31 Jul
2017

ABTA statement on the Lord Justice Jackson Review

ABTA welcomes today’s publication of the Lord Justice Jackson Review, which recommends that holiday sickness claims should be included in the Fixed Recoverable Costs (FRC) regime, and should be treated in a similar way to whiplash claims.  This is very good news for the travel industry and for holidaymakers, and follows months of work by ABTA and its Members with the Ministry of Justice, asking that they close the claims loophole that has enabled unscrupulous claims companies and legal firms to target travel companies. The Justice Secretary, David Lidington, announced the Government’s plans to amend existing laws in this area on 9 July, and Lord Justice Jackson has today recognised the merits of this approach. We now look forward to the Ministry of Justice launching a Call for Evidence on the inclusion of holiday sickness claims in the FRC, expected in August. ABTA encourages the travel industry and our partners to engage with this process. Once the Call for Evidence has been completed, it is essential that the necessary amendments should be brought forward as soon as possible.