ACCIDENT victims who gain large sums in personal injury compensation are being left to fend for themselves with little or no advice on how to make their money last, it is feared.

All too often solicitors swiftly move onto new cases - instead of ensuring clients have adequate invest-ment advice in place to safeguard their compensation, warns a Bournemouth law firm.

"We say to them 'don't blow it, invest it'," said Andrew Isaacs of Bourne-mouth's Isaacs Partner-ship, which has a built up a large personal injury (PI) business.

"But there are clients that you see one or two years on and you see that their money has gone." Many accident victims who succeed in personal injury cases may be at a low ebb, despite winning their case - hampering their ability to invest wisely for the long term.

Many may be still suffering from the effects of their injuries. Some could be suffering from stress as a result of their long-running legal battle.

Others may simply never have had such a large lump sum and succumb to the temptation of minor spending sprees that soon mount up - draining vital capital.

PI law firms are being urged to forge closer links with investment professionals to help successful clients plan careful investments for their lifetime.

Anthony Wands, managing director of Lymington-based Thesis Asset Management, said people involved in personal injury cases should seek investment advice even before the final sum was awarded.

"I saw a case of a paraplegic au pair who was awarded £800,000 by a court - the money was spent by her father on cars and holiday homes.

"She is now in a poor situation, which has undone the vision of the court in making this award," said Mr Wands, a director of APCIMS, the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers.