A vehicle crashed into your home. Who pays if the driver blacked out?
A bus company in County Durham has refused to pay for a garden it wrecked, citing a sudden medical episode. What that defence means for homeowners and how your own policy fits in.
If someone else’s vehicle smashes into your home and the driver had a sudden medical episode, the law can leave their insurer owing you nothing. I think homeowners should hear that before it happens.
In July a Go North East bus left the road in Stanley and went through a family’s garden wall, gates and trees. Chronicle Live reports that Gallagher Bassett, the bus company’s claims handlers, have now refused the family’s claim of nearly £15,000, citing what they call an automatism defence. The family says its own home insurer’s offer is £3,000 to £4,000 below the builder’s quote.
I think a family whose wall was flattened by someone else’s vehicle should never be left funding the repair themselves.
Can the driver’s side really refuse to pay?
Sometimes, yes. In Mansfield v Weetabix the Court of Appeal found a lorry driver not negligent when an undiagnosed condition impaired his driving and he crashed into a shop. The test, as the LawTeacher case summary sets out, is whether he knew or could reasonably have known about the condition. Whether that holds for this bus driver is a question of evidence, and the family has been told to seek legal advice.
Should you claim on your own home insurance?
Usually that gets the repair moving fastest. In a typical case the home insurer pays and then tries to recover its outlay, including your excess, from the driver’s motor insurer, as Insurance Business explained when Allianz, Zurich and Intact began piloting a faster process for these claims. My reading is that if the driver is found not to blame, that recovery has nowhere to go.
What if the offer is below your builder’s quote?
Ask for the insurer’s breakdown in writing and challenge it item by item. If you are still unhappy after its final response, the ombudsman can look at it.
One practical tip. Before paying a solicitor, check your schedule for legal expenses cover, which Which? notes is an optional add-on on most home policies and can fund a claim against the driver.