Liabilities, indemnities and insurance

Power or duty of Secretary of State to indemnify
35
1
Subsections (2) and (3) apply where—
a
injury or damage is sustained by a person as a result of spaceflight activities carried out by the holder of an operator licence (“the licensee”),
b
that person is not an individual of a prescribed description taking part in, or otherwise engaged in connection with, those activities, and
c
the licensee is liable to that or some other person (“the claimant”) in respect of the injury or damage.
2
If the liability amount exceeds the insurance amount, the Secretary of State may indemnify the licensee in respect of the difference.
In this subsection—
a
“the liability amount” means the amount of the licensee's liability (as limited by or under regulations made under section 34(5), if it is so limited);
b
“the insurance amount” means the amount for which the licensee is insured in respect of that liability (or, if a condition imposed by virtue of paragraph 35(a) of Schedule 1 requires the licensee to be insured for a greater amount in respect of it, that greater amount).
3
The Secretary of State must indemnify the claimant in respect of any difference between—
a
the amount of the licensee's liability as limited by or under regulations made under section 34(5), and
b
what the amount of that liability would be but for the regulations.
4
The Secretary of State is entitled—
a
to participate in legal proceedings concerning a liability in relation to which a power under subsection (2) or duty under subsection (3) might arise, or
b
to direct the conduct of the case of a person alleged to be liable in such proceedings.
5
Regulations may—
a
prescribe limits on the amounts that the Secretary of State may or must pay under subsection (2) or (3);
b
prescribe cases or circumstances in which the Secretary of State's power under subsection (2) or duty under subsection (3) does not arise;
c
make provision supplementing subsection (4).
S. 35(1)(b) in force at 26.11.2018 for specified purposes by S.I. 2018/1224, reg. 2(mm)
S. 35(5) in force at 26.11.2018 by S.I. 2018/1224, reg. 2(nn)
S. 35 in force at 29.7.2021 by S.I. 2021/817, reg. 2, Sch. para. 63 (with reg. 3)