Motor insurance—Rights of third parties against insurers—Duty of insurers to satisfy judgments against insured person

Queen’s Bench Division, Tugendhat J, 1 July 2011

A motor insurer was liable to indemnify the claimant property insurers for damage done by a driver to a property, even though the damage was done deliberately and the claim was brought by the insurers by way of subrogation rather than the property owners themselves.

John Ross QC and Laura Johnson (instructed by Reynolds Porter Chamberlain) for the claimant. The first defendant did not appear and was not represented. Howard Palmer QC and Marie Louise Kinsler (instructed by Cordner Lewis) for the second defendant.

In December 2008, a car driven by the first defendant (the driver) collided with a department store in Bristol (the store). The property insurers paid the store’s claim and by subrogation brought an action against the driver. The driver’s motor insurers were joined as second defendant, because the property insurers