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Panevėžys Regional Court has examined a civil case regarding indemnification of damages by way of recourse and fully satisfied the claim filed by the Motor Insurers' Bureau of the Republic of Lithuania.

By court decision, insurance compensation of EUR 139,424.86, 5 percent annual interest, and litigation costs were awarded jointly and severally from two defendants. This amount will be recovered from the driver of the car who caused the traffic accident and the owner of the vehicle who failed to fulfill the obligation to insure the car with mandatory insurance.

This decision was passed following a traffic accident in Germany, during which a BMW car registered in Lithuania ran off the road and collided with a high – voltage power line support tower. The collision severely damaged the structure of the 110 kW power transmission line, and its repair costs were estimated at over 135 thousand euros.

Following the incident, it transpired that the vehicle was not covered by mandatory motor third – party liability insurance at the time of the accident.

Since the driver and the owner of the car did not compensate for the damage caused, the losses were covered to the injured energy company by the German national insurers' bureau.

In accordance with international agreements, the German bureau applied to the Motor Insurers' Bureau of the Republic of Lithuania, which reimbursed the incurred expenses and subsequently went to court to recover the funds from the responsible parties.

The court established that liability arises for both individuals: the driver as the direct cause of the damage, and the vehicle owner for disregarding the legal requirement to insure the vehicle and allowing others to use it.

The court rejected the request of the driver who caused the accident to reduce the amount to be awarded due to a difficult financial situation, concluding that the submitted income data was neither sufficient nor convincing.

Assessing the conduct of the vehicle owner, the court emphasized that he took no action to prevent the uninsured vehicle from being used, left its keys and documents to another person, and did not notify law enforcement of a possible unlawful takeover of control.

"By such unlawful inaction, the owner of the car created the conditions for the damage to occur; therefore, he is recognized as jointly and severally liable for compensating the damage caused by the traffic accident," noted Judge Laimantas Misiūnas, who examined the case.

The judgment of Panevėžys Regional Court may be appealed to the Court of Appeal of Lithuania within 30 days.

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