On January 1, 2016, Law 35/2015 came into force, reforming the system for assessing damages caused to people in traffic accidents.
This is a law that adapted the so-called "scale" for compensation for traffic accidents to the set of reforms that have occurred in this matter within the European Union. This law also modifies the consolidated text of the law on civil liability and insurance in the circulation of motor vehicles, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 8/2004, of October 29. Among the modifications of this law, a new article stands out that regulates the mediation procedure in cases of controversy.
Article 14 provides that, when the insurance company makes a financial offer with which the victim is dissatisfied andIn general, in any case of controversy, The parties may attend the mediation procedure in accordance with what is provided by the legislation in this matter. Thus, the injured party may request the initiation of mediation within a maximum period of two months from the moment of receipt of the offer.
Said mediation is voluntary for the injured party. and to which the insurance company must present itself. If after holding the first session of the mediation, which is the information session, one or both parties want to withdraw because they see that they will not reach an agreement, they can do so at any time. It is important to highlight that a judicial process between insurers can last between 18 and 24 months, while the duration of a mediation process may not exceed three months. Furthermore, as in any mediation process, the agreements between the parties are binding. If there is no agreement within this period of time, the mediation process will be suspended and you can go to court.
A special characteristic of the new law is that mediators must be professionals specialized in civil liability within the field of traffic and in the assessment system provided for in Law 35/21015. That is, they must know and know how to use the new scale; in addition to accrediting specific training to practice mediation in this area. The International School of Mediation teaches traffic accident mediation course that allows its students to attend individuals disagree with the offer made by the company insurer through the procedure regulated in Law 5/2012, of July 6, on mediation in civil and commercial matters.
On the other hand, in addition to being experts, the role of the mediator in this type of dispute generated by traffic accidents is different from that normally played in a standard mediation process. The mediator acts more as an expert facilitator of a negotiation than as a mediator. For example, in a normal mediation procedure, the mediator facilitates reaching an agreement, ceding all the protagonism to the parties and remaining neutral, impartial and, in a certain way, passive since whether or not to reach an agreement will be a free decision of the parties. On the other hand, in the case of mediation for discrepancies in compensation derived from traffic accidents, the mediator must develop an active conduct promoting an agreement between the parties.
The mediator's performance also has an important emotional charge. It is when the parties agree that the emotions between them open up. It is when everything will be palpable and visible. The degree of affectation, pain and damage will be seen. The parts are the protagonists. The restoration of emotional damage often involves this fact, knowing who is in front of us, to know what happened that day. All this helps to unclog processes. In fact, on many occasions, the parties do not only want financial compensation but rather obtain answers that will only be given by the other party. This is when the emotional restoration that benefits both parties really occurs.
Among the advantages of mediation in traffic accidents, we find the following:
- Agility: The intervention of a professional mediator promotes the resolution of the conflict in the shortest possible time, which compared to the average duration of a probable civil or criminal process represents a great advantage in terms of the satisfaction of all the parties involved, assuming in concretely for the company a reduction in the average life of its potentially judicial files.
- Cost reduction: The cost of the intervention of the professional mediator can be assumed equally between the parties involved in the process and be assumed entirely by the Company. In any case, its total cost will always be much lower than what a judicial procedure would entail. All of which makes mediation an enormously economical conflict resolution system.
- Perception of the insured and their loyalty: The active participation of the insured in the mediation process implies a greater perception of closeness with the possible solution, increasing their trust and loyalty towards their Insurance Company as it has offered them the possibility of participating directly in the satisfactory resolution of the conflict. posed.
- Avoidance of possible designations: The use of mediation and the high success rate that it can achieve would mean a decrease in the number of possible appointments of a private lawyer, not only in the specific incident in question but also in other future incidents in which the parties could intervene, once the mediator through his/her activity shows them the undoubted and obvious advantages of achieving a satisfactory solution without having to go to court.
- Competitive advantage: Mediation is called to play a relevant role as an efficient institution in the resolution of conflicts in traffic accidents. Using its effectiveness will mean a great competitive advantage for the insurance company and a great benefit and security for the injured party.
If you want to know more about traffic accident mediation, don't miss our latest free class on “Mediation in traffic accidents. Professionalize yourself” led by Mr. Cristóbal Carnero (lawyer specializing in civil liability and insurance and mediator), Ms. Emilia Ramírez (lawyer, mediator and professor at the International Mediation School) and Ms. Susana Pérez (director of the International Mediation School).
