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Government to scrap most H&S inspections
The Government has announced that over 3,000 regulations will be scrapped or overhauled in a plan by the Government to curb red tape and boost British business growth. From April 2013, the Government intends to introduce binding new rules on the..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Personal Injury Trust set up by claimant
A man who received in excess of £500,000 in a compensation settlement has appointed Fentons Solicitors to act as a professional trustee to help safeguard his award.
The man initially instructed Fentons to act on his behalf after he was..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£16,500 in compensation for footballer’s leg injury
An amateur footballer who needed surgery on his leg when he was brought to the ground by a two-footed tackle from the opposing goalkeeper in a league match has received £16,500 in compensation. He needed three operations on his leg, which was..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Ranking of US state legal climates
Lawyers for U.S. companies say California, Illinois and West Virginia have some of the worst legal climates in the country for businesses, according to a new survey, “Lawsuit Climate 2012: Ranking the States,” by the U.S. Chamber..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
EC criticised over lack of nanomaterial action
The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) has criticised the European Commission which it said had disregarded calls from the European Parliament, consumer groups and environmental NGOs to force nanomaterial producers to be transparent about the..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Union research reveals cuts at the Health and Safety Executive
Research by union Prospect has unearthed deep cuts to ill-health prevention at the Health and Safety Executive. Prospect’s research shows for the first time that there are now only three occupational physicians left in HSE and 18 occupational..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
QBE to work with online H&S management system
QBE European Operations has announced an exclusive arrangement in the UK market with Riskex Limited. Under the arrangement Riskex will provide QBE’s casualty clients with access to AssessNET, its online Health and Safety Management System...
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Marine Accident Investigation Branch releases annual report
Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has released its Annual Report for 2011, which reveals that there was a wide variety of accidents to merchant vessels investigated during 2011, but for the second year in succession there were no UK..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
UK pilots slate new EU pilot fatigue rules
The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has publishes its final “opinion” on new EU pilot fatigue rules which will replace the UK’s domestic standards.
Jim McAuslan, General Secretary of pilots’ union, BALPA, said,..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£44,000 settlement for loss of middle finger
A woman who severed the end of her middle finger in an accident at work has received more than £44,000 in an out of court settlement. The woman, a frozen-food factory worker, was helping a colleague fix a blocked packaging machine. She..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£30,000 in compensation for occupational asthma
A man who developed occupational asthma after he was exposed to harmful chemicals during the course of his previous employment has received £30,000 in an out of court settlement. The man, an assembly line operator for a car-parts factory, was..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Marine market conditions good for buyers says Marsh
Marine insurance market conditions remain generally favourable to buyers despite a succession of natural catastrophes and other significant losses since the beginning of 2011, according to a report published by Marsh.
The Japan earthquake and..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Stirling University research into H&S enforcement in Scotland
The effective enforcement of environmental and workplace health standards in Scotland is being undermined by cost-cutting measures packaged as recession-busting cost-benefit calculations, a new independent report has concluded.
The report,..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£1.3 million damages for undiagnosed tumour
A woman has been granted damages totalling £1.3 million after she took legal action against an NHS Trust. She sued the organisation because a tumour that went undiagnosed, despite the fact she underwent hospital treatment, resulted in her..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£62,000 settlement for unintended termination of pregnancy
A woman who suffered the unintended termination of pregnancy during a hysterectomy, has been awarded a £62,000 settlement. She was admitted to the hospital for a hysterectomy operation. It was noted by the consultant performing surgery that her..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
New research: Job strain as a risk factor for heart disease
Researchers from University College London have examined the issue of workplace stress and heart disease. In a paper entitled “Job strain as a risk factor for coronary heart disease: a collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£28,000 damages for knee injury
A man who was injured during a football match has received £28,000 in compensation. He was playing a football on a wooden pitch at a leisure centre when he fell and caught his knee on a trap door area. The latch of the trap door was missing..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Debate on setting the personal injury discount rate
Kennedy’s recently hosted a debate into how the personal injury discount rate should be set, in response to the Ministry of Justice’s consultation into the methodology used by the Lord Chancellor in setting the discount rate for personal..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Statutory burden of proof in employment tribunal discrimination claim
In considering a claim for discrimination in the employment tribunal, the statutory burden of proof provisions only required careful attention where there was room for doubt as to the facts necessary to establish discrimination.
