motor insurance. His comments laid bare inherent flaws in the PI market, especially in relation to the referral fees which insurers and other bodies charge solicitors, and contributed to the Committee recommending increased transparency on the issues.
  
  
• 11th April 2011
  Solicitors Journal: Hit and Miss
  As the insurance industry vows to crack down on fraudulent car crash claims, John Spencer Director of Spencers Solicitors, considers what lawyers can learn from the latest High Court ruling.
  
  
• 7th April 2011
  Law Gazette: Responses to the Jackson consultation on civil costs
  Director of Spencers Solicitors and leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer discusses the Jackson consultation's impact on access to justice and the protection of clients.
  
  
• 29th March 2011
  Leading PI Solicitor: Ministry of Justice dodged the referral fees bullet
  Proposed reforms fail to tackle perverse commercial incentives in personal injury market
  
  Leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer has criticised today's proposed reforms to 'no-win, no-fee' legal action by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) as not going far enough. More specific, the changes fail to take action on the perverse commercial incentives known as referral fees.
  
  The reforms outlined today are in response to the comprehensive review of civil litigation costs undertaken by Lord Justice Jackson, completed in January 2010. In his report, Jackson recommended that referral fees be 'scrapped' because they 'offer no real value to the process' for claimants. According to Spencer, the MoJ’s failure at this juncture to tackle the issue of referral fees – the controversial charges paid by solicitors to insurers and others for obtaining personal injury cases – is a serious oversight, as it represents a major factor in the creation of the dysfunctional personal injury marketplace.
  
  Spencer, who is a Director of Spencers Solicitors, said: "The MoJ have disappointingly failed to simultaneously tackle the critical issue of referral fees. Many insurers and other organisations charge solicitors fees for introducing clients– essentially 'selling' accident victims to the highest bidder.
  
  "In his report, Lord Justice Jackson unfortunately ignored evidence that such insurer behaviour substantially increases costs. The MoJ proposals are guilty of the same oversight. I believe that a more comprehensive approach is needed to tackle a system which has resulted in a 'merry-go-round' of warped incentives and profiteering.
  
  "In the end, only a genuine industry-wide commitment to challenging deeply entrenched commercial interests and eliminating elements which add no value to claimants is the only real solution to guarantee access to justice and the protection of clients."
  
  
• 25th March 2011
  Budget announcement on PI market reforms not enough
  Government plans will continue to enrich insurers, don’t protect accident victims
  
  John Spencer, a leading personal injury solicitor and a director of Spencers Solicitors, is deeply concerned that the Government plans announced in the Budget will continue to enrich insurance companies at the cost of accident victims, whilst doing nothing to save the public purse:
  
  "Reform of referral fees and advertising is overdue, but the devil is in the detail of the Government's plans. The UK's personal injury market is clearly dysfunctional. However, the Government approach of restricting access to justice, particularly the most seriously injured accident victims, and diverting more money from them to insurers is wrong." "Instead we should focus on diverting money from insurers and other satellite personal injury businesses to the accident victim, and ensuring their proper representation in a professional and regulated environment."
  
  
• 23rd March 2011
  Leading personal injury solicitor urges reform of 'dysfunctional' personal injury market
  Perverse commercial incentives must be challenged
  
  Leading personal injury solicitor John Spencer has today called for fundamental reforms to the personal injury market designed to enforce transparency, ensure consumer protection and improve access to justice.
  
  Spencer’s comments follow the release of the House of Commons Transport Committee report on 11 March, scrutinising the reasons behind the rapidly escalating cost of motor insurance. The report urges greater transparency regarding referral fees - the controversial charges paid by solicitors to insurers and others for obtaining personal injury cases.
  
  However Spencer believes that a much more comprehensive approach is needed to tackle a system which has resulted in a 'merry-go-round' of warped incentives and profiteering. Spencer, who is a Director of Spencers Solicitors, said:
  
  "The time for a fundamental rethink has come. We must all admit that we now have a totally dysfunctional system. It has created a number of perverse commercial incentives and practices which infringe the rights of accident victims, and make many of us in the industry increasingly uncomfortable."
  
  "We have all played our part in allowing this system to continue. Now we all need to work together to ensure fundamental reform."
  
  Commenting on the Transport Committee’s report, Spencer said: "The Committee’s focus on transparency is laudable. It is the consumers’ right to know where their money is going. But solicitors and related parties are already bound by a code of conduct requiring transparency, which the Solicitors Regulation Authority has reported is breached by many firms. More rigorous policing and penalty structures must be created for transgressions and the FSA should oversee the activity and disclosure of referrals and associated commercial relationships by insurers."
  
  "In the end, a genuine industry-wide commitment to challenging deeply entrenched commercial interests and eliminating elements which add no value to claimants is the only real solution to guarantee access to justice and the protection of clients."
  
  

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