UK Personal Injury Market Report 2024

The ninth annual edition of the report provides a review of the UK personal injury market, looking at the market structure, key issues and new developments, market size and trends, the key players, future market developments. 

The personal injury (PI) market was valued £4.29bn in 2023, a small revenue increase of 3.8% on the previous year. 

Any sustained recovery in the PI market still seems a long way off given that total claims numbers continue to fall and fixed fees weaken margins. There is now a clear market split into those low-value claims, predominantly RTA claims, that are being dealt with via high-volume, low-margin processes dealt with quickly, and higher value claims where margins are better but cases can be prolonged often taking years. Many of the former claims are not being run by legal professionals and rely heavily on IT solutions to complete. Some providers working in the latter sector can wait years to receive payment with a clear impact on cashflow. 

Some of the leading brands operate in both market segments but just as many have moved away from small claims. Many law firms have been leaving the PI market since 2021 and consolidation in the sector continues with more firms selling off their PI work in progress (WIP) books to other firms. M&A activity remains a feature of the market.     

Some key statistics: 

• In terms of numbers, road traffic accident (RTA) claims dominate the PI landscape accounting for 73% of all claims made in the latest year although RTA claims numbers continue to fall year-on-year.  
• Over the last decade, claims registered at the Compensation Recovery Unit (CRU) have fallen by more than half from over 988,000 in 2014/25 to only 477,420 in 2023/24.  
• Motor-related cases dominate with 348,806 claims registered in 2023/24 but there was a 5.1% decline in claims from the previous year when 367,535 claims were registered. 
• Numbers in all other claims categories increased in 2023/24: public liability claims reached 58,933 from 53,403 a year earlier; employment liability claims totaled 44,547 from 43,728 in 2022/23; Clinical negligence (CN) claims registered were 15,839 increasing from 14,443 in the previous year.    
• Total settlements recorded by the CRU increased to 548,843 in 2023/24 from 542,457 in the previous year. All claims categories experienced increases except employer liability claims. Motor claims settlements accounted for 75% of all settlements.    
• The number of PI claims going to court has been falling every year since 2017 but they recorded their largest decrease in 2023 at 25%. PI court cases started numbered 61,210 in 2023 compared to 81,481 in 2022

This report looks at the market structure, recent developments and market drivers, the key players, the market size, trends, and forecasts.