Fast track costs awarded where mix of fast track and small claims made on one Claim form by multiple Claimants

Dilip v Paynes Dairies Ltd – Claim No A53YJ800 Leicester County Court [2015]

Court confirms it is appropriate for multiple RTA claims arising from the same accident to be included on one claim form and, where the claims are a mix of small claims and fast track claims, it is appropriate for the Claimants to recover Fast-Track costs in respect of all successful claims

In this case the court found that it was appropriate for three RTA claims to be included on one claim form and to be allocated to the Fast-Track even though only one claim was potentially a Fast-Track claim; the other two claims were small claims that settled for £550.00 each.

It was also decided that the appropriate Fast-Track cost consequences should follow in relation to all three claims.

The Claimants were a mother and two children. Their claims started off in the Road Traffic Accident Portal and the children’s claims were both low value. However, the Defendant put the Claimants to proof that they had actually been passengers in the vehicle at the time of the accident.

No offers to settle were made and so the claims exited the Portal. The Defendant challenged the Claimants’ decision to issue all of the claims on one claim form and also the Judge’s decision to award Fast-Track costs in respect of all three claims.

The Judge noted that the Defendant had not sought to settle the claims at an earlier stage and that the Claimants’ were entitled to use one claim form on the basis that if the mother and children had used three separate Claim forms they could have been criticised for duplicating the Court issue fees. Therefore, having allocated the claims to the Fast-Track the Court was entitled to award Fast-Track costs. A victory for common sense.