The High Court in Howe v Motor Insurers'
Bureau [2016] EWHC 884 (QB) found that the Motor Insurers'
Bureau was not liable to compensate the Claimant, a driver who had
been injured in a road traffic accident in France by an
unidentified driver.
Of more interest was the issue of whether the Claimant was
entitled to the protection of Qualified One-way Costs Shifting
(QOCS).
This regime was introduced on 1 April 2013, and results in
defendants generally being ordered to pay the costs of winning
claimants but, subject to certain exceptions, they will not recover
their own costs if they successfully defend the claim.
CPR r44.13 states that QOCS applies "to proceedings which
include a claim for damages...for personal injuries". The
Court was required to decide whether the claim here fell within
that definition.
