Claimant solicitors have reacted with concern to government proposals to cap at £300 the fee for low-value road traffic claims handled through the RTA portal. The proposal emerged at roundtable discussions on the future of the portal with justice minister Jonathan Djanogly (pictured) last Thursday.

Djanogly was told that massive cuts to fees would increase the number of fraudulent claims, especially at a time when the maximum value of claims eligible for the portal is set to rise from £10,000 to £25,000.

Djanogly’s starting point, to reduce the fees cap from £1,200 to as little as £300, prompted widespread concern among attendees.

John Spencer, from Spencers Solicitors, said: ‘Stage two of the portal requires up to five-and-a-half hours of work. Once the costs of running a business properly are taken out, there is nothing left from £300.

‘If you shave costs to these rates people will cut corners or not apply a professional approach. This does nothing to cut spurious claims - indeed it can only spread the risk of fraud.’

The Ministry of Justice has insisted no figures have been finalised and it will listen to stakeholders before its consultation on the portal finishes in May.

But there are concerns among claimant lawyers that pressure from above - David Cameron used his first speech of 2012 to call for legal costs to be cut - will force reforms to be rushed through.

Labour peers in the House of Lords attempted to halve portal fees earlier this month through an amendment to the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders bill.

Djanogly wrote to stakeholders last month saying the government planned to revise costs, subject to the consultation.Government proposals to use the portal set-up for employer and public liability claims have also alarmed some lawyers.

Deborah Evans, chief executive of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, said there were significant differences between employer liability and RTA claims over liability, locating insurers and the complexity of medical reports.

‘Cases are diverse and liability is invariably denied, which means automatic exit from the portal,’ she said.If the portal approach is to be extended, she said, ‘sound evidence must be collected to establish what the work actually costs. The process will need to be mapped, costed and then bespoke portals created.’