A majority of Formula One races and stakeholders fall under the EU administration. Thus any law released by the European Union will affect Formula One somewhere or the other. The European Union recently released a new Motor Insurance Directive legislation which requires compulsory insurance to all vehicles , including Formula One racing cars, before they can be used for the desired purposes. No racing car is currently covered under any sort of insurance.
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According to the Motorsport Industry Assocation (MIA), the introduction of this law will have a catastrophic effect on the motor racing industry and affect each and every individual directly or indirectly affected by it.
The MIA has warned the motorsport professionals about making certain amedments and be prepared if the bill is indeed passed. Clearly no insurance company will be ready to cover the risk of drivers and the machines that they drive.
Chris Aylett, the MIA’s chief executive, told Auto Express that unless the EU amended the bill to exclude race cars from the same, motor sports would become illegal in the countries falling under EU.
The decision to extend third party insurance to all vehicles was made in 2014 when a Slovenian farmerworker’s claims were rejected by the insurance company after he was knocked down a ladder via a tractor.
The insurance company rejected the claim saying that the incident took place on private land and involved agricultural machinery.
So, unless things are amended, F1 and in fact any other motorsport that takes place on EU lands will be deemed illegal and be a thing of the history books. There’s no official word when the ruling will take place from the EU, but whenever it does, the entire racing fraternity will be eying it closely.
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Who would’ve thought F1 will be facing a threat because of insurance claims?
