Road Accident Poland: How to claim compensation from the UK if you have been injured in a Polish road accident either as a driver, a passenger, a pedestrian or a cyclist.
In this article you will discover what is classed as a road accident in Poland governed by EU law; all the countries that apply EU law; when you can claim compensation from the UK for a Polish RTA; the country in the UK you should claim from; whether UK or Polish laws apply when making a claim and how to receive free help from a specialist solicitor in assessing your road accident Poland claim.
What types of road accident in Poland are covered by European Motor Insurance Law / Directives?
Polish road traffic accidents, covered by EU law, apply to any EU citizen resident in an European Economic Area (EEA) country injured by a motor vehicle used on a public road in Poland.
This can include personal injury in accidents between all manner of motor vehicles (cars, HGV’s, lorries, vans, buses, coaches, motor bikes, mopeds) with other motor vehicles or with pedestrians, cyclists, etc.
What are the countries that are subject to European Motor Law?
Road Accident Poland
The countries that are subject to European Motor Law, include all of the countries in the European Economic Area (EEA), the European Union and in Switzerland.
The EEA includes all members of the European Union and some additional countries outside of the EU.
The current 28 European Union countries include: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK.
The additional EEA countries are currently: Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.
Switzerland is not part of the EU or the EEA, but unilaterally adopted European Motor Law into the Swiss legal system.
When can you claim compensation in the UK for injury in a road accident in Poland?
There are a number of occasions you can claim from the UK if you have suffered injury in a road accident in Poland, which include:
1. You are resident in the UK
If you are living in the UK and you are on holiday or travelling in Poland and you suffer injury in a road accident, you can claim from the country in the UK in which you are resident.
2. The person in control of the vehicle that injuries you is resident in the UK
If the road accident in Poland is caused by a UK driver, another EU national ordinarily living in the UK or a Polish driver living in the UK – you can make a claim for compensation in the UK.
3. An employee working for a UK company and driving whilst on business
If an employee is driving whilst at work for a UK company – a claim can be made from the UK irrespective of the nationality of the driver concerned.
4. As part of a Package holiday booked in the UK
If you are injured as a result of a driver error during a transfer or other transport forming part of a package holiday booked in the UK – you should be able to claim against the travel company in the UK.
Click package holiday claims to see our full article detailing making a claim as part of package holiday.
If you can claim from the UK – can you claim from any country in the UK?
The UK itself has primarily three legal jurisdictions: England and Wales share the same legal jurisdiction, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own legal jurisdictions.
This means that although the law in all countries is based on English law – there are some slight, but important differences, in the law in each jurisdiction. So remember, when claiming from the UK – you can only claim from the country within the UK that you are resident in (if you are resident in England and Wales, as they have the same legal jurisdiction you can claim from either country).
Which countries laws applies in making a claim in the UK for a road accident in Poland?
The answer is both countries’ laws apply – some parts of the law from the UK and some parts of the law from Poland. This is known as the duality principle.
Be careful – the statutory limitation period to start a claim is usually decided by the law in the country where the accident happened, so for a car accident in Poland it would be Polish law that determines this period.
Click road traffic accident Europe to read the article explaining in more detail about which parts of each countries’ laws apply.
Summary and specialist road accident Poland solicitor free online claims assessment
In this article you have seen what types of road accidents in Poland can be claimed from the different countries that make up the UK; how to determine when a claim can be made from the UK and which countries’ laws apply in making a claim.
Click European road accident solicitor to use this website’s free online claims assessment and direct calls to a specialist to discuss your road accident Poland.
