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In a judgment of 3 December 2002, the Berlin Regional Court ruled on a case involving a rear-end road traffic collision (case number 45 O 155/22). The peculiarity of the case is that the accident occurred in Bulgaria and therefore Bulgarian substantive law applies pursuant to Art. 4 para. 1 of the Rome II Regulation. Liability for the rear bumper, the rear bumper cladding, the lower panel, the trailer coupling, the tailgate and the multimedia system are not at issue, but the parties do dispute the amount of damages. In his report, the expert appointed by the plaintiff valued the car at €4854.15 so that it could be repaired. The expert's fees totalled €1048.39.

 

Since Bulgarian substantive law is applicable to the determination under the Rome II Regulation, the Law on Obligations and Contracts and the Insurance Code have to be applied. The consequence of in rem restitution, as it is called in German law, follows from Art. 45 of the Code of Obligations and Art. 432 par. 1 of the Insurance Code. This means that the condition that existed before the loss event must be restored. This in turn gives rise to compensation.

 

As already mentioned, the amount of the subject matter of the dispute is problematic. According to Art. 386 of the Insurance Code, the regulations for restoring the vehicle to its condition prior to the damaging event in the country in which it is registered are decisive. As the vehicle is registered in Germany, there are no doubts with regard to this aspect. This is underlined by the expert opinion obtained in these proceedings by an expert from the Institute for Eastern European Law, in which no contradictory points are listed. A further expert opinion in favour can be found in another proceeding, which also took place before the Berlin Regional Court (file number 45 O 231/22). Other courts are in favour of this, which is why the aspect of fictitious repair costs can be ruled out beyond doubt and the value in this case is to be determined to 4854,15 €.

 

Another aspect to be considered under Bulgarian law is whether the expenses are reasonable. In contrast to damage, an expense is a voluntary sacrifice of property. In German law, there are various connecting factors for expenses. Bulgarian law is based on whether they are reasonable. In the context of a claim against a foreign insurance company, full documentation of the damage is reasonable, which an estimate does not provide.

 

The plaintiff would not need to be referred to an expert appointed by the Bulgarian liability insurer as this is not relevant due to the authorisation. Reference is made to the above with regard to Art. 386 of the Insurance Code.

 

Source: Pixabay/bulgaria-2115804_1280