Carpenters Group Legal Defence Team Achieves Major Saving In High-Value Claim
Whilst the issue of intervention is certainly not a new concept in the credit hire world, it can at times be overlooked, and so it is always satisfying to secure a strong outcome where the court considers that a failure to accept such an offer constitutes a failure to mitigate.
In a recent matter, the Carpenters Credit Hire Defence Team, secured a saving of 95% on the damages claimed where the court came to such a conclusion. Given the continued rising tide of credit hire rates, the difference between the commercial rate claimed and the Copley rate can be stark, as it was in this case - close to £400 a day compared with just £32.
There were no issues in this case with regards to service of the offer, but once received the Claimant’s solicitors replied with a series of generic questions, which did little to assist and instead threatened to frustrate the intervention process. Indeed, the Court found in this case that the answers to the queries raised were not necessary to assess the offer made. On that basis the claim was assessed for a reduced period at the intervention rate of £32.
Despite the pleaded value being in excess of £25k, the claim had been allocated to the Fast Track and the Claimant failed to beat the Defendant’s Part 36 offer which was made on filing the Defence. Once the costs consequences were off-set, the client’s liability to the Claimant for both damages and costs was little over £400.
At trial the Claimant had confirmed that following the start of the hire, her vehicle had sat on her driveway for a number of weeks before anyone came to collect it. There then followed no less than five engineer’s reports, the last of which deemed the vehicle to be unrepairable. No explanation as to why so many reports were necessary was ever provided. When she was finally advised that the vehicle would not be repaired, her husband collected it and was told that it was safe for him to drive home. Given the minor nature of the damage, he repaired the vehicle himself.
This is the type of scenario credit hire practitioners continue to see across the market – extended hire periods combined with elevated rates, often without adequate justification. It is crucial that insurers maintain a robust intervention strategy which should be the foundation stone for a successful defence of a case such as this. Early, proactive intervention combined with clear evidential support can make all the difference.
Click HERE to sign up to our Legal Defence Newsletter and to read all previous editions.
