Negligence claims against accountants 'rise'

07/04/2010

Written by Robert Bass

The number of UK negligence lawsuits being filed against accountants is on the rise, it has been reported.

Such news may highlight the importance of professional indemnity (PI) insurance, as the law firm Reynolds Porter Chamberlain made the discovery that 13 High Court law suits were brought against accountants in 2009.

However, Neil Pointon, chief executive of specialist insurance broker This is in comparison to the four cases which were filed over the course of the previous five years, the law firm found after examining Ministry of Justice figures.

Partner at the firm Jane Howard said: "What is still hard to tell is whether this sudden rise in claims will subside quickly or whether accountants will face a higher number of claims over the coming year."

She added that the sudden surge in professional negligence claims may be due to credit crunch-related cases now reaching the courts.

PI insurance can help to cover accountants in the event that their advice leads to clients making a claim against them, providing they have followed all the proper guidelines and regulation.

Elsewhere, Ian McIver, managing director of the Whitechurch Network, recently claimed in an article for Mortgage Strategy that PI cover is there to cover independent financial advisers and mortgage brokers in the event that their advice is wrong.

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