Quanslaub ELIZABETHAE SECUNDAE REGINAE. No. 83 of 1974

Transcription

1 903 Quanslaub ANNO VICESIMO TERTIO ELIZABETHAE SECUNDAE REGINAE No. 83 of 1974 An Act to provide indemnity to persons whose motor vehicles were insured with the Northumberland Insurance Company Limited in compliance with the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act , and for related purposes, and to amend the Vehicle & General Insurance Company (Australia) Ltd. (Motor Vehicles Insurance) Act 1971 in a certain particular [ASSENTED TO 1ST NOVEMBER, 1974] BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland in Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:- PART I-PRELIMINARY 1. Short title and citation. (1.) This Act may be cited as the Northumberland Insurance Company Limited (Motor Vehicles Insurance) Act 1974.

2 904 Northumberland Insurance Company Limited, Etc., Act 1974, No. 83 (2) The Vehicle & General Insurance Company (Australia) Ltd. (Motor Vehicles Insurance) Act (a) is in Part IV referred to as the Principal Act; and (b) as amended by Part IV may be cited as the Vehicle & General Insurance Company ( Australia) Ltd. (Motor Vehicles Insurance) Act Arrangement of Act. This Act is arranged in Parts as follows:- PART I-PRELIMINARY; PART II-PROVISION OF INDEMNITY IN RESPECT OF CERTAIN MOTOR VEHICLE INSURANCE POLICIES; PART III-DISPOSAL OF CERTAIN INSURANCE PREMIUMS; PART IV-AMENDMENT OF VEHICLE & GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) LTD. (MOTOR VEHICLES INSURANCE) ACT Meaning of terms. (1) Save where a contrary intention appears- " Commissioner " means the Commissioner of Main Roads for Queensland; " Company " means the Northumberland Insurance Company Limited; " Liquidator " means the person duly appointed liquidator or provisional liquidator of the Company; " Nominal Defendant (Queensland) " means the body corporate constituted under The Motor Vehicles Insurance Acts 1936 to 1961 under the name and style The Nominal Defendant (Queensland). (2) A term to which a meaning is assigned by the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act has that meaning. PART II-PROVISION OF INDEMNITY IN RESPECT OF CERTAIN MOTOR VEHICLE INSURANCE POLICIES 4. Claims to which this Part applies. This Part applies to claims for damages in respect of accidental bodily injury (fatal or non-fatal) to any person caused before four o'clock after noon on 4 October 1974 in any State or Territory of the Commonwealth of Australia by, through, or in connexion with a motor vehicle insured under the Motor 'Vehicles Insurance Act at the material time with the Company. 5. Substitution of Nominal Defendant for Company. Subject to this Part, the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) has, to the exclusion of the Company, the same duties, liabilities, rights and powers in respect of any claim to which this Part applies as the Company would have had under

3 Northumberland Insurance Company Limited, Etc., Act No the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act and the relevant contract of insurance under that Act prior to four o'clock after noon on 4 October 1974 if the claim had been made to the Company before that time on that date. 6. Specific incidental powers of Nominal Defendant. The provisions of subsections (5) and (6) of section 4F of the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act apply with respect to a claim to which this Part applies. 7. Re-opening of settlements and consent or default judgments. (1) Where, on or after 28 October 1974, the parties to a claim to which this Part applies have settled the claim or a judgment in respect of the claim has been given by a court of competent jurisdiction with their consents or in default of appearance or of delivery of a defence, the Nominal Defendant (Queensland), if it considers the amount of damages agreed upon or adjudged to be paid to be excessive, may refuse to pay the damages. The Nominal Defendant (Queensland) may offer to pay a less amount in full settlement of the legal liability in respect of such damages of the owner or the estate of the owner of the vehicle in question. (2) A claimant aggrieved by such a refusal or offer may- (a) where the amount to which the refusal or offer relates was settled by agreement between the parties, prosecute his claim as if such settlement had never been made; (b) where the amount to which the refusal or offer relates was adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction with the consent or in the default referred to in the preceding subsection, continue the proceedings as if such judgment had never been given therein and for enabling such continuation the court may enter such adjournments of the proceedings and give such other directions in respect thereof (including with respect to joining the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) in the proceedings) as it thinks necessary or expedient. 8. Stay of pending proceedings. Proceedings commenced before and pending at the date of the passing of this Act in respect of a claim to which this Part applies shall not be continued until twenty-one days after the claimant has given notice thereof to the Nominal Defendant (Queensland). 9. Reimbursement of other persons. In respect of a claim to which this Part applies the Nominal Dtfendant (Queensland) may reimburse any person on account of an anvunt of damages paid to the claimant by that person. 30

4 906 Northumberland Insurance Company Limited, Etc., Act 1974, No Particulars of claim to be furnished to Nominal Defendant. (1) A claimant shall notify in writing the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) of a claim to which this Part applies and shall therein state whether or not proceedings have been instituted in any court in respect of the claim and, if so, particulars of the proceedings. Such notification shall be given not later than 30 June (2) The Nominal Defendant (Queensland) may require in writing the claimant to furnish to it, within the time therein specified by it (or within such extended time as it allows), such information and particulars with respect to the claim as it specifies in its requisition. (3) The Nominal Defendant (Queensland) may refuse to pay the claim of a claimant who does not comply in every respect with the requirements of this section or of a requisition issued under this section. 11. Recovery upon re-insurance. (1) Notwithstanding any other Act or law, where in respect of a contract of insurance under which is made a claim to which this Part applies there is or has been in existence a re-insurance or a treaty agreement or other agreement, the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) has and is vested with, to the exclusion of the Company, and is entitled to exercise in its name or in the name of the Company or of the Liquidator thereof the rights had by the Company or the Liquidator thereof under such re-insurance or agreement under the laws of the State. (2) Payment to the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) of moneys recoverable by it under the preceding subsection shall satisfy in full the liability of the payer to pay those moneys to any other person whomsoever. 12. Recovery against Company. Where the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) pays a claim to which this Part applies it shall be a creditor of and have the same rights against the Company as if the amount so paid were a debt due and payable and unpaid to it by the Company. For the purposes of this section the amount so paid shall be reduced by any sum recovered under section I 1 of this Act, or under regulation 17 of the regulations made under the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act Duty of Liquidator and Company 's officers. The Liquidator tnd every officer of the Company shall furnish to the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) all such information and produce to it all such books and records as it requires from time to time concerning any claim to which this Part applies. 14. Limitation of aggregate liability. The aggregate of all claims to which this Part applies (including costs in respect of such claims) paid by the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) shall not exceed $ plus the total of sums recovered by it under section I l of this Act and under regulation 17 of the regulations made under the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act and accordingly the Nominal Defendant (Queensland) is not liable to make in respect of any or all of such claims any payment that would increase such aggregate beyond the limit specified by this section.

5 Northumberland Insurance Company Limited, Etc., Act 1974, No PART III-DISPOSAL OF CERTAIN INSURANCE PREMIUMS 15. Manner of disposal of certain premiums. (1) This section applies in respect of all amounts payable under the Motor Vehicles Insurance Act and the regulations thereunder in respect of insurance premiums and- (a) paid to the Commissioner on or before 4 October 1974 and held by him on that date; or (b) paid to the Commissioner after 4 October 1974, for the renewing of contracts of insurance entered into with the Company in compliance with the provisions of The Motor Vehicles Insurance Act of 1936 or of that Act as amended at the date of the making of the contract. (2) Of any amount in respect of which the section applies the Commissioner- (a) if the renewal date of the contract of insurance in question was earlier than 4 October 1974, (i) shall pay to the Liquidator a sum which bears to the amount of the insurance premium which, except for this section, would be payable to the insurer the same proportion as the part preceding (but excluding) 4 October 1974 of the renewal period for which the insurance premium was paid bears to the whole of that period; and (ii) shall refund to the owner or, as the case may be, to his estate the balance of the amount of the insurance premium which, except for this section, would be payable to the insurer; (b) if the renewal date of the contract of insurance in question was 4 October 1974 or a later date, shall refund to the owner the amount of the insurance premium which, except for this section, would be payable to the insurer. 16. Indemnity. (1) The owner or other insured under a contract of insurance shall not be liable to make to the Company or the Liquidator any payment on account of an insurance premium in respect of which an amount referred to in section 15 (1) has been paid to the Commissioner. (2) Neither the Company nor the Liquidator shall have any right or remedy in law against the Commissioner or the owner or other insured under a contract of insurance in respect of the refusal by the Commissioner to account for or to make any payment to the Company or the Liquidator in respect of any insurance premium in respect of which an amount referred to in section 15 (1) has been paid to the Commissioner,

6 908 Northumberland Insurance Company Limited, Etc., Act 1974, No. 83 PART IV-AMENDMENT OF VEHICLE & GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY (AUSTRALIA) LTD. (MOTOR VEHICLES INSURANCE) ACT Amendment of s. 14. Section 14 of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the expression " $125,000 " and substituting the expression " $ ".