Sir,

If a local authority has reason to believe a personal injury claim has no merit, then it should defend it. The law has systems in place to protect councils if they want to use them. And as the representative from Croydon council explained (£43,000 payout for playground splinter 27 November, page 11) negligence and liability are established before a claim is successful. You cannot claim for any unforeseen accident.

It should not be too difficult to understand that a child should be able to enjoy a PE lesson without being struck by a javelin. A one-sentence anecdote about a needless injury leaves out all of the crucial detail, the pain, treatment, and consequences. What is really needed is the promotion of a greater understanding of the difference between a mishap and negligence, and a clampdown on allowing damaging myths about personal injury to generate.

Brett Dixon

President

Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL)