Compulsory Liability Insurance from a European Perspective (Tort and Insurance Law)

Statutory obligations to take out liability insurance are, in practice, the most important means to ensure compensability of damage arising from dangerous activities. However, in contrast to the significant practical impact, academic research on the topic has not been extensive so far. This study, therefore, undertakes a comprehensive survey of compulsory liability insurance from nine national perspectives (Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom) and takes constitutional and European law (four freedoms, European Convention on Human Rights) as well as the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL) into account. It also contains an extensive economic analysis of compulsory liability insurance and discusses aspects of insurability. A Comparative Report, Conclusions and an Annex containing a compilation of rules on compulsory liability insurance in the nine national legal systems complete the study. It considers in particular: the aims of provisions stating an obligation to take out liability insurance the mandatory content of insurance cover the protection mechanisms linked to compulsory liability insurance the control mechanisms and the sanctions imposed structural deficiencies of existing compulsory liability insurance systems the overall scheme for the law of liability insurance from a constitutional and a European perspective (implications of the four freedoms and the European Convention on Human Rights) Table of Contents Introduction and Questionnaire Introduction I. Choice of Subject Matter II. Research Aims III. Methodology Questionnaire I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Country Reports Compulsory Liability Insurance in Austria I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Belgium I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in the Czech Republic I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Finland I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Germany I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Hungary I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Italy I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in Switzerland I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in the United Kingdom I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Special Reports Compulsory Liability Insurance and European Union Law I. Introduction II. Duties to Take Out Insurance in European Secondary Law III. Conflict of Laws IV. Primary Law (Four Freedoms) V. Summary Compulsory Liability Insurance and Constitutional Law Compulsory Liability Insurance in the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL) I. Compulsory Liability Insurance: A ‘Social Dimension’ of Private Insurance Law II. Compulsory Liability Insurance and the Internal Market III. The Role of the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL) IV. Summary Compulsory Liability Insurance: Economic Perspectives I. Introduction II. Aims of Compulsory Liability Insurance III. Types and Contents of the Duty IV. Control of Moral Hazard V. Level of Governance VI. Alternative Mechanisms VII. Limits of Compulsory Liability Insurance VIII. Enforcement IX. Reforms/Recent Literature X. Concluding Remarks Compulsory Liability Insurance in a Changing Legal Environment – An Insurance and Reinsurance Perspective I. Executive Summary II. General Insurance Principles III. Concept of Liability Insurance IV. Key Issues of Insurability V. Compulsory Insurance Schemes in Europe VI. Compulsory Insurance in Economic Terms VII. Prerequisites of Compulsory Insurance VIII. Advantages and Disadvantages of Compulsory Insurance IX. Other Financial Security Instruments X. Buyer’s Perspective on Compulsory Insurance XI. Changing Legal Environment – Outlook XII. Conclusion Comparative Report and Conclusions Comparative Report I. The Term Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Aims III. Content of Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision and Sanctions VI. Statutory Provisions required by the Constitution or the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) VII. Reform Efforts VIII. Compulsory Liability Insurance and Liability Law Conclusions I. The Purpose of Compulsory Liability Insurance II. Establishment of Duties to Take out Liability Insurance III. Content of the Insurance Cover IV. Protection Mechanisms V. Supervision Annex: Rules on Compulsory Liability Insurance Austria I. Federal Law II. Laws of the Provinces (State Laws) Belgium I. Federal Law II. Regional Legislation and Regulation (Laws of Local Entities in the Federal State: ‘Regions’ and ‘Communities’) Czech Republic I. Federal Law II. Laws of the Provinces (State Laws) Finland I. National Law II. Laws of the Provinces (State Laws) Germany I. Federal Law II. Laws of the (Federal) States (Bundesländer) III. Codes of Conduct (based on the Law of the Federal States) Hungary I. National Law II. Laws of the Provinces (State Laws) Italy I. National Law II. Regional Laws Switzerland I. Federal Law II. Laws of the Provinces (State Laws) United Kingdom I. United Kingdom Legislation II. Devolved Legislation List of Contributors and Editors Index Publications Statutory Obligations To Take Out Liability Insurance Are, In Practice, The Most Important Means To Ensure Compensability Of Damage Arising From Dangerous Activities. This Study Surveys Compulsory Liability Insurance From Nine National Perspectives (austria, Belgium, The Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Switzerland, And The United Kingdom). Introduction / Daniel Rubin -- Questionnaire -- Compulsory Liability In Austria / Daniel Rubin -- Compulsory Liability In Belgium / Herman Cousey And Caroline Van Schoubroeck -- Compulsory Liability In The Czech Republic / Petr Dobiás̆ -- Compulsory Liability In Finland / Jaana Norio-timonen -- Compulsory Liability In Germany / Robert Koch -- Compulsory Liability In Hungary / Péter Takáts -- Compulsory Liability In Italy / Diana Cerini -- Compulsory Liability In Switzerland / Andrea Stäubli -- Compulsory Liability In The United Kingdom / Özlem Gürses -- Compulsory Liability Insurance And European Union Law / Stefan Perner -- Compulsory Liability Insurance And Constitutional Law / Franz Merli -- Compulsory Liability Insurance In The Principles Of European Insurance Contract Law (peicl) / Helmut Heiss -- Compulsory Liability Insurance : Economic Perspectives / Michael Faure -- Compulsory Liability Insurance In A Changing Legal Environment : An Insurance And Reinsurance Perspective / Bernard Tettamanti, Hubert Bär, Jean-claude Werz -- Comparative Report / Daniel Rubin -- Conclusions / Daniel Rubin -- Annex: Rules On Contemporary Liability Insurance -- Austria / Daniel Rubin -- Belgium / Herman Cousy And Caroline Van Schoubroeck -- Czech Republic / Petr Dobiás̆ -- Finland / Jaana Norio-timonen -- Germany / Robert Koch -- Hungary / Péter Takáts -- Italy / Diana Cerini And Anna Teresa Memola -- Switzerland / Andrea Stäubli -- United Kingdom / Özlem Gürses. Attila Fenyves, Christa Kissling, Stefan Perner, Daniel Rubin (eds) ; With Contributions By Hubert Bär [and 17 Others]. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.

Statutory obligations to take out liability insurance are, in practice, the most important means to ensure compensability of damage arising from dangerous activities. However, in contrast to the significant practical impact, academic research on the topic has not been extensive so far. This study, therefore, undertakes a comprehensive survey of compulsory liability insurance from nine national perspectives (Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom) and takes constitutional and European law (four freedoms, European Convention on Human Rights) as well as the Principles of European Insurance Contract Law (PEICL) into account. It also contains an extensive economic analysis of compulsory liability insurance and discusses aspects of insurability. A Comparative Report, Conclusions and an Annex containing a compilation of rules on compulsory liability insurance in the nine national legal systems complete the study. It considers in particular:

• the aims of provisions stating an obligation to take out liability insurance
• the mandatory content of insurance cover
• the protection mechanisms linked to compulsory liability insurance
• the control mechanisms and the sanctions imposed
• structural deficiencies of existing compulsory liability insurance systems