Director of Legal Services comments on Supreme Court decision: Cameron vs Hussain

Commenting on the Supreme Court Decision in the matter of Cameron vs Hussain, Rachel di Clemente, director of legal services for Minster Law, said:

“We welcome further clarity given to this issue by the Supreme Court, and their reasoning, in favour of the defendant, is understandable.”

“However, for insurers there is an element of heads we win, tails you lose where claimants are concerned, and while the law has been clarified, injured people may be disadvantaged as a result.”

“The decision, which focuses on the issue of commencing proceedings against unnamed defendants, favours insurers over the claimant, in this case the innocent non-fault driver. This is because the insurer benefits from the vehicle owner’s decision to refuse to answer a simple question: ‘Who was driving your car?’

“We remain concerned, therefore, that the innocent party will be unable to recover damages directly from an insurer, even though the vehicle was insured and the owner of that vehicle was aware of the driver’s identity, but refused to share that information. As a consequence, the innocent party will have to seek redress via the MIB (Motor Insurance Bureau) ‘untraced scheme’, which lengthens the process, creates less control of their claim, and risks their damages being impacted by the MIB’s cap on damages, or less advantageous funding terms from solicitors, so reducing their eventual damages.”