There are various types of traffic accidents that occur on a daily basis: One such case is when a trailer disconnects from the tow truck and collides with a third vehicle. The key issue in this case concerns both the existence and the extent of the liability of the insurance company with which the tractor unit is insured, and specifically whether this liability also includes damage caused by the trailer.
In principle, the law explicitly includes trailers in the category of motor vehicles to which Law 489/76 “On Compulsory Insurance for Motor Vehicle Civil Liability in the Event of Accidents,” stipulating that “Any trailer vehicle coupled to the main motor vehicle or not, as well as a bicycle equipped with an auxiliary engine, is also considered a motor vehicle.” In fact, according to case law, a trailer is considered a motor vehicle even if it has been disconnected from the main towing vehicle.
In a related case that arose, a trailer detached from the tractor unit and entered the opposite lane, where it collided with a passing vehicle, which veered off course and crashed into an adjacent construction site. The collision caused material damage to the vehicle and injured its driver.
From the above facts, it can easily be concluded that the driver of the tow truck was at fault for not adequately checking his vehicle to ensure that the trailer was securely attached, a fault that was also accepted by the Court.
The crucial question, however, concerned the insurance company’s liability for compensation, given that the insured vehicle was the tractor and not the trailer, which caused the damage. According to the defendant insurance company, there was no question of liability, precisely because the cover it provided extended only to the towing vehicle. However, this argument was rejected by the Court on the grounds that, even if there was a relevant clause in the insurance contract that excluded the specific case from insurance coverage, the plaintiff’s claim in this case stemmed directly from the law and could not be excluded even by a contrary agreement.
