RTA backlog

According to District Judge Gold in the New Law Journal of 4 November, road traffic accident claims for repair charges by Royal & Sun Alliance policyholders have been clogging up county court lists with quantum arguments arising from the insurers’ model of having repairs carried out by a wholly owned subsidiary or one of the latter’s subcontractors. The situation is being alleviated in the Commercial Court by Walker J in Coles and Ors v Hetherton and Ors [2011] EWHC 2405 (Comm), [2011] All ER (D) 6 (Oct), in a raft of cases issued in the High Court which by consent he has joined with ten county court cases by transfer up and given preliminary directions with a view to the selection of some lead cases. The judge has approved other county court claims being generally stayed pending the Commercial Court’s judgments, although one case is already on its way to the Court of Appeal.