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Latest Press Releases Injury Claims |
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Scottish councils have spent over £10m settling compensation claims and correcting damage due to thousands of road crashes concerning rubbish trucks, gritters, snow ploughs and other council cars during the last 3 years, STV Reports can show. Figures got by STV Reports under Liberty of Info laws show council vehicles are mixed up in an average of almost fifteen smashes a day across the land - with local taxpayers left to foot the bill as insurance plan excesses for some councils are as high as £25,000 per crash. Taxpayers ' groups have entreated councils to do all they're able to to control the gigantic bills. Councils were asked to provide figures on the amount of crashes their cars were concerned in over the previous three years - as well as giving details on the quantity of money paid out on insurance excesses, repairs and settling compensation claims. In total, £10,284,529.61 was spent by Scotland's councils settling 16,268 road crash claims in that period - with £1,408,634.91 of that accounted for by Glasgow Town Council alone. One crash, concerning an automobile owned by Glasgow Town Council in 2007, could cost the authority £110,000 to put straight after an unrelated party made a massive compensation claim re an injury they allege they sustained. The council told STV Reports that they "do not believe" the money amount demanded is justified. The authority also guesses that it could be responsible for another £580,143.91 worth of compensation and repair payments - meaning their total payments could hit £2m. Fife Council had the largest outlay - paying out £1,913,401.96 over the 3 year period. The authority also disclosed that too much £25,000 per claim applies on their policy - meaning they should pay all costs below that level. Black ice North Ayrshire Council had to pay out £18,000 after one of their automobiles struck a bike rider on a roundabout - while another claim cost the council £14,598.98 after a gritting van hit black ice and bumped into bushes at the side of the road. Western Isles Council were forced to pay out £794.65 to mend a stone chip on a coach owned by the authority. The council also paid out £37,997.20 in 2008 after one of their minibuses slipped on ice and ploughed into a van. And East Dunbartonshire Council were made to pay out £1,536.17 to an unrelated party after an incident concerning a street sweeper. The total overall cost is probably going to be even higher across the land - as 8 of Scotland's 32 local authorities failed to supply the requested info. Avril Sweeney, Team Leader of risk Management at Fife Council, announced the £1,913,401.96 worth of pay-outs reflected a range of claim types. She revealed : "The total figure we gave covers a wide range of claims from a chip in a windscreen or damage to a vehicle from a pot hole to heavy events. This figure also accounts for the overall cost of each claim. This would include stuff like injury claim payments, legal costs and report charges. "a surplus of £25,000 isn't surprising for an organisation with a massive fleet of autos. This figure is in accordance with most other giant Scottish local authorities. "The council tenders for car insurance each 3 to 5 years, and obtains quotations for varied excess amount to make certain that the council obtains the most economically beneficial cover available." Unique A spokesperson for Glasgow Town Council recounted the local authority are "potentially unique" in the sense that they insure their autos themselves instead of going thru an insurer - meaning they don't need to pay premiums. He added : " Obviously , the security of our staff and of the broader public is of maximum seriousness nevertheless we've got an awfully important fleet and, over a period, accidents will unfortunately happen. "To put the size of payments into context nonetheless, we are presumably unique among Scottish local authorities in that our size makes it more cost efficient for us to self-insure. "this implies settlements are our only cost we don't sustain insurance charges over and above these figures." Matthew Elliot, Boss of the Taxpayers ' coalition, expounded : "It is very troubling that so much taxpayers ' money is being paid to compensation petitioners. " While some claims are unavoidable at, a lot of them can been evaded. With money tight following the recession, it's important that public bodies do all they are able to to minimize their compensation bill. |
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