NHS resolution continues trend of resolving more cases without need for litigation

NHS Resolution’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2023/24, showcases the organisation’s continued success in resolving claims without litigation through innovative dispute resolution methods and collaborative approaches, thereby enhancing patient safety and delivering significant benefits.

In alignment with NHS Resolution’s strategy to minimise court involvement, a record 81% of claims in England were resolved in 2023/24 without legal proceedings. This impressive statistic reflects a consistent trend over the past seven years and translates to over 10,800 claims being settled for patients and their families through various dispute resolution processes.

The report emphasises the impact of ‘upstream’ initiatives such as the Early Notification (EN) scheme, which facilitates quicker access to compensation for immediate needs. This proactive approach has been pivotal in addressing claims promptly and efficiently.

Helen Vernon, Chief Executive of NHS Resolution, commented: “Our commitment to resolving clinical claims without subjecting patients, families, and healthcare staff to distressing court proceedings has been reinforced this past year. Achieving an 81% resolution rate without litigation underscores our dedication to minimising formal legal actions. This success is attributed to our strengthened relationships with NHS partners and the legal market.”

In addition to dispute resolution, NHS Resolution has produced five insights papers and hosted various webinars and events, focusing on enhancing patient safety and improving dispute resolution practices.

The report highlights steady claim trends for 2023/24, with around half of the clinical claims closed resulting in compensation payments, similar to the previous year. This consistency demonstrates NHS Resolution’s commitment to fair and robust claim investigations, ensuring that damages are paid when warranted.

Financially, the overall value of damages for the most severely harmed patients has increased, as have claimant legal costs. However, there are positive indicators such as a reduction in damages inflation, leading to a decreased overall provision for clinical negligence.

In 2023/24, NHS Resolution paid out £2.8 billion for compensation and associated costs across its indemnity schemes, up from £2.64 billion in the previous year. Maternity-related payments accounted for 41%, or £1.15 billion, of this total, mirroring the percentage from 2022/23.

NHS Resolution's Practitioner Performance Advice service saw a 21% increase in new advice requests, driven by broader NHS challenges. This includes a significant demand for professional behaviour assessments, with a strong emphasis on patient safety. Additionally, the service's educational programs have exceeded income expectations, highlighting their value to the NHS.

The estimated ‘annual cost of harm’ for the Clinical Negligence Scheme for Trusts (CNST) was over £4.7 billion for 2023/24, down from £6.3 billion in the previous year. This decrease is primarily due to changes in HM Treasury discount rates, affecting the projected value of future claims.

The number of clinical claims resolved in 2023/24 was 13,382, slightly down from 13,552 in 2022/23. New clinical negligence claims and reported incidents increased to 13,784, up by 273 from the previous year.

The Clinical Negligence Scheme for General Practice (CNSGP) saw a 9% rise in claims, with 2,382 reported in 2023/24 compared to 2,180 in 2022/23.

NHS Resolution’s provision as of 31 March 2024 was £58.5 billion, down from £69.6 billion in 2022/23. This reduction is mainly attributed to changes in discount rates. Without these changes, the cost of harm for CNST for 2023/24 would have been £6.1 billion, slightly lower than the previous year’s figure of £6.3 billion.

The volume of non-clinical claims reported in 2023/24 (3,299) remained comparable to 2022/23 (3,136), though still lower than pre-pandemic levels.