Hit by a Foreign Vehicle? Can I Make a Claim?

Hit by a Foreign Vehicle? Can I Make a Claim?

If you are injured by a foreign driver and foreign vehicle then you might be worried about how to make a claim if the vehicle is covered by a foreign insurer. Well, fear not! Fortunately the Green Card system operates to try and compensate drivers involved in accidents who are in just such a situation.

The Green Card system was set up in 1953 and covers 44 member countries. Its objectives are twofold:

1)      To facilitate movement of vehicles across state borders by the use of an internationally accepted document which proves the existence of insurance (the Green Card or International Insurance Card)

2)      To ensure that victims of accidents involving foreign motor vehicles are not disadvantaged.

If the injury occurs in England and Wales and is caused by a foreign driver then the Green card system will come in to effect. In terms of running the claim, the Motor Insurers’ Bureau will step in and act as an agent for the foreign insurer.

The MIB is the UK Green Card Bureau and so is deemed insurer of foreign registered vehicles in the UK. The conditions for the MIB to handle the claim require that the foreign registered vehicle comes from a country within the Green Card system with which the MIB has an agreement. It will operate the claim in much the same way as a normal road traffic accident would with a UK registered vehicle.

There are 44 member states involved in the scheme but the scheme only operates for members of Europe. If you have had an accident involving a foreign vehicle in England and Wales then contact ‘The Injury Lawyers‘ and see if we can help you to make a claim.