On 15 January 2021, the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee published the outcome of its inquiry into the issue of healthy ageing. The inquiry was first commissioned following recognition that, whilst lifespans in the UK have increased in recent times, the period for which people remain healthy has not kept pace. The result is an increased duration of ill health in later life, which then places an increased burden on public health services, not to mention the effect on individuals’ wellbeing.
Continue readingTag Archives: Catastrophic Injury
Swift v Carpenter: where we are now on calculating accommodation awards
The decision in Swift earlier in the month significantly changes how this head of loss is assessed in catastrophic injury cases. In the ten days since the judgment was delivered, there have been (virtual) acres of technical commentary and various on-line briefings have been held, including two that we facilitated and including our spreadsheet (attached at the end of this blog) which performs the new calculation.
The purpose of this blog is therefore neither to provide an in-depth analysis of the decision nor to offer a ‘how to’ guide to the new approach – however, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Andrew Hibbert or me if we can help with that – but rather to draw out core points, below, which have become a good deal clearer after considered reflection on the outcome.
Continue readingSupreme Court – recent permissions to appeal
The court’s decisions in January & February on applications for permission to appeal were published just before the Easter break. Only a few of the cases in which permission was granted touch on issues relevant to casualty insurance. The legal aspects of fatal accidents happening abroad, but pursued before the English courts, will once again be examined by the court, which has granted permission in the complicated case of Four Seasons v Brownlie.