Avocat Nice – Compensation
DIFFICULTY IN QUANTIFYING A LOSS DOES NOT PREVENT COMPENSATION
Cassation Crim, 4 January 2023, no 22-81.782
The Court of Cassation has reaffirmed the principle of full compensation for loss by confirming that trial judges could not refuse to pay compensation on the basis of a lack of information about the cost of treatment from social security bodies.
In concrete terms, a person had been involved in a road traffic accident and there was no dispute as to who was at fault.
However, the compensation was reduced by the first judges in respect of future health expenses, because they considered that it had not been established that the Cacit tablets (essential to the victim’s treatment) were not covered by social security.
In other words, the victim had been refused compensation for his lifelong treatment because the social security body had not provided information on whether or not it was reimbursed.
For the Court, however, French law is crystal clear. The loss must be made good in its entirety, within the limits of the parties’ submissions.
Accordingly, it is up to the courts to assess the loss and compensate it in its entirety once they find that it exists, regardless of the difficulties encountered in putting a figure on it.
Consequently, the failure of the health insurance funds to act should not affect the assessment and compensation of victims.
In practical terms, the onus is therefore solely on the victim to demonstrate the existence of a loss and to propose a valuation.
Once the injury has been recognised, and within the limits of the claim, the judges must rule on compensation, regardless of whether the Fund has produced any information about its coverage.
We can only welcome the reaffirmed position of the Court, which regularly sets itself up as a defender of the principle of full compensation for loss, in the interests of the care of victims.
The DAMY law firm remains at your disposal to help you obtain the best possible compensation following an accident.
Please do not hesitate to contact us and we will arrange a meeting for you within two working days.
