The single permitted exclusion from the scope of compulsory insurance set out in the Motor Insurance Directive 2009/103 is in respect of claims made by “persons who voluntarily entered the vehicle which caused the damage or injury, when the insurer can prove that they knew the vehicle was stolen” (article 13.1).The Road Traffic Act 1998, however, enacts the exclusion in slightly different language, referring to claims by passengers “knew or had reason to believe that the vehicle had been stolen or unlawfully taken” (section 151(4)).

Greenway & Rocks v Parrish, Covea & MIB involves passengers injured in a car that was unlawfully taken – but not “stolen” (as defined in the Theft Act) – and the point at issue is whether the wider language in the RTA is compatible with the Directive, something which will turn on the proper interpretation of the meaning of “stolen” in the Directive. In a decision in March this year, in which judgment was published recently, Spencer J reversed Master McCloud’s decision and allowed the insurer’s application on appeal for four experts from other jurisdictions to give evidence on how article 13 has been implemented (which is materially different from considering other language versions of the Directive).