ATE Insurance Providers in the UK: How the Market Works

At a glance

• What ATE insurance is: a contract of insurance taken out after a dispute or cause of action has already arisen, to cover the risk of paying the opponent's costs — and often your own disbursements — if the claim fails.
• Premium recoverability: generally not recoverable from the losing opponent since 1 April 2013, following section 46 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO), which repealed section 29 of the Access to Justice Act 1999.
• Main exception: certain clinical negligence claims, where the part of the premium covering expert reports on liability or causation can remain recoverable under the Recovery of Costs Insurance Premiums in Clinical Negligence Proceedings (No. 2) Regulations 2013.
• Who writes this cover: established legal expenses insurers, managing general agents (MGAs), and Lloyd's syndicates — not a small, fixed panel, and this guide does not rank or recommend any of them.
• How it's usually arranged: typically placed by the acting solicitor or a specialist broker, following a merits assessment — rarely bought directly off the shelf by a claimant.
• How it interacts with QOCS: Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting (CPR 44.13–44.17) reduces, but does not remove, the case for ATE in personal injury claims — QOCS has exceptions and does not cover disbursement risk.
• Regulatory status: ATE policies are contracts of insurance; firms carrying on the regulated activity of effecting or carrying out such contracts in the UK generally need FCA/PRA authorisation, checkable on the FCA's Financial Services Register.

What ATE insurance is, and how the market is structured

ATE insurance is a policy taken out after a legal dispute has already arisen, to cover the risk of having to pay the opponent's legal costs — and, in many policies, your own disbursements — if the claim is unsuccessful. It is most associated with personal injury and clinical negligence work, but it is also used in commercial disputes, professional negligence claims, inheritance disputes, and group actions.

The UK market for this cover is not a small handful of household names. It includes long-established legal expenses insurers, managing general agents (MGAs) that underwrite on behalf of insurers, and Lloyd's syndicates that write bespoke terms for larger or more unusual commercial risks. Organisations that operate in this space and are sometimes mentioned in the litigation-funding market include ARAG UK, DAS, Allianz Legal Protection, Temple Legal Protection, AmTrust, and Box Legal — named here as factual examples of the type of provider active in this market, not as a ranked or recommended list, and not an exhaustive one. Some focus on volume personal injury work, others specialise in commercial, professional negligence, or clinical negligence claims. This guide does not endorse, rate, or compare specific insurers — its purpose is to explain how the product and the market work, so that whoever you approach, you know what questions to ask.

Because a policy is arranged after the dispute has started, insurers look closely at the merits of the case, the evidence, and the likely recoverable costs before agreeing terms. ATE is never truly off the shelf: each policy is shaped by the case it attaches to, and pricing reflects the insurer's own view of the litigation risk.

The legal framework that shapes ATE pricing

Two changes in the law explain why the modern ATE market looks the way it does, and why premiums are structured the way they are.

Premium recoverability changed in 2013

Before 1 April 2013, a winning party could generally recover the cost of their ATE premium from the losing opponent, under section 29 of the Access to Justice Act 1999. Section 46 of LASPO repealed that section and inserted new section 58C into the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, which restricts recovery of ATE premiums through a costs order unless regulations specifically permit it. The practical effect from 1 April 2013 onward is that, in most civil litigation, the ATE premium is a cost the insured party bears themselves — win or lose, depending on how the policy defers payment — rather than a cost passed on to the losing side.

A narrow exception survives for clinical negligence claims. Under the Recovery of Costs Insurance Premiums in Clinical Negligence Proceedings (No. 2) Regulations 2013, the part of an ATE premium that relates to the cost of an expert report on liability or causation can still be included in a costs order in a clinical negligence case, subject to the conditions in the Regulations. Other narrow exceptions exist outside clinical negligence (for example, in publication and privacy proceedings), but they do not apply to the general run of civil disputes.

This change is the single biggest reason ATE premiums today are commonly deferred or staged rather than charged up front — insurers price the product knowing the client, not the losing opponent, will usually bear the cost if the case succeeds.

QOCS reduces, but does not remove, the need for ATE in personal injury claims

For personal injury claims (and related fatal accident and estate claims), Qualified One-Way Costs Shifting — CPR rules 44.13 to 44.17 — generally protects a losing claimant from having to pay the defendant's costs. Enforcement of a costs order against the claimant is restricted unless an exception applies.

