Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2016 to Question 47387, on general practitioners: insurance, (a) how and (b) for what reasons the behaviour of patients has changed in recent years.

Evidence suggests that patient behaviour in relation to litigation has undergone a number of changes in recent years. The medical defence organisations operating in England, and the NHS Litigation Authority all report an increase in the number of patients claiming compensation as a proportion of reported incidents, and also an increase in low value claims.

This increased likelihood to make a claim is a common trend across the insurance sector (for example the number of motor accidents is decreasing but the number of claims for injury in a motor accident is increasing). This may be due to greater awareness amongst patients of their legal rights and entitlements, or to the fact that claimants are now able to fund litigation through Conditional Fee Agreements or ‘no win no fee’ agreements. This is underpinned by After the Event (ATE) insurance which enables claimants to insure against the cost of being unsuccessful. ATE became widely available in 2008 and coincided with a significant rise in claims numbers.

There are also a growing numbers of claims companies entering the medical litigation market and advertising their services to patients. This market is notably more aggressive in England compared to other countries, and this could be a factor in the behaviour of patients who are making claims.

The increase in volume of claims has not corresponded with an increase in successful outcomes. The proportion of cases closed by medical defence organisations with no payment made to the claimant has increased from 70% to 80% in recent years.