The Supreme Court so..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
RSA launches new Protection & Indemnity product
Protection & Indemnity start-up Lodestar Marine and marine insurer RSA have announced a new Fixed Premium P&I venture. RSA will supply capacity up to $100 million for Lodestar, in a deal that will allow Lodestar to begin quoting business..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£34,000 in damages for unfair dismissal
Compensation has been awarded to an art teacher who took legal action against her former school on the grounds of unfair dismissal. She alleged that she lost her job purely because bosses found out she was pregnant and an initial employment tribunal..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£300,000 in compensation for road death
The parents of a foreign student who was killed when he was knocked down in the UK have received more than £300,000 in compensation.
Their lawyer, from Fentons, explained that the family’s culture held firm to the principle of filial..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£5,000 in compensation for dermatitis
A factory worker who developed painful dermatitis after he was exposed to harmful materials at work has received £5,000 in compensation. He was exposed to epoxy resins during his work. He first showed symptoms of dermatitis in May 2005 after..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£10,000 in damages for occupational tinnitus
A man who was exposed to dangerous levels of noise by his former employer has received £10,000 in damages after developing occupational tinnitus and hearing loss.
His hearing became damaged while working for a vehicle body building firm. His..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£50,000 compensation for crush accident
A man who was crushed by a fork-lift truck in an accident at work has received £50,000 in an out of court settlement. His colleague was driving a fork-lift truck and instead of reversing, he accidentally accelerated forwards into the man and..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
HSE consultation on self-employed exemption
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has opened a three-month consultation on proposals to exempt self-employed people whose work activities pose no potential risk of harm to others from health and safety law. The Löfstedt review recommended..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£2,000 for trip over pot hole
A woman who badly damaged her leg after a pot hole caused her to fall on top of a trolley full of supplies has been awarded £2,000. She was left suffering from severe bruising to her left leg after the accident. She was pushing a trolley from..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£1 million damages for meningitis misdiagnosis
Clinical negligence compensation of more than £1 million has been awarded after doctors failed to diagnose a boy with meningitis. Despite the fact the child was unwell for almost a week, doctors failed to spot the fact he had meningitis quickly..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£20,000 settlement for severed thumb tip
A carpenter who severed the tip of his right thumb whilst using a wood planing machine in an accident at work has received £20,000 in an out of court settlement. He was using the machine to smooth a length of wood, when the board unexpectedly..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Stress taking its toll on finance workers
Nearly one in five (18%) of professionals in the finance and accountancy sector have admitted making a mistake at work because of tiredness or stress, according to Randstad, the UK sector specialist recruiter.
In a survey of over 2,000 British..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£20,000 out of court settlement over ice slip
A grandmother who tore the tendons in her right shoulder when she slipped and fell on a patch of ice in her staff car park has received £20,000 in an out of court settlement. As she stepped out of her car she slipped on the icy tarmac and fell..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Scottish MP introduces draft apology legislation
An MSP has introduced a draft Apologies (Scotland) Bill, a proposal for a bill “to provide that an expression of apology does not amount to an admission of liability and is inadmissible as evidence, for the purposes of certain legal..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
£100,000 compensation for RTA spine damage
A nursing assistant who suffered long term spine damage after a car accident has received £100,000 compensation. He suffered a lower spine injury which needed surgery. Due to nerve damage in his spine he has been left with a number of health..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
US survey reveals bullying at work on increase
A US study has found that the number of workers encountering bullies at the office is on the rise. The study by US firm CareerBuilder found that 35% of workers said they have felt bullied at work, up from 27% last year. It found that 16% of these..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Beazley in PI partnership with Evolution Underwriting
Beazley has entered into an agreement with insurance services group Evolution Underwriting to provide Evolution’s broker panel exclusive access to Beazley capacity for UK based professional indemnity risks with fee income of less than £35..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Reported road casualties in Great Britain for 2011
The Department of Transport has released “Reported Road Casualties in Great Britain: 2011 Annual Report” which has found that in 2011, there were a total of 203,950 casualties of all severities in road accidents reported to the police,..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
The Ig Noble art of pointless research
The Ig Noble Awards are with us again, and as usual there were some cracking winners. The Awards are presented to academics involved in apparently pointless and absurd research, something that the insurance industry is, of course, well noted for...
