Car insurance specialist LV has been fighting hard to get a claims case looked at by the Supreme Court – more details and a brief summary of case can be found here: https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/docs/uksc-2017-0115-press-summary.pdf
Martin Milliner, LV= GI Claims Director, said: “We’re extremely pleased that common sense has prevailed today and the Supreme Court has allowed our appeal. Although the case in question was a low value motor claim, the claimant’s arguments sought to drive a coach and horses through UK law. If this blatant attack on the MIB Untraced Drivers Agreement had been successful then it would have created a ”fraudsters charter” that could have been abused by criminals for a safe passage through the judicial system.
“Even at this stage it’s unclear why this case got so far, when the claimant could have utilised the mechanisms already in place to recoup losses after a unknown driver incident. We can only speculate as to why.
“The concept that insurers could have been liable to satisfy judgments against unidentified defendants, without an opportunity to investigate the claim, could have had grave consequences for the industry and its customers.”
Damian Ward, Keoghs Partner and Director of Counter Fraud, said: “It is long-established that the victim of an untraced driver in the UK has protection in the various forms of the Untraced Drivers Agreement. This novel but ultimately unsuccessful attack on this well- established and well-functioning position was dismissed not only twice prior to the split decision of the Court of Appeal but then unanimously by the Supreme Court.
“I am enormously pleased that LV= took the decision to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision and that what would have presented as an open goal to fraudsters has been instead determined as a rejection of the challenge to the existing compensation framework for victims of untraced drivers in RTA cases, and of the UK’s failure to lawfully implement the Sixth EC Motor Insurance Directive.”
Be the first to comment