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How long does an insurer have to reply to a compensation claim?

By Ian Morris | Updated September 14th, 2023

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Settling a claim as quickly as possible is hugely important to all our claimants, especially those suffering the stress of losing income whilst they can’t work. It’s less important to the defendant insurers who have to pay the settlement, and who are trying to minimise the amount paid. This often means claimants feel the insurer is stalling and taking longer than necessary to reply.

Insurer response times – ‘pre-action protocols’

It will not surprise you to learn that insurers are not always great at acting quickly and often drag their feet at every stage of the claims process. Of course, it is their job to minimise any settlements and pay out as little as possible, and it is our job, and that of our solicitors, to ensure that claims are settled quickly and to their maximum value.

The good news for claimants is that there are legal protocols in place designed to make sure that claims are processed in an expedient manner and help defendant insurers to investigate and settle claims quickly. These timeframes are called ‘pre-action protocols’ and they set a deadline for defendant insurers to respond to claims and carry out their investigations into allegations made against their insured.

The pre-action protocols allow maximum response times for defendant insurers. The times and guidelines can vary depending on the claim type. For example, road accident claims have different protocols to other personal injury claims.

Personal injury protocols

Time limits for personal injury claims allow a maximum response time that is effectively 3 months and 21 days from the date that a claimant’s solicitor has submitted a letter of claim. This usually plays out as follows:

Claimant solicitor submits a letter of claim to the third party outlining the specifics of the claim and why they are being held responsible.
A response to this must be provided to the claimant solicitor within 21 days.
At this point a defendant insurer has a period of 3 months to properly investigate the allegations made in the claim and then respond to the claimant solicitor.
After the 3 month period, the insurer’s reply has to state whether or not they admit liability. If there is a denial of liability, the response has to state disclosure evidence that details why they have not admitted liability and what their defence is.

In the rare case where an insurer fails to provide a response within the time allowed, a solicitor will go to the courts to progress the claim.

Road traffic accident protocols

Time limits for road traffic accident claim protocols allow a maximum response time of 15 working days. Such claims are run via the claims portal and work using this method:

Claimant solicitor submits a Claim Notification Form (CNF) to the insurers defending the claim. This notification has to provide all of the details and information that a defendant insurer will need to be able to fully investigate the claim and decide upon their view.

When a defendant insurer fails to respond within the 15 working day limit, the claim will then continue via the pre-action personal injury protocol, stated previously.

How long does it take to get compensation?

Every claimant wants to settle their claim as quickly as possible and move on from their injury. But to get to the point where a compensation claim can be settled involves evidence, expert opinions and investigations from insurers. It also requires clear communication between insurers, solicitors, claimants and occasionally the courts. All of this can take time.

Some claim types are known to settle more quickly than others. In cases where negligence is obvious and injuries and losses are not in dispute., and a defendant insurer has no reasonable option other than to make an admission of liability, a claim will settle more quickly.

Conversely, in a matter relating to a more complex claim where negligence isn’t so easily obvious, a claimant solicitor will have to make a strong argument to succeed and achieve an admission of liability. Here a claim will take longer to settle and could mean it takes a few years to receive compensation.

As you would expect with two opposing parties, there are many issues that can arise to slow things down. As each case is different, there is no way of knowing exactly how long it can take to receive compensation. However, what we can do is ensure our claimants aren’t waiting on us for their case to progress.

317 questions have been answered on this subject - ask us your question

Comments & Questions

Read on for questions and advice about claiming...

I was involved in RTA on 6th May this year. My solicitor sent a letter to the other drivers insurers on 22nd July. They have yet to reply. How long will we need to wait for them to respond?

As the Solicitors letter was sent at the end of July, you would anticipate a response arriving anytime now. In standard cases, a response would be expected within 90 working days of receipt of the letter.

I had a car accident in February 2020. Liability was finally admitted by third party insurer. They have offered a settlement figure which I have accepted. When my Solicitor sent them the bill for the physio I had they fell silent and would not respond. My Solicitor has now issued Court proceedings. This was a month ago. I wanted to know how long this will take to settle.

Once a settlement is agreed and signed as accepted by the claimant, settlement should follow within a relatively short space of time.

Compensation settlement agreed July 1st but insurer has not yet paid 12 weeks later instead of 2 weeks it is now in ‘reasonable time’. Solicitor says she is hassling them but blames pandemic

Although extremely frustrating for you, there have been difficulties to the way settlements are processed and your Solicitor will be chasing them repeatedly.

If there is no response on liability given in 3 months, can it go to court to enforce and is this expensive?

My daughter had a accident in 2019 a d the council have accepted liability. 2 weeks ago the Solicitor submitted the amount of compensation the medical expert assessed to cover all the treatment she will need for the next 15yrs . How long will it now take for the council to agree or disagree with the amount?

