The incoming president of Apil the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers challenged the Government to face up to its responsibilities for injured people.

Karl Tonks is reported to have said to delegates at the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers Conference recently that the legal system must ensure that compensation is delivered to those who need, deserve and are entitled to it.

Tonks is said to have highlighted that insurance companies can fight claims until the eve of a court case causing significant costs to be incurred in expenses for no good reason. He is also said to have pointed out that the same insurers pass on those wasted costs on to customers through higher premiums.

Tonks is reported to have called on the injured people to be seen as individuals rather than statistics and challenged the government to listen to people who have suffered injuries and whose family have died in tragic accidents or as a result of industrial diseases.