‘Lack of legal cover means I’m facing jail time in Peru’

A crash at the Dakar Rally has resulted in Army veteran John Winskill facing a £250,000 bill. Sam Barker reports

Lack of basic insurance has left an Army veteran facing a £250,000 bill and possible imprisonment in Peru following a fatal car crash he says was not his fault. John Winskill, 48, took part in the 2013 Dakar Rally in a team put together by Race2Recovery, a charity that enables injured servicemen to take part in motorsports. Mr Winskill was formerly a Major in the Royal Scots regiment and worked for Nato in Bosnia investigating war crimes.

Mr Winskill joined the rally as a volunteer, driving a support car, but was not participating in the race.

While driving between parts of the 5,300-mile course, the support car Mr Winskill was driving hit a taxi. Two people were killed and six seriously injured, including Mr Winskill, who had to be cut free from the wreckage.

The Peruvian authorities told him at the time that they were investigating, but he heard nothing further for more than five years and assumed that the matter had closed. Then in February this year Mr Winskill received a 94-page legal document, written in Spanish, which said he was wanted in Peru to face two counts of negligent homicide and three counts of negligent wounding.

The court process had been going on without his knowledge and a trial is expected this year. Britain has an extradition treaty with Peru.

Mr Winskill said he had evidence of his innocence, including witness statements, videos and photographs, but the Peruvian courts would not accept it because of the advanced stage of the proceedings.

He had asked Race2Recovery in 2014 for the details of any legal insurance taken out for the rally. This sort of policy would have funded his court proceedings.

Mr Winskill said an old email from the charity had led him to believe that insurance of this kind had been taken out. His hopes were raised further when he was sent insurance documents, but they turned out to be useless. The documents were an insurance proposal, not an actual policy, meaning that he was not covered.

James Henderson of DAS UK Group, a legal expenses insurer, said: “Legal expenses insurance could cover your legal costs for issues such as unfair dismissal or discrimination at work, an injury from an accident that wasn’t your fault, or disputes involving faulty goods.

“With regard to this specific case, it’s important to note that motor legal expenses insurance policies are subject to territorial limits, such as the UK and EU, and this normally reflects where the policy is purchased. Had the incident happened within these territorial limits then he could have been covered for his legal costs.

“However, as it happened in Peru he would be covered only if he had purchased a local legal expenses insurance policy along with his motor insurance.”

‘We weren’t covered for what’s recognised to be the world’s most dangerous event’

The Charity Commission, a regulator, said charities were required to take out certain forms of insurance for staff and volunteers, such as travel cover. However, they had no legal obligation to take out legal expenses insurance, though the commission noted that this might be helpful.

Race2Recovery had been given £100,000 by the Endeavour Fund, which is backed by the royal family, before it took part in the rally. Mr Winskill said some of this cash should have been used to upgrade Race2Recovery’s insurance.