§ 31. Mr. Graham Pageasked the Minister of Transport if he will make a statement concerning the operation of the agreement between himself and the Motor Insurers' Bureau, setting out, for a period covering a number of years, the number of claims made against the Bureau, the number of claims admitted, the nature of claims refused and the total annual amounts paid to claimants.
§ Mr. HayThe agreement provides a source of compensation for third-parties, as defined in the Road Traffic Act, 1960, injured through the negligence of motorists using their vehicles outside the terms of their insurance policies or with no insurance at all. It works very well. No claim which falls within the terms of the agreement is refused. If payment becomes due because the vehicle is used outside the terms of the policy, the insurer who issued the policy handles the case under a domestic agreement between the Bureau and the insurers. Records of such cases are not available. The Bureau itself handles cases where no policy exists. Figures relating to these cases only would not therefore indicate the general beneficial effect of the agreement.
§ 32. Mr. Graham Pageasked the Minister of Transport if he will initiate negotiations with the Motor Insurers' Bureau for a revised agreement between himself and the Bureau which would not make it a condition precedent to the Bureau's liability that the claimant shall have obtained a judgment against the other party concerned.
§ Mr. HayNo. The Road Traffic Act requires drivers' liabilities, as defined by the Act, to be covered by insurance. The present Agreement with the Bureau safeguards injured third parties if a driver is not insured. But in all third-party cases liability must be proved before any question of compensation can arise. This is a general principle of law, and 155W we should not be prepared to change it in the particular case of road accidents.