Temple Garden Chambers is a leading common law set based in London and The Hague.
With excellence from top to bottom Chambers provides a first class service in a number of different fields.
Temple Garden Chambers is a leading common law set based in London and The Hague.
With excellence from top to bottom Chambers provides a first class service in a number of different fields.
27/09/2017
Dishonest claim for £86,000 rejected. Edward Hutchin, instructed by Andrew Auchterlounie of Keoghs, represented the successful Defendant and his insurers in this significant fraud case.
The Claimant claimed damages including a credit hire claim of over £86,000, following a road traffic collision alleged to have occurred when the Defendant reversed into the Claimant’s motorcycle. The claim was defended on the basis that it was fraudulent, the impact being the Claimant’s fault for driving into the Defendant’s stationary vehicle, and that the Claimant’s evidence about the accident and his losses could not be believed.
After a trial in Wandsworth County Court, involving oral evidence from the parties, and expert forensic engineering evidence, the claims were dismissed. The Judge held that the claim was fraudulent, the Claimant’s evidence having included a high degree of inconsistency and embellishment. She also found that the Claimant misled the court about his financial position, which underpinned his hire claim, and that his evidence about his other losses was unbelievable, so that the entire claim was fundamentally dishonest.
The claims were therefore dismissed, and an enforceable costs order made in favour of the Defendant. The Judge also provided for the Defendant to make an application for non-party costs against the hire company.