As liability is admitted, the work on the claim will now be focused on fully understanding the injuries and their long term consequences, future medical or rehabilitation needs and what costs or losses your Daughter and you as her family may incur as a result of her injuries. Much of this will have been accounted for within the medical experts report and the prognosis they have given. A Barrister will have considered the report and given guidance to the Solicitor regarding settlement valuation and the defendant will do the same. The defendant is likely to need 6-8 weeks to consider the claimed amount and is likely to make a lower counter offer and then a negotiation will start.

Hi! I am Deliveroo rider. Last night while on delivery a car in front of of me suddenly pulled into a a parking space on the other side of the road without indicating. I had to hit the brakes really hard and fell off onto my hand and broke my wrist. The police came to the scene and took statements from both sides but the driver does not admit any fault. My scooter was also damaged but the driver.s car was not touched as I managed to avoid it.
My main concern is that I cannot work anymore because the wrist fracture. What would you advise me to do? I have a third part insurance on my bike. Many thanks,
Alex

You should follow this up with the Police and see if they are willing to take any further action against the other driver. If they do, that would strengthen your claim for damages as the other driver would be seen to be the ‘at fault’ party.

As things stand, you could seek to make a claim but as neither party appears to be admitting fault, it could be seen as a 50/50 matter.

I was involved in a no-fault accident and received personal injuries in May 2018. My specialist personal injury solicitor at times leaves me wondering about their efficiency. At one time I was kept waiting for 3 months for an update. The last time I heard from them was 8 weeks ago. They say that they are waiting to hear back from the other side and that there is no set time for them to respond but 21 days is considered to be a reasonable period. It has now been 50 days.
I would welcome any comments.

Although your frustration is understandable, the cause of the delays/slowness is unlikely to be your Solicitor, but the system and framework in which we have to operate. The Government has previously favoured the insurance/defendant side of the process and created a system that favours their way of work and causes frustration and even desperation on the claimant side.

Your Solicitor cannot update you if there is no news to report and sadly, they – like you – have to wait months and months for responses. Bear in mind, that the Solicitor will not get paid if you don’t succeed and that the delays in the process hurt them as much as you.

Hi, I was knocked down by a car and made a claim against the driver, however after 8 months they have not admitted or denied responsibility, in fact they have not responded at all to my claim. Why would they do this, and how will it proceed?

Have you instructed a specialist personal injury Solicitor to act for you in your claim? If so, they will be able to advise you further and could seek to instigate court action to compel the defendant to cooperate.

If you have not instructed a Solicitor, you can call us for help on 01225430285. Our Solicitors would be happy to help you with this matter.

I submitted a personal injury claim for RSI in 2016, my solicitor has not progressed to court proceedings. I am worried that I will be time barred. What are the timescales for injury claims?

A claim for personal injury must be made within 3 years of the date of an injury or in the case of an RSI or industrial injury, 3 years from the date at which symptoms developed (date of knowledge). Whilst your claim started over 3 years ago, it may well have been protected by the actions of your Solicitor and you should of course discuss this with them.

Hi my solicitor has sent off a letter to the third party about the compensation I’m entitled to. They stated they have 21 days to reply but they haven’t got back within this time period. How long is the extension that my soclitor grants for them to reply before they take court proceedings?

Your Solicitor will allow the defendant a reasonable opportunity to respond before they take the matter to court. Whilst it is frustrating as a claimant to see a personal injury claim delayed due to non-cooperation from a defendant, it is important that your side acts reasonably. Therefore, your Solicitor will grant them the initial extension and perhaps one further one before they take the matter to court to compel the defendant to cooperate with you in this claim.

My solicitor submit my claim to third party on the 17th of May. The third party admitted liability as they rang me to deal with it without using my legal representative now there is no feedback from third party and all lines of communication have ceased

Have you informed your Solicitor that the defendant tried to settle the matter directly with you?

Hi, I had car accident in February other parties fault and they’ve accepted liability, I settled out and accepted the pre medical offer, however the other drives insurers aren’t responding or paying out. Is there a time limit on how long they have to pay out or a way I can sort this mess as my insurers/case handler isn’t much use?
Thanks

If you had a specialist Solicitor acting for you, they should be ensuring that the appropriate timescales are being adhered to with regards to settlement. As you may expect, things are a little slower than ‘normal’ at the moment and offices being closed etc, but notwithstanding such issues, it shouldn’t take too long for a payment to materialise.

Is there a time frame they should adhere to? It’s been over 12 weeks now with no communication at all seems a little long with 4 chasers sent out also?

12 weeks is a long time and could be explained – but I would have thought your Solicitor should now be threatening court.

I was involved in a motorcycle accident 2 years ago and my Solicitors received an offer from the defendant which was not acceptable and my solicitor returned with a counter offer. The other Solicitors have advised that they have a new offer but are waiting on the clients to agree it. I was told my solicitor that they have 21 days to respond and we are now on day 68, I have asked my solicitor to chase them up but they claim that the Company “do not take calls from other solicitors” so has been emailing them but not getting a response. Should I just instruct my solicitor to state Court proceedings as I am mindful that this could be a lengthy process?