QOCS is not absolute. Under CPR 44.15, a costs order against the claimant can be enforced in full, without the court's permission, where the claim was struck out for disclosing no reasonable grounds, was an abuse of process, or involved conduct likely to obstruct the just disposal of proceedings. Under CPR 44.16, permission can be given to enforce in full where a claim is found, on the balance of probabilities, to be fundamentally dishonest, or in certain mixed claims brought partly for someone else's benefit. QOCS also does not, of itself, protect the claimant's own disbursements — court fees, expert fees, and similar costs — if the claim fails.

Because of these gaps, ATE remains widely used even in QOCS-protected personal injury claims, typically to cover disbursement risk and the fundamental-dishonesty and abuse-of-process exceptions, rather than to duplicate protection QOCS already provides.

How ATE relates to CFAs and DBAs

ATE is usually a companion product to a funding arrangement, not a substitute for one. A Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), enforceable under section 58 of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, lets a solicitor's fees become payable only in specified circumstances — commonly success — often with an uplift (success fee) if the case wins. A Damages-Based Agreement (DBA), governed by the Damages-Based Agreements Regulations 2013, instead lets the solicitor take an agreed percentage of damages recovered, capped by the Regulations (for example, a cap tied to certain damages heads in personal injury claims, and a 50% cap in most other civil claims). Neither arrangement covers the risk of paying the opponent's costs if the case is lost — that gap is what ATE is designed to fill, which is why the two are so often taken out together.

How ATE premiums are typically structured

There is no standard rate card for ATE insurance — pricing is case-specific and depends on the insurer's own assessment of the risk. That said, a few structural features are common across the market:

1. Staged premiums. Many policies increase the premium at defined stages of the case (for example, on issue of proceedings, or on setting a trial date), reflecting the rising costs exposure as the case progresses.
2. Deferred and contingent premiums. It is common for all or part of the premium to be deferred, and payable only if the case succeeds — which somewhat offsets the loss of general recoverability from the losing side described above.
3. Cover limits set to the exposure. Limits are set with reference to the likely adverse costs and disbursements in the specific case, from a few thousand pounds for small claims to six or seven figures for substantial commercial disputes.
4. Underwriting from case documents. Insurers generally price from a merits assessment, the pleadings or letter of claim, and a costs estimate or budget — which is why ATE is normally placed through a solicitor or broker rather than bought directly.

What to check before taking out an ATE policy

1. Work out whether ATE is actually needed. Consider the size of the potential adverse costs, whether QOCS or existing Before the Event (BTE) cover already provides protection, and whether a CFA or DBA is already in place. ATE fills the gaps those arrangements leave, rather than duplicating them.
2. Prepare your case documents before approaching insurers. A clear letter of claim or pleadings, a solicitor's merits assessment, a costs estimate, and key evidence all help insurers price the risk accurately. Weak or rushed submissions tend to attract higher premiums or declinature.
3. Compare structure, not just headline price. Staged pricing, deferred payment terms, cover limits, and exclusions differ meaningfully between insurers and policies. A broker who places ATE regularly, or your solicitor, can help you compare like with like.
4. Read the policy wording, not just the schedule. Pay particular attention to conditions on reasonable prospects of success, reporting duties, what happens if you reject a Part 36 offer, and the circumstances in which the insurer can avoid or cancel cover.
5. Confirm the insurer's regulatory status. Because ATE is a contract of insurance, check the firm on the FCA's Financial Services Register before proceeding, and ask your solicitor or broker to confirm who is underwriting the risk if a policy is placed through an MGA.
6. Keep the insurer informed as the case develops. ATE is not a fire-and-forget product. Material changes to prospects, new evidence, settlement offers, and cost overruns typically need to be reported. Failure to notify on time is one of the most common reasons cover is withdrawn.

This guide provides general information about how the After-the-Event insurance market works in England and Wales. It is not legal advice, is not a recommendation to buy any product or use any named insurer, and is not a substitute for advice tailored to your specific circumstances. Always confirm current terms, pricing, and regulatory status directly with the insurer or your broker, and check GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk for the current text of any legislation referred to here.

Last reviewed: July 2026 by a non-practising solicitor · Next review due: July 2027 or on legislative change.