Khaberni - The Abu Dhabi Commercial Court of First Instance has ruled to compel a person to pay an insurance company an amount of 488,062 dirhams as the value of compensation reimbursed on its behalf to the owner of an insured car. The defendant had stolen this car and quickly arranged its export out of the country.
The court noted the defendant's proven responsibility for the theft of the vehicle according to the definitive criminal judgment issued against him.
In detail, an insurance company filed a lawsuit against a man, demanding that he pay the company 488,062 dirhams, which it had reimbursed to the owner of the insured car. The insured vehicle was listed for sale online, and was then contacted by the defendant's wife, who requested to inspect it. However, the defendant took the vehicle for inspection, then fled with it and exported it out of the country, which led the vehicle owner to file an insurance dispute against it. Subsequently, the Disputes Committee ordered the insurance company to pay the value of the stolen vehicle, prompting the company to sue the defendant for the amount of compensation it paid to the insured due to the theft of his vehicle.
The court explained in the rationale of its judgment that according to the provisions of the Civil Transactions Law, the insurance company that insured the car involved in the accident that caused the damage has the right to step into the insured owner's shoes for the amount it paid, and to reclaim the compensation from the person responsible for the error causing the damage. Moreover, given the decisive conclusion from the criminal judgment, which convicted the defendant of the vehicle theft insured by the plaintiff, the civil court is bound to uphold the judgment's authority, and it is established from the case documents that the plaintiff paid the vehicle’s value to the insured as shown by payment receipts.
Regarding the interest claim, the court noted that according to the Commercial Transactions Law, if the claimed amount is determined on a fixed basis and is not subject to the judge's discretion in its determination, even if the debtor disputes its entitlement or amount, the creditor is entitled to demand interest on it as compensation for the delay. Interest applies from the date the debt is due. Since the defendant was burdened with the claim amount for the plaintiff company, and the delay in payment is proven, the conditions for the plaintiff to be entitled to delay interest as compensation for the inconvenience and delay are met.
The court ruled to compel the defendant to pay the plaintiff an amount of 488,062 dirhams and legal interest of 3% from the date of the claim until full payment, not to exceed the principal, and to burden him with the fees and expenses and the attorney fees.
