Fees Lead To Drop In Employment Tribunal Cases

The introduction of claim fees has seen the number of employment tribunals against companies fall by more than a half, according to new figures. Since August this year people taking cases to tribunals have been charged £160 or £250 to begin claims, depending on how complicated they are and £230 or £950 if they go ahead. That month there were 7,448 claims instead of 24,782 in June and 17,153 in July, the Telegraph revealed. The initial charges were brought in to stop staff from making false claims, which cause firms to lose vital time and money. Many choose to make settlements instead. Some small businesses have gone bankrupt in the past even after they won tribunals because of high legal costs. The arbitration service Acas will begin an early conciliation drive from April, encouraging firms to make settlement decisions earlier and reduce the number of claims that make it to the tribunal stage. Our Employment team provides advice on the employment aspects of all major business decisions. For advice, contact a member of the team: call us on 08456 381381 or email employment@ibblaw.co.uk.