Extra-contractual Rules and Third-party Rights of Direct Action: The Court of Justice Defines Claimants' Rights and Insurers' Obligations in Motor Vehicle Agreements

Marson, James; Ferris, Katy

Abstract

AR v Others is a Polish reference to the Court of Justice centering on the application of Directive 2009/103/EC, the sixth and consolidated Motor Vehicle Insurance Directive (MVID), and the obligations therein regarding insurers' liability to third-party victims. To ensure that persons suffering injury (third-parties) in motor vehicle accidents are provided with minimum standards of protection, the MVID regulates the compulsory motor vehicle insurance regime throughout the EU. This judgment is significant for two reasons. First, it identifies the scope of extra-contractual clauses permitted in the laws of Member States which affect the remedies of third-party victims of motor vehicle accidents. Secondly it, for the first time, defines the scope of the direct right of action of a third-party against the insurer of a driver who caused the damage (a right introduced by the Fourth MVID (2000/26)). 1 As a final, albeit perhaps more discursive contribution but one which we find profoundly important, it confirms the Court's decision in Linea Directa regarding when a vehicle is in * Sheffield Hallam University.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 22, 2023
• Online Publication Date: Aug 31, 2023
• Publication Date: Aug 31, 2023
• Deposit Date: Jun 29, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Sep 1, 2024
• Journal: European Law Review
• Print ISSN: 0307-5400
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 2023
• Issue: 4
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/22438252
• Related Public URLs: https://www.sweetandmaxwell.co.uk/Product/Academic-Law/European-Law-Review/Journal/30791372
• Additional Information: This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in European Law Review following peer review. The definitive published version, Extra-Contractual Rules and Third-Party Rights of Direct Action: The Court of Justice Defines Claimants’ Rights and Insurers’ Obligations in Motor Vehicle Agreements by James Marson and Katy Ferris, August 2023, is available online on Westlaw UK.