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Elysa Alton v Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen [2024] EWCA Civ 1435 - Andrew Ratomski, Temple Garden Chambers

17/12/24. Date of judgment: 6 November 2024

Alton is an important decision for practitioners bringing and responding to claims arising from road traffic accidents where issues of indemnity, direct rights against insurers and foreign insurance companies arise. Powszechny Zaklad Ubezpieczen (“PZU”), the Appellant, a Polish insurance company, were unsuccessful in seeking to overturn HHJ Parker’s decision to set aside an order striking out the Claimant’s claim.

Facts

In September 2017 the Claimant, Ms Alton, was unfortunately involved in a road traffic accident on the M20 motorway after colliding with a lorry with a Polish number plate. The lorry’s driver was insured by the Appellant.

Procedural History

The Claimant brought a claim for personal injury and filed Particulars of Claim that alleged an InterEurope were the insurers and the Claimant had a direct right of action against them pursuant to the Third Party (Rights against Insurers) Act 2010 and European Communities (Rights Against Insurers) Regulations 2002 (“2002 Regulations”). Solicitors for InterEurope filed a Defence stating it was not the insurer of the lorry but merely a UK-based claims handler for PZU and invited the court to strike out the claim for that reason. Moreover it was pleaded that the vehicle was not normally based in the UK on account of its Polish registration plate.

Draft amended Particulars were then served seeking to substitute PZU as the Defendant followed by an application to substitute a party.

Importantly the Defendant’s strike out application was listed for a thirty minute hearing where the Claimant relied on a skeleton that sought to argue a direct cause of action existed against the insurer PZU and the issue could be cured by...

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