The High Court has ordered a driver and Permanent TSB Finance Limited to pay €75,000 jointly and severally to a man injured in a 2004 road crash. The court found that the finance company remained the van’s owner and had consented to the driver continuing to use it after terminating their lease agreement.
The judgment by Mr Justice Barr concerned a collision on 21 October 2004. The parties accepted that Robert Lawlor’s negligent driving caused the crash, and agreed that the plaintiff, Ken Devitt, was entitled to €75,000 against Lawlor. The remaining issue was whether the finance company was also liable under section 118 of the Road Traffic Act 1961.
Permanent TSB Finance had bought a Fiat Doblo van for Lawlor under a business lease signed in July 2003. After payment defaults, the company sent a termination notice on 6 September 2004, about six weeks before the crash. The arrears were €387.05. The agreement required the lessee to return the vehicle after termination, but the company did not repossess it before the collision.
The finance company argued that Lawlor remained in possession “under the agreement” and was therefore the vehicle’s owner under section 49 of the Road Traffic Act 1994. Alternatively, it argued that if the lease had ended, Lawlor was driving without its consent and the Motor Insurers Bureau of Ireland should meet the claim. The Bureau argued that the terminated lease meant Lawlor was no longer in possession under the agreement, while the finance company had allowed him to keep driving.
Justice Barr accepted evidence from a finance company witness that termination notices remained in effect until all arrears were cleared. He found that the September notice terminated the lease and had not been nullified by the time of the crash. Section 49 therefore did not apply: Lawlor was not then holding the vehicle under the lease agreement.
The judge also found that the finance company had not taken steps to repossess the van and continued negotiating with Lawlor about payments. In those circumstances, he was driving with the company’s consent. His failure to maintain adequate insurance did not remove that consent, the judge concluded, relying on the Supreme Court’s decision in Homan v Kiernan.
The court held that Permanent TSB Finance was the owner at the time of the collision and was liable alongside Lawlor. It awarded joint and several judgment for €75,000. The judgment does not state a separate award against the Motor Insurers Bureau.