Tarbuck v Avon Insurance [2000] EWHC B21 (Comm) (14 November 2000)

Tarbuck v Avon Insurance [2000] EWHC B21 (Comm) (14 November 2000)

The Act does not apply to legal expenses insurance insofar as it covers the insured's own solicitor's costs, as such cover is not insurance against liability to a third party but indemnity for a voluntarily incurred contract debt. Therefore, the claimant solicitor has no right of claim against the insurer under the Act.

Citation
[2000] EWHC B21 (Comm)
Parties
Insured/defendant: Miss Valerie Nicholson; Insurer/defendant: Avon Insurance plc; Claimant/solicitor: Claimant Solicitor (unnamed)
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
14 November 2000
Procedural Posture
Preliminary Issue in Civil Action / Judgment on Preliminary Issue at First Instance
Outcome
action dismissed
Legal Topics
Third Party Rights Against Insurers, Legal Expenses Insurance, Bankruptcy and Insurance Claims, Statutory Interpretation
Insurance Law Insolvency Law Civil Procedure Third Party Rights Against Insurers Legal Expenses Insurance Bankruptcy and Insurance Claims Statutory Interpretation

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Parties

Miss Valerie Nicholson

Insured/defendant

Avon Insurance plc

Insurer/defendant

Claimant Solicitor (unnamed)

Claimant/solicitor

Procedural Posture

Preliminary Issue in Civil Action / Judgment on Preliminary Issue at First Instance

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Does the Third Parties (Rights against Insurers) Act 1930 apply to legal expenses insurance covering the insured's own solicitor's costs?
  2. 2 Is a solicitor acting for a bankrupt insured entitled to claim directly against the insurer under the Act?

Ratio Decidendi

The Act does not apply to legal expenses insurance insofar as it covers the insured's own solicitor's costs, as such cover is not insurance against liability to a third party but indemnity for a voluntarily incurred contract debt. Therefore, the claimant solicitor has no right of claim against the insurer under the Act.

Court Disposition

action dismissed

Orders

  • Judgment for the defendant insurers.
  • Claimant to pay defendant's costs in the sum of £8,500.