Leeds Council pays out £4.5 MILLION in compensation for personal injury claims

The local authority received a total of 3,393 personal injury compensation claims from the years 2014/15 to 2018/19, according to figures obtained via a freedom of information request.

And around one third – 1,198 claims – were successful, the figures show.

The council also spent significant sums contesting the claims, although these have reduced dramatically in recent years.

Leeds City Council claims a number of reasons – including climate change – could explain the reducing number of payouts.

The statistics show a total of £4,504,870 across all five years, reducing each year from £1,352,726 paid out in 2014/15; to £262,207 paid out in 2018/19.

The authority said claims typically relate to accidents on roads, employee accidents in the workplace and injuries to schoolchildren.

Meanwhile, the council also spent £328,305 on legal costs contesting the claims. The legal costs fell dramatically from £104,568 in 2014/15 to just £6,254 in 2018/19.

A response from the authority claimed there may be “a number of factors” as to why the amount of claims has reduced.

It said: “The council has a very experienced and active health and safety team who will pinpoint areas of concern as and when they arise, giving advice to council services going forward which helps them to avoid a recurrence of hazardous situations.

“Recent legislation has reduced the amount of costs claimable for minor accidents so the numbers have fallen away as solicitors no longer make as much profit out of smaller claims.

“As climate changes, milder winters reduce the number of pothole claims. Finally, claimants have up to three years in which to lodge their claims so we may still receive claims for the more recent years.

On the figures around legal costs, the authority claimed it “works hard to ensure that claims are thoroughly investigated” by insurance and legal services.

It added: “If appropriate, we make every effort to robustly defend claims to weed out and discourage unmeritorious or fraudulent claims.

“Data on compensation claims is sent out to all council services on a quarterly basis with trends analysis so patterns can be identified and investigated.

“Legislation is also closely monitored so that the council can remain compliant with the law. Footway and roadway repairs are targeted to deal with the most dangerous defects. Where appropriate, the council will robustly defend claims that are fraudulent or without merit.”