Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1307485
7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 8 NOVEMBER 2020 NEWS UK Residency Card Applicants residing in Malta would need to fill in the form and submit a copy of the documents requested to the Expatriates Unit in Valley Road, Msida, whilst applicants residing in Gozo should apply at the eResidence Unit in St. Francis Square, Victoria Gozo. Applicants will be issued with a 10 year residence document once the status is confirmed. 2 1 Extended Hours of Service T: +356 2590 4000 W: www.identitymalta.com E (Malta): brexit.ima@gov.mt E (Gozo): eresidence-brexit.mgoz@gov.mt With the first call for applications coming to an end, UK Beneficiaries of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement can still apply for their new residency card by 30 th June 2021. The BREXIT after-hours service will be extended as follows: MALTA GOZO 23 rd Nov - 18 th Dec 2020 MONDAY - FRIDAY 2pm - 5pm Expatriates Unit, Msida 9 th Nov - 27 th Nov 2020 MONDAY - FRIDAY 1pm - 4pm eResidence Office, Victoria (Excluding Public Holidays) Perjury charges for insurance assessor in karting accident MATTHEW AGIUS AN insurance loss adjuster is to be investigated for perjury, after a go-karting operator was or- dered to pay damages to a cus- tomer who suffered a permanent disability when he crashed into a tree in 2010. Madame Justice Miriam Hay- man handed down judgment in a case filed by the customer against Badger Karting. The customer, aged 19 at the time, crashed into a tree after the steering wheel on the racing go-kart he had rented from the defendant came loose during a race. The court heard how em- ployees at the track had moved the seriously injured driver in- to another go-kart, drove him to his parked car and left him on the ground there without calling an ambulance. He was driven to hospital by his father, where he was found to require immediate knee sur- gery and was left with a 12% disability. The injured driver argued that the defendant company was solely responsible for the injury because the kart it pro- vided him with was defective and because the track was not equipped with any safety meas- ures to protect drivers. For its part, Badger Company Limited said the incident was entirely the fault of the driver's "lack of attention or skill." The plaintiff had been driving too fast and had lost control of the vehicle, the company said, denying any lack of safety measures, while insisting that its employees had not acted negligently. But none of the defendant company's witnesses had seen the incident happen and could not comment on the dynamics of the crash. The defence relied on a report by the motor damage asses- sor, Bernard Farrugia, who it had engaged, and who report- ed that the steering rod had sheared off – but only as a re- sult of the impact. However, it was found that he had filed two reports in the acts of the case, the most recent of which had omitted all the parts which imputed blame on the defendants. This modification was inten- tional and aimed at accomo- dating the defendant company, said the driver's lawyers. The ommitted parts of the report stated that there were inadequate safety measures in place and that Badger Karting did not have a documented risk assessment procedure. But a court appointed expert was not given the opportunity to examine the crashed kart as it had since been disposed of. This placed the plaintiff in a situation where it was impos- sible for him to directly prove the existence of a defect. Daniel Micallef, an employee of the company, testified that the damaged cart was a write- off and had been stored for "around a month" before it was disposed of. But the evidence showed that it was examined by the insurer some three months after the incident. This fact cast a shadow on Micallef's testimony. Madam Justice Miriam Hay- man declared the defendant solely responsible for the inci- dent due to negligence and ir- responsibility. The court observed that there was no contestation as to the percentage disability suffered by the victim. The total amount of damages owed to the man was calculat- ed by the court as amounting to €49,551. But the judge also said there were sufficient grounds to pro- ceed against witness Bernard Farrugia for perjury, ordering the registrar of courts to see that he is prosecuted according to law. magius@mediatoday.com.mt Assessor filed two reports, the most recent omitting all parts imputing blame on defendants who left injured client unattended by his car