[Kms2023]

Hi all not sure if anyone can help or has had anything similar
back in 2018 a named driver on my policy was involved in a non fault accident cyclist didn’t stop and was hit - police was on scene and all was dealt with
i received a call a few weeks back to say they are now trying to claim for personal injury as it’s a child they are able to do this.
Now what I didn’t realise is I didn’t change the named driver to full license after they passed their test and was still under as provisional on the insurance policy
this was neither flagged by police on scene or the insurance company when I informed them of the accident
will this now make the policy void and how does this sit with the named driver will this now lead to a driving conviction this late down the line
honest mistake which was mine and not the named driver
any help would he appreciated

[TC1474]

The status of the driver should have no bearing providing the individual was driving legally and in accordance with their licence, and in fact that the person was by the time of the crash a full licence holder rather than a provisional should work in their favour and would have been picked up by the Police (as well as the insurers at the time) if there had been anything untowards

The real issue is in regards of the claim for personal injury.

In personal injury law (in fact in all civil law) there is what is called a statute of limitation.

What this means is that in personal injury cases, the claimant has 3 years from date of injury or date of knowledge (whichever is the sooner) to issue proceedings against the third party.

The exception to this rule is for those who are incapable of looking after their own affairs (for example someone who has suffered a brain injury) or a person under the age of 18.

Obviously in this case the potential claimant is under 18 and the litigation friend is commencing proceedings.

However...... This raises a red flag. If the injury/crash occurred in 2018, why is it only now, 6 years later that a claim has been commenced, or have the insurers failed to mention that this claim has been ongoing for some time and was commenced within the statute of limitation period?

If the crash was caused by the cyclist (whom I assume is the child) and this has been verified, on what grounds has a claim been instigated. There is no claim against your policy if you have been exonerated and even if it was deemed that there may have been some contributory negligence on the part of your policyholder.

Strange and for sure suspicious.

You still remain on cover even if you have changed insurers in the meantime.

What bare the alleged injuries that are being claimed for?

Why has it taken so long for the claim to be commenced?

Usually when a claim is so far down the line the less seriously it is considered because of the time lapse.

Nobody will be reported for any offences, nobody will lose their licence (unless there is a deliberate fraud, which this certainly does not appear to be the case) but there are many issues arising from the claim being instigated so far down the line.

If the claim had been instigated within a few months (as an example) or maybe up to 12 months after the event, it would be deemed as a potential valid claim, but 6 years?

So far outside statute of limitation its a joke, and how does anyone know if a claim for a pre-existing and underlying condition is not being claimed for and the crash is the convenient source for causation.

Speak to your insurers, get then on the case, raise your concerns and issues and let them deal with it, that is what your premium covers, it is what you paid them for, however, this sounds like it may be the work of a dodgy claims management firm working independently and see this as a quick money spinner.

[Rolebama]

It seems you are saying that the accident was caused by the cyclist. It also seems that the Police were satisfied at the time, and no claim was made by, or on behalf of, the cyclist at the time. If I have this right, then the question is; why are they claiming now?

[Beelzebub]

AIUI the 3-year statute of limitations period doesn't start until the child's 18th birthday. Since we don't know when that is/was, we can't know whether it applies.

[TC1474]

Originally Posted by Beelzebub

AIUI the 3-year statute of limitations period doesn't start until the child's 18th birthday. Since we don't know when that is/was, we can't know whether it applies.

Yes you are right, I was trying to keep it simple for the purpose of answering the chaps question.

Civil procedure rules (CPR) say -
"In the case of children who have suffered harm or personal injury, the three-year limitation period does not start until the child’s eighteenth birthday. A child can therefore start a formal claim for personal injury compensation up until the age of 21 – even if the injuries occurred during childbirth."

But the question still remains, why has it been so long for the claims procedure to commence and why is a claim being entertained if the cyclist was deemed liable for causation?

I have been involved in cases where it has taken 15+ years to settle but these were multi million pound settlements, but this case does not fall int that category so more questions than answers.

[Kms2023]

@TC1474 thanks for replying what you have said has been super helpful
at the time of the accident there was no question of liability
the child in question did have a head injury at the time and we kept in contact for a while until the child was better
I was just more worried about not updating the insurance policy that the named driver changed from provisional to full uk license and now being in trouble for that although police attended and I thought that would of been dealt with at scene if that was the case
I will be questioning the obvious as to why the delay and the change in liability
thank you

[Beelzebub]

Originally Posted by Kms2023

@TC1474 thanks for replying what you have said has been super helpful
at the time of the accident there was no question of liability
the child in question did have a head injury at the time and we kept in contact for a while until the child was better
I was just more worried about not updating the insurance policy that the named driver changed from provisional to full uk license and now being in trouble for that although police attended and I thought that would of been dealt with at scene if that was the case
I will be questioning the obvious as to why the delay and the change in liability
thank you

There is no "change in liability" to question, unless I've missed something.

You said the cyclist is now "trying to claim for personal injury ". "Trying" is the key word. Has your insurer suggested they agree with him?

Since it will be the insurer, not you, who will have to pay any (probably large) claim, I think you can be pretty confident that they will be fighting it.