CHO Contacts MOJ and CPRC Following Portal Delay

The CHO has requested a meeting with the Whiplash team at the MoJ to discuss the implications of the Justice Secretary’s announcement on Monday this week (11 January) that the new small claims portal, due to be launched in April this year, is to be delayed by a month.

The announcement came as a surprise to claimant and defendant sector alike, because there are still significant hurdles to be overcome before the portal is ready, not least that the rules governing the operation of the portal have yet to be agreed by the Civil Procedure Rule Committee (CPRC).

Although the MIB, which is responsible for building the portal, has done a lot of work on the project, without the rules, the portal will be a little bit like a radio without the internal wiring.

The CHO has also written to the CPRC, which is due to meet before the end of January, outlining its concerns about the impact of the portal process on vehicle related heads of claim. A copy of that letter is available in the members section of the website (log in required), alongside previous communication with the CPRC.

We will keep members full informed of progress on these issues, but if you have any questions, please contact matt.rowland@thecho.co.uk