Enforcing judgments against insurers

The statutory notice requirement

Section 151 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 confers upon the victim of a negligent driver the right to bring proceedings against the driver and then, if the judgment is not satisfied, to enforce the judgment against the insurers responsible for that particular use of the motor vehicle. As has been noted previously in Insurance Law Monthly, this procedure is likely to become of secondary importance as it has been possible, since February 2003, for the victim to bring a direct action against the insurers in the majority (but by no means all) of the situations in which a claim under s151 can be brought. The section thus remains of some significance. Nawaz and Hussain v Crow Insurance Group , February 2003, unreported, [2003] Lloyd’s Rep IR (forthcoming) examines the procedural requirements necessary to trigger the operation of s151.