Number of CILEX members working in PI drops 40%

There has been a significant decline in the number of firms and practitioners working in the personal injury (PI) sector over the last five years, with 40% fewer CILEX members working in the sector in 2024 than in 2019.

The figures were reported in a PI market briefing for the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), complied with IRN Legal Reports, using data from the Solicitors Regulation Authority, Bar Standards Board and CILEx Regulation. It found that the number of law firms which generated 50% or more of their turnover from PI shrunk from 723 in 2018/19 to 467 in 2023/24, a drop of 35%.

In 2024, just over 2,300 CILEX members were working in the PI sector, down from almost 4,000 in 2019. Barristers also saw a decline in numbers, with 1,200 representing a 17% reduction in the number of barristers who said that PI was their main area of practice between 2019 and 2023.

The APIL report said that “several factors, including market consolidation, government intervention and increased use of technology to process claims,” had contributed to the decline.

The total number of PI claims registered with the Compensation Recovery Unit fell again in 2023/24, with total registrations decreasing by 1.5%. Total claims volumes have now been falling year-on-year since 2018/19.

Motor-related cases dominated, representing 73% of all PI claims. The total number of motor claims is declining, down 5% when compared with the previous year. In contrast, all other claims categories – including clinical negligence, public liability, and employer liability – saw an increase in claims in 2023/24.

The APIL research identified several “justice gaps”, where injuries have increased in recent years, but claims have fallen, suggesting increasing numbers of injured victims are not going on to seek compensation.

The report highlighted the impact of the 2021 whiplash reforms that have seen a drop in motor accident claims at a time when road injuries are on the rise.

It also found a similar justice gap in the employer liability sector, with data showing that workplace injury and illness victims were now far less likely to claim compensation when compared to before the Covid pandemic. This was despite the fact that, in 2023/24, 736,000 workers suffered a work-related injury which resulted in over seven days of absence or became ill because of their work, 16% more than in 2018/19. Over the same period the number of employer liability claims fell by 50%.