Drunk drivers in Hong Kong may be spared secondary charge of not having insurance
Appeal court questions legality of insurance companies having clause that immediately nullified existing policy if driver was found to be over legal limit
Drunk drivers in Hong Kong may no longer face a secondary charge after an appeal court yesterday ruled against a clause that insurance companies often put into their policies.
In a short yet significant judgment, centred on two criminal appeals, justices at the Court of Appeal ruled that drivers caught drunk driving should still be covered by their third-party insurance.
Some insurance companies often include a clause in their policy, saying they would not be liable for any loss and damage if a driver was found to have alcohol content in their blood exceeding the legal limit – as were the appellants in the present cases, Law Wing-fai and Gilbert Henry Collins.
If their insurance is immediately nulled, drunk drivers often end up facing a second charge of driving without third-party insurance.
But the Court of Appeal questioned the legality of inserting such a clause, ruling that it was contrary to a law regulating third-party insurance.
The court yesterday overturned the convictions of Law and Collins, who had both earlier been charged with driving without third-party insurance and who had their appeals heard together.
At issue is a provision of the Motor Vehicles Insurance (Third Party) Ordinance – legislation which regulates third-party insurance policy.