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Limits through the Crisis - Marsh’s Liability Insurance Buyers Report 2012 (EMEA)
The report analyses the buying patterns of liability insurance buyers of more than 2,000 companies across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) from October 2008 through June 2012. Its key findings are:
The average liability limit purchased..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Marsh’s Liability Insurance Buyers Report 2012
Companies across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) are buying higher levels of liability insurance as fears increase over possible claims during the economic downturn, according to Marsh. Heightened demand, coupled with competitive pricing,..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
APIL survey into whiplash injuries
The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) has said that figures from the Department of Work and Pension’s Compensation Recovery Unit show that whiplash claims dropped by 24,000 in the last year. APIL also commissioned an independent..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
CIPD on Government’s dismissal proposals
The Government’s decision to put Adrian Beecroft’s controversial proposals for no-fault dismissal on the policy bonfire has been warmly welcomed by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). However, as the government..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Government drops proposal for compensated no fault dismissal
Business Secretary Vince Cable has announced that the Government will not be taking forward the proposal for compensated no fault dismissal for micro-firms, based on the evidence presented by business.
The announcement was made as Cable revealed..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
SRA collects comments on ban on referral fees discussion paper
The Solicitors Regulation Authority is collating all the comments received in response to its discussion paper on the forthcoming ban on referral fees in personal injury cases. The ban comes into force in April 2013, introduced as part of the Legal..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Airmic backs Law Commission over disclosure rules
Airmic, the UK-based association for risk managers, has given its strong backing to Law Commission plans to reform the legal framework covering commercial insurance. And a survey of Airmic members has found overwhelming support for the..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
JLT Specialty launches Buyers’ Guide to Solicitors’ PI
JLT Specialty Limited (JLT) has launched its Buyers’ Guide to Solicitors’ PI, which aims to demystify the professional indemnity (PI) insurance process for smaller law firms. The five step guide covers risk assessment criteria, the..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Guy Carpenter report on European legislative developments
Guy Carpenter & Company has issued its semi-annual analysis of key European legislative developments affecting the casualty insurance industry. Produced in collaboration with law firm Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek and its network of legal..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
The Development, by stealth, of Environmental Liability and Insurance in the UK since 1990
By Peter Hill, AXA Corporate Solutions UK
For very many years public liability policies in the UK had no restrictions on the extent of cover for pollution accidents. During the 1970s and 80’s however, developments in the USA led to increasing..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
ABI warning on bogus personal injury claims
Bogus personal injury claims are behind the record rise in motor insurance frauds now being uncovered, according to the latest figures from the ABI. According to the ABI, every week insurers are uncovering 865 dishonest motor insurance claims, worth..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
OFT refers motor insurance market to Competition Commission
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has referred the UK’s private motor insurance market to the Competition Commission for further investigation amid concerns that the market is not working well for motorists. The OFT provisionally decided to..
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11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
DUAL announces new capacity providers
Liberty and Barbican has joined Arch, Hiscox and MSIG as capacity providers for DUAL International’s global financial lines portfolio.
Damien Coates, CEO of DUAL International, said, “This is an extremely important strategic step for..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
Claims Management Regulator consultation launched
The Claims Management Regulator (CMR) has launched a consultation which proposes, amongst other things, to end verbal contract arrangements between consumers and Claims Management Companies (CMCs) and enforcing a written contract before any fee can..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012
SRA on final year of Assigned Risks Pool
Applications from solicitors firms looking to enter the Assigned Risks Pool (ARP) remain low for what is the final year of the “insurer of last resort,” the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has reported.
The ARP provides..
Online Published Date:
11 October 2012
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266 - 11 October 2012