Car accident in Italy: also grandparents are entitled to compensation for the death of a grandchild.

According to Italian Law, when a person dies because involved in a car accident, his family members are entitled to have a compensation for the loss of family relationship. 

Not all the members of family have right to this compensation, but only parents, children, spouse, brothers and sisters. However, according to some recent judgments of the Italian courts and the Cassazione Court (the Supreme Court in Italy), the damage for the loss of family relationship is recognized also to the grandparents of the deceased.

In fact, there is no doubt that even the grandparents suffer the death of a grandchild, especially if this took place in dramatic circumstances as a car accident.

In the past, the orientation of the Italian courts was to recognize the right to grandparents only when they were living with their grandchildren at the time of accident. But according to a judgment of the Supreme Court delivered on 2013, the requirement of cohabitation is not always necessary, because the relationship between grandparents and grandchildren cannot be limited by that circumstance. 

The court has expressed this principle in consideration also of the new means of communication that allow the family to keep the family relationships, even if the members of the family don't live in the same house. This principle also applies for grandparents and grandchildren, for example when the grandchildren were studing or working in another city or even abroad.

If you need some legal assistance for compensation claims in Italy, don't hesitate to contact us. Our consultancy is free (click here). 

Please see also:

Fatal car accident under the Italian penal code

Fatal car accident attorney in Italy

The compensation to relatives for the loss of family relationship according to Italian Law

What to do if your relative died in a car accident in Italy

Car accidents lawyers in Italy

Car accidents involving pedestrians in Italy