2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 15:44
If you park your car on an incline, you should carefully consider which gear to use. If it's the wrong one, there is a risk of trouble with the insurance company.
Drivers should pay attention to the gear they are in when parking on sloping terrain. The ADAC pointed this out on Tuesday with a view to a judgment of the Higher Regional Court (OLG) Karlsruhe.
Engaged in third gear
In the negotiated case (file number 19 U 127/06) a driver parked his car on a street with a ten percent gradient. He pulled the handbrake and engaged third gear. In the opinion of the court, however, it would have been necessary to engage first or reverse gear to prevent the vehicle from rolling away.
According to the OLG Karlsruhe, the person concerned did not pay the necessary special attention to securing the vehicle. The driver should have been aware of the considerable danger posed by parking the car. In this case, an oversight or forgetting is not enough to excuse his behavior.
As the ADAC announced, the new Insurance Contract Act (VVG) makes the protection of a policyholder in the event of gross negligence dependent on the degree of fault. Insurance cover has not expired automatically since the beginning of the year. In cases like this one, many insurers refrain from reducing their policyholder's claims for gross negligence from the outset. Other insurance companies, on the other hand, only partially compensate those affected. (AG)
