STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS ON CLAIMS BY SURVIVING RELATIVES: THE GRAND SENATE HAS UNIFIED THE CASE LAW
The Supreme Court of the Slovak Republic unified judicial practice on the limitation of claims brought by surviving relatives of road traffic accident victims. For direct claims against the insurer, the limitation period begins to run only one year after the insured event.
The resolution of the Grand Chamber of the Civil Law Division of the Supreme Court of the Slovak Republic, case no. 1VCdo/9/2025 of 12 May 2026, brought significant unification of judicial practice concerning the limitation of claims brought by surviving relatives of victims of road traffic accidents.
The Supreme Court considered the question of when the limitation period begins to run in respect of a claim for compensation for non-pecuniary damage under Section 13(2) of the Civil Code, asserted by a surviving relative directly against the liability insurer for damage caused by the operation of a motor vehicle pursuant to Section 15(1) of Act No. 381/2001 Coll. on compulsory contractual insurance against liability for damage caused by the operation of a motor vehicle and on amendments to certain acts (the “Motor Third-Party Liability Insurance Act”).
The Grand Chamber concluded that, in respect of claims asserted directly against the insurer pursuant to Section 15(1) of the Motor Third-Party Liability Insurance Act, in the wording effective until 31 July 2024, the limitation period under Section 104 of the Civil Code does not begin to run until one year after the insured event.