A GREAT grandmother today told how a no-win-no fee accident claims company took half her award in fees.

Accident victim Margaret Hart spoke after the Lancashire Evening Telegraph yesterday revealed that accident claim companies had been touting for business in waiting rooms at Blackburn Royal Infirmary and Burnley General.

Margaret, 74, of Pendle Drive, Blackburn, who has eight grandchildren and eight great grandchildren, fell when she was coming out of her flat in May 1999 and broke her wrist.

She said: "I was approached in the town centre and asked if I had been in an accident in the last couple of years.

"They told me I could win a substantial fee and that I was guaranteed all the money. So I filled in a form and went ahead with the claim.

"A few months later I received a letter and a girl phoned me, asking me not to show the letter to anyone like my doctor but to just sign the letter and send it back.

"My grandson is cross with me because I did not photocopy it and I can't remember what it said." She said she thought she would receive more than the £910 payment she received after the company had taken its fee -- half the award is not unusual for such firms.

Hospital bosses threatened to take legal action after people distributing leaflets were ejected from the buildings. Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans called for the Lord Chancellor to introduce legislation to regulate these companies.

A spokesman for the Lord Chancellor's office said that personal injuries companies were not self regulated by the Law Society like solicitors' business, and most had no professional code of conduct.

He said the government had considered forming a regulatory body in 1999 but had decided there was insufficient evidence that they were behaving badly.

Chris Allen, Trading Standards Officer for Blackburn said: "In Margaret's case the company hasn't gone back on its promise of "no-win-no-fee" because the case did win.

"People should always deal with a local company that is well known and never sign anything they are not sure of."