Recent Changes in the Law: by Berwick Solicitors Galway.
CAR ACCIDENT;- HIT AND RUN AND OTHER UNSAVOURY EVENTS/MISHAPS
Hit and Run:
You were driving your car home at night when you were suddenly and violently hit from behind by a vehicle which quickly left the scene. You were injured and you did not have an opportunity of getting the Registration Number of the fleeting car. The Gardaí failed to ever identify the said vehicle. Can you make a claim for your injury? A claim can be made against the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland (MIBI).
If you incur car damage (as well as personal injuries), you are obliged to claim against your comprehensive insurance (if you have such cover). Here, you will not lose your “no claims bonus”. If you do not have such comprehensive policy, you can only claim against MIBI where your injury is severe (in hospital for at least five days). There is also an excess of €500 (so you have to cover this amount yourself). Otherwise, you cannot claim for vehicle damage.
Stolen Vehicles:
A different example occurs where a vehicle collides into you and it transpires to be stolen (and so does not have Insurance Cover). Here, you can likewise make a claim (and you can also claim for almost all of your car damage).
Passengers in Stolen Vehicles:
What happens if you take a lift in a car that transpires to be stolen? And if you discover this fact after you suffer injury when a crash? Can you claim for your injury? You can indeed, provided that you did not know that the car was stolen when you entered it.
Berwick Solicitors, 16 Eyre square, Galway are heavily involved in representing victims of accidents and has been engaged in this work for over 20 years. Feel free to contact us on 091 567545 or info@berwick.ie.
