Supreme Court—repairing car is not use of car for insurance purposes (R & S Pilling trading as Phoenix Engineering v UK Insurance Ltd)

Table of contents

• What are the practical implications of the judgment?
• What was the background?
• What did the Supreme Court decide?
• Construction of the policy
• Use of motor vehicle

Article summary

Insurance & Reinsurance analysis: Graham Eklund QC, barrister at 4 New Square, and Patrick Vincent, barrister at 12 King’s Bench Walk, examine the Supreme Court’s decision in R & S Pilling trading as Phoenix Engineering v UK Insurance Ltd. This case established that the third-party liability cover in a car-owner’s insurance policy, which protected the owner for damage caused when he had an accident in his vehicle, did not protect him for damage he caused to surrounding premises.