The Legal Services Commission has the responsibility for the monitoring and enforcement of the advertising restrictions contained in the Personal Injuries Proceedings Act 2002 (PIPA).
As part of that responsibility and in accordance with the Commission’s commitment to ensuring a level playing field for all practitioners, it has previously published to the profession a number of regulatory guides dealing with the advertising of personal injury services in various circumstances.
Since the publication of the guides most firms who provide personal injury services have made good efforts to ensure that their print advertising complies.
However, the number of firms successfully complying with the advertising restrictions on their internet websites has not been as good.
Further, new methods of advertising such as through social media and Google ads have come more and more into practice affecting the ability of firms and practitioners to comply with PIPA.
The Commission believes that it is an opportune time to remind practitioners of their obligations generally in respect of personal injury advertising and in respect of internet advertising specifically.
Copies of the PIPA regulatory guides previously put out by the Commission can be accessed from the Commission web site under Compliance.
It is recommended that you take the time to consider whether your existing print, website and other advertising is currently compliant.