Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002
The Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 responded to suggestions that some lawyers were 'ambulance chasing' by prohibiting touting at the scene of accidents and imposing restrictions on the advertising of personal injury services - restrictions both on what advertisements can say and where and how they can be published. The Legal Services Commission became responsible for enforcing these sections of the Act by amendments that came into effect on 29 May 2006.
The Commission has since published guidelines which describe our approach:
- A Guide to Advertising Personal Injury Services
- A Guide to Advertising Personal Injury Services on the Internet
The Commissioner has also published an interactive on-line tool illustrating the restrictions on the advertising of personal injury services on the internet by reference to two fictitious law firm websites, one of them compliant and the other non-compliant (see Website comparer on this page).