The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) attacked the insurance industry and the FSA over the practice known as third party capture.
It is a rapidly growing, controversial approach by insurers of approaching injured parties directly in order to settle the claim before a lawyer becomes involved.
The technique is used in order to speed up the claims settlement process and cut out costly legal actions and keep down claimant lawyers costs.
Claims by the APIL president, Amanda Stevens infers that insurers attempt to bully claimants into accepting lower compensation than they should be entitled to and that the FSA (Financial Services Authority) is not taking action against this activity.
Insurers insist that they deal fairly with the injured party and that the compensation offered is fair.
The FSA began an investigation into third party capture at the end of 2007, calling for evidence of bad practice from claimant lawyers and trade unions but has not, as yet, publish any findings.
With the economic downturn taking a real hold, the arguments around third party capture is set to intensify with the practice likely to become more prevalent with insurers looking to reduce the cost of claims by offering speedy settlements, and legal costs.