Three years ago, Ischgl became a corona hotspot in Europe, and hundreds of Austrians also became infected there. A woman whose husband died of Covid sued the Republic and hoped her legal expenses insurance would help. The Supreme Court (OGH) has now definitively rejected this. The Consumer Protection Association (VSV) reacted angrily: the court left the victims out in the rain.
The plaintiff claimed that her husband had died as a result of the inadequate official pandemic management and that the Republic of Austria was therefore liable for the damages. She demanded that the legal expenses insurance cover the costs of the official liability procedure. Your request has now been rejected by the Supreme Court.
Due Diligence Violations “Typical Consequences”
Because Covid-19 should be considered a catastrophe and therefore there is no insurance coverage, the decision on the OGH website said. This does not exist for the “experience of legal interests in causal connection with disasters”. The Supreme Court sees the connection as a given: due to the corona outbreak in the spring of 2020, the authority had to act regularly. The alleged breaches of due diligence are thus “typical consequences” of the risk to be excluded.
VSV chairman Peter Kolba vehemently contradicts: The immediate cause was not the pandemic, but mistakes by the authorities. For example, he states that an official broadcast from the state of Tyrol on March 5, 2020 stated that Icelanders on a skiing holiday in the Tyrolean Oberland probably only became infected “on the plane on the return journey from Munich”. to Reykjavík”. . At that time, Covid was already underway in Ischgl. People from 45 countries romped around there, and 220 Austrians were among those infected.
Sharp criticism of the OGH
In a broadcast, Kolba sharply criticizes the decision to uphold the effectiveness of the catastrophe exclusion clause and accuses the OGH insurance senate of being “business-heavy”. Austrian insurers would avoid taking over the costs by invoking the clause. “What do you think of a legal assistance insurance that will do anything in an emergency to avoid having to pay?”, criticizes the VSV chairman.
He refers to about 200 cases in Germany in which legal expenses insurers intervened and to a number of decisions by higher regional courts that considered the exclusion clause to be opaque and ineffective. The SAAM will now try to find “legal insurers willing to protect consumer rights efficiently” and work with them, Kolba explained.
The VSV recently filed a class action lawsuit against the Republic of Austria and the state of Tyrol over the Ischgl case. It is about a disputed value of almost 3.4 million euros.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
