– This is a regular procedure of claiming damages from third-party liability insurance in a situation of a serious accident due to the fault of a driver. And it certainly seems that this was the case here, which is also confirmed by the police” – says Zofia Kwiatkowska, spokeswoman of Autostrada Wielkopolska, a company that operates the motorway in accordance with the granted concession. She also explains that there are a few reasons for claiming the money.
First of all, the insurer of Stando, a company responsible for the accident, will be called to “return the costs of the repair of property damaged and to secure and clean the place of the accident” – numerous damages occurred, including breakdown of a barrier between the roads. “These damages will be sought by our operator Autostrada Eksploatacja SA” – explains Kwiatkowska.
However, it is too early to estimate the costs.
The process of claim adjustment may take even several months. It depends on the time necessary to assess the damage and collect all required documents evidencing the costs incurred, including invoices from subcontractors involved in the process of dealing with the effects of the incident” – says Agnieszka Lulkiewicz, contracts with clients and personal data protection specialist of Autostrada Eksploatacja SA.
She also added that the works at the site were carried out by “specialist highway maintenance services,” supported by the staff of an external cleaning company. All in all, more than ten people cleaned the surface, secured the area and removed damaged barriers and other debris from the accident.”
The second bill
But it is not the end. The second issue relates to lost profits of Autostrada Wielkopolska.
Immediately after receiving the information from rescue services that the traffic in both directions would be stopped not for one or two hours, but for several hours or longer, we made a decision to suspend collecting fees in Lądek, in both directions” – says Zofia Kwiatkowska.
For these losses the company, irrespective of Autostrada Eksploatacja, will claim damages from the insurance of the party which caused the accident. It has not disclosed the value of its claim yet. In this case, it is still too early for any estimates. According to the spokeswoman, it is impossible to determine how many vehicles used the highway for free or chose other routes.
Drivers very quickly got to know about the accident. Besides, those going to Warsaw were informed about serious problems on the road and recommended other routes displayed on the boards on the public sections of A2 preceding our section. Therefore, many drivers did not continue on the motorway, but they exited at the Modła junction in Konin and took a parallel road No. 92. Similarly, the traffic from the western sections was diverted by the police to other routes” – says Zofia Kwiatkowska.
“Enormous” costs?
For several days, media has been speculating that the costs may be “enormous”. However, it turns out that they will not necessarily plunge the carrier into bankruptcy. “Everything mentioned by the companies is covered from the obligatory automobile liability insurance,” says Adam Pająk, President of TransBrokers insurance company.
Losses caused by the suspension of fee collection do not go beyond a normal compensation obligation for holders of mechanical vehicles. Losses connected with the chocolate spill or any other spill and the fact that the area needs cleaning are as well within the standard obligatory insurance policy” – adds Pająk.
He explains that the money should be paid from the insurance of the tractor unit because, in accordance with the Polish law, if a combination of vehicles takes part in an accident, claim adjustment is required from the vehicle towing the other units, so in this case it will be a tractor unit.
Figures will not “blow the carrier out of the water”
It appears that the most important thing is whether the amounts claimed by both companies will not exceed the amount guaranteed by the insurer. Although, the expert reassures that it will not be the case, there is no point asking for specific calculations for now.
The amount guaranteed is million euros. In my opinion, it is rather unlikely even in the case of this accident that the amount will be exceeded. Some of the works were conducted by a fire brigade which does not charge for such actions” – says Adam Pająk. “We should remember that in the past, there were accidents which made using certain roads impossible for several hours and such situations were not accompanied by any amounts which could blow the carrier out of the water.”
This time, the road was blocked for over half a day. According to AW spokeswoman, traffic in the western direction was stopped from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and in the eastern direction from 1 p.m. to 9:15 p.m.
Polish carriers tend to forget about automobile liability insurance
However, if it turns out that the amount sought by the companies exceeds the amount guaranteed, the difference will have to be covered by the carrier out of his own pocket.
That is why some insurers offer surplus line coverage as an addition to a regular insurance” – says Adam Pająk. “When the primary amount is exceeded the surplus is used, and it can cover even a few million zlotys. But to be honest, in Poland few carriers buy this option.”
We contacted the company which owned the unfortunate truck and asked about their policy conditions, but we have not received an answer yet.
What will you do with 12 tonnes of chocolate?
Stando apologizes for the incident on the Internet.
Most importantly, nobody was harmed and nobody died in this accident. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by this sad incident with our truck” – wrote the company on its Facebook page.
Interestingly enough, also Autostrada Wielkopolska mentioned the accident on Facebook, announcing… a competition. The company asked Internet users to write what they would do with 12 tonnes of chocolate. The most creative competitors got a chance to win an invitation for a chocolate tasting event. Fortunately, in a chocolate café in one of the big cities, not on the road.
Photo: Twitter/@ITD_gov