Insurance refused after the accident: how the driver achieved payment and a large penalty.

The truck driver, who was involved in the accident, received compensation with a penalty despite the initial refusal of the insurance company. Lawyers from the Driver's Legal Protection Club A.D. helped secure the payment, even liberating the National Bank of Ukraine.

The incident occurred at customs, where the truck with a tractor and trailer was damaged as a result of a collision with another truck. After the police registered the accident and the court confirmed the fault of the other driver, the insurance company that was responsible for the collision refused to pay, explaining it with technical details of activating the insurance policy.

'Initially, the insurance company referred to the fact that the policy for the trailer involved in the accident was not in effect at the Time of the accident. When we pointed to the law, they suddenly 'remembered' that the accident happened not at 9:30, but at 9:00, i.e., before the activation of both policies,' explained the Driver's Legal Protection Club A.D.

The club's lawyers referred to the law of Ukraine 'On Mandatory Insurance of Civil Liability of Owners of Ground Vehicles', which states that in case of an accident involving several vehicles in a coupling, compensation payments are made by the insurance company that concluded the contract regarding the tractor.

After the insurance company's repeated refusal, which threatened criminal prosecution for 'insurance fraud', the lawyers appealed to the Motor Transport Insurance Bureau of Ukraine (MTIBU). The Bureau confirmed that the policy becomes valid from the moment specified in the contract but only after registration in the database. Since the policy was registered at 9:25 and its validity began at 9:30, it was valid at the time of the accident.

A decisive factor is the appeal to the National Bank of Ukraine, which controls the activities of insurance companies. In less than a month, the insurance company revised its decision and paid not only the full amount of compensation but also a penalty at the rate of double the NBU’s discount rate for the delay period.

This case shows that when an insurance company refuses to pay, it is worth using all the legal mechanisms to defend your rights, and professional legal assistance can significantly increase the chances of success.