“Injured people who are forced to claim compensation to help rebuild their lives should never have been injured in the first place.”
– #RebuildingShatteredLives
Accidents happening that could have been completely prevented is perhaps one of the most infuriating aspects of personal injury law. An article from The Law Gazette examining needless injury shared a statement from Sam Elsby, the president of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers regarding his work with their annual ‘Injury Prevention’ campaign.
“We started Injury Prevention Day because we found that the government always focuses on the wrong thing when it looks at personal injury and legal reform. The arguments are never about preventing needless harm in the first place. Let’s be honest, the government’s work is often about restricting rights to redress after the harm has been done.” – Sam Elsby, APIL President
Every day needless injuries occur and APIL have worked hard to help bring injury prevention to the forefront. APIL’s website states in a press release that they have backed a call from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) for a UK-wide high-level injury prevention strategy called Better than Cure. A key part of that strategy would be the establishment of an injury prevention commissioner to co-ordinate different sectors and ensure Government action.
It goes on to state that the strategy should include ‘political leadership, involving stakeholders, creating cross-sector ownership, and determining mechanisms to ensure action and accountability.’
“Health is now top of the public agenda which means this is exactly the right time to examine the issue of needless injury and how it can be prevented. APIL’s vision is of a society without needless injury in the workplace, in our hospitals and on the roads,” he said. “This important research report must now be the catalyst for action.” – Mike Benner, APIL Chief Executive
There are a multitude of reasons why preventable injuries are still occurring, and Better than Cure have curated those reasons for their policy publication. Their website states:
“Crucially, injuries are preventable. Although the UK has been a world leader in injury prevention policy, austerity and a lack of strategy have hampered further improvement. In a post-pandemic society, the government should act on the renewed focus on public health to address the disconnect between the importance of injury prevention and its neglect in terms of funding, enforcement and strategy, to make the safety of the people the highest law.” – IPPR
For more information about Better than Cure: Injury Prevention Policy, visit their website to read their full report and publication.
