It was an unprecedented series of incidents that occurred this Friday evening shortly before 7:30 p.m. on the E19 motorway near Nimy-Maisières (Mons). About fifty vehicles were indeed victims of punctures, following a bulky object strewing the ground of the expressway. The cars affected formed a long line, lined up on the hard shoulder. “The show was unusual to say the least.“, confides one of the unlucky motorists.
The federal police communicates on its site that it is a “bulky object on the E19 (A7) Bxl> Mons > Valenciennes (F) near Mons towards Valenciennes. Left Lane Obstructed, Dangerous Situation“, however, specifying the nature of the object,”a large piece of wood at kilometer marker 57“, and calling for caution.
What if you are one of the prejudiced?
In such a situation, it is better to be well advised. Because, if the authorities cannot find the possible vehicle which would have lost its load, which would be at the origin of the damage, the prejudices could turn against the manager of the road network, the SPW and the Sofico. This is where it gets complicated, because a simple insured can quickly be overwhelmed by the red tape that would result from a request for intervention from the SPW.
“This is the type of case where the burden of proof lies with the person claiming“, says Didier Delattre, from the ABCD Assurfinances (P&V) office in Quiévrain. “First, you need to file a complaint, a witness and a photo file. Because indeed, it is necessary to be able to prove that the responsibility lies with the SPW, by a lack of foresight or prevention in particular. In general, it is necessary to know how to prove the fault, the damage and the link between the fault and the damage.“
Obviously, in certain situations, establishing a photographic record highlighting the lack of foresight of the SPW can prove to be tricky, especially on the motorway. “The greater the number of disaster victims, as in the present case, the more likely it is that there will be an intervention.”
However, in some insurance contracts, a “tire guarantee” is provided. “Which means that these victims can call on their own insurance. Depending on the contracts, there is a risk of deductible. If they are not covered by this peril, if they have legal protection, the latter would allow them to appeal to the SPW insurer. It is not an easy process and you have to be patient. But the more complete the file, the more likely it is to succeed.” .
Either way, the help of an insurance broker can be invaluable. For injured motorists who wish to draw up their declaration without assistance, the complete procedure is mentioned in the conditions of use of the Sofico website.