It would be a sensible move to at least discuss the possibility of issuing proceedings with your Solicitor and seek their advice on whether that is now appropriate.

I am still waiting for the 3rd party to respond, with regards to liability. Accident was in June 2019, and I have had 2 MRI’s on a slipped disc of C3-C5 of my back, and have been on different types of pain medication ever since, along with numerous visits to A&E, and physiotherapy. My solicitor (No win no fee) first approached 3rd part insurers in December 2019, and till this date (28 May 2020), 3rd party have not responded. I was a passenger in the vehicle of the insured, when he caused an accident with a lorry. I have recordings of him admitting fault to a friend on the phone shortly after the accident, and also pictures of the damage caused to his vehicle. Any advice please?

Do you have a Solicitor acting for you in this matter? If not, please call us immediately on 01225430285 so that we can help you with your claim.

If you do have a Solicitor, please ensure that they have a copy of the recording you mention.

Hello…
I have accepted offer from my solicitor, physio is completed. The other driver had admitted liability. My solicitor has now sent my claim offer to the to other side and it says they have 21 days to respond. What happens after they respond?

Once the other side have responded, your Solicitor will be able to advise you as to whether the 3rd party have agreed with the settlement offer your Solicitor has made. Obviously, if they accept the offer, payment will follow – usually within 21 days. If they refuse to pay the suggested settlement, your Solicitor will liaise with you as to whether you should accept a lower offer (if that is felt reasonable), or if you should refuse to accept such an offer and take the matter to a court hearing so that an independent Judge can award the settlement for your claim.

Accident at work insurance admit liability it’s 2 years 20 month and still no compensation, solicitor not very good, sent all evidence to insurer 1 month ago, waiting for offer. My solicitor contacted them yesterday and they say they have backlog, if it goes over the 3 years will my claim be still valid?

You need to check with your Solicitor as to whether the claim has been issued and is therefore protected from the 3 year issue – in normal circumstances you should be fine in this scenario.

On the 8th of April 2017 I had an accident at work. I worked as a baggage handler at an airport in London. My case is still ongoing and it’s coming up to 3 years since the accident. I would like to know why the claim is taking so long? I am also still receiving treatment at the Hospital eye clinic to this day.

One of the reasons that your claim remains ongoing could well be the fact that you have not fully recovered and you continue to receive medical treatment. This issue could mean that the long term situation regarding your recovery is not fully understood. If a Solicitor does not know whether or not you will fully recover, they would not wish to settle your claim as the risk of agreeing an undervalued settlement would be high.

Another reason for the claim continuing to rumble on could be that a defendant hasn’t admitted liability. Do you know if they have admitted or denied liability?

Hi There,

If papers have been served on an insurance company, do they need to provide a defense within a certain time frame, or can they request an extension?

Defendants will work within a prescribed time frame – your Solicitor can advise you on those. However, a defendant can also request an extension should they need additional time to investigate anything. As long as any extension request is reasonable and the extended time requested is not excessive, a Solicitor and claimant should allow the extension.

Hi Ian,

I’d like to ask you two questions about delay in compensation payment. I had a road accident and had to undergo physiotherapy. The treatment was completed and my solicitor ( YourLaw) negotiated compensation. It was settled on 30. October last year. My solicitor emailed me that the Third Party Insurer had to issue the payment before 20. November. I was assured wouldn’t it have been paid by then, my solicitor would chase it. I didn’t receive any notification from the solicitor about a delay. I contacted them on 4 December and reported no money was paid into my account. The solicitor called me today and confirmed, they received the compensation. It’s been 2 months since the compensation should be paid. Is the insurer responsible to pay interest or pay a fee for not complying with the time frame? Because the Third Party insurer declined two offers and I settled for a lower amount, I wanted to invest it into an Investment ISA. I was able to open one using my available funds on 15 December. Can I claim the profit my funds would have returned, if I did receive the compensation on time?

Firstly, you need to establish whether the delay in you receiving your settlement was caused by the defendant delaying payment unduly or whether your Solicitor had received the funds but failed to pass them to you.

Whilst the delay you cite is clearly frustrating, it is unlikely to be seen as something for which you could seek further damages.

My partner had the worst luck in the space of 7 days. RTC and a head injury at work. This happened in January 2014! Still nothing has been settled. Should we be concerned and can we do something about their negligence on handling his claim?

Whilst many years have passed since the claim would have been commenced, it can be the case that such matters can take many years – especially if the severity of the injury sustained is substantial.

If you are not happy (or if you are concerned) you should discuss the concerns with the Solicitor acting for you. You can also complain to them should you feel it justifiable to do so.