A passenger opens a door and damages another car: is motor insurance excluded?

Opening a door can form part of using the vehicle

In Case C-648/17, decided on 15 November 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union examined this precise situation: a passenger opened the door of a parked car and damaged the vehicle alongside it. The Court held that this falls within the concept of use of vehicles in the directive applicable at that time. Opening the door allows people to enter and leave and is connected with the vehicle’s transport function.

The Court also explained that being stationary in a car park and the act being performed by a passenger rather than the driver do not, by themselves, exclude that concept. This is neither a Portuguese judgment nor news from this week. It is European case law from 2018 on a defined question; it does not establish that every incident involving a door has the same outcome.

Sources: Tribunal de Justiça da União Europeia — acórdão de 15/11/2018, C-648/17, ECLI:EU:C:2018:917; factos, n.os 30–48 e dispositivo lidos em 02/11/2026 ↗

What current Portuguese law says about being stationary

In the current wording of Decree-Law 291/2007, Article 1-A(3) links use of the vehicle to use consistent with its usual function as a means of transporting people and goods at the time of the accident. The definition does not depend on whether the vehicle is parked or moving or on the characteristics of the ground. “It was stationary, so insurance cannot apply” is therefore not a sufficient analysis.

Clara asks Tiago to describe his actions: leaving the passenger seat after a journey, opening the door and making contact with the side of the neighbouring car. A factual description is more useful than choosing an exclusion in advance. This guide concerns getting out of the car; it does not resolve loading and unloading, use as working machinery or deliberately caused damage by analogy.

Sources: Diário da República — Decreto-Lei n.º 291/2007, artigos 1.º-A, 11.º e 14.º completos; consolidação em vigor, última alteração indicada 20/03/2025; lidos em 02/11/2026 ↗

The vehicle-use rule does not decide compensation on its own

Recognising that the situation may constitute use of a vehicle does not establish civil liability, the link between the door opening and the damage, the extent of the loss or every insurance requirement. For accidents in Portugal, Article 11 refers to the obligation to compensate established by civil law. The European judgment does not replace assessment of those elements in an actual claim.

Identify the property concerned as well. Article 14(4)(a) excludes damage to the insured vehicle itself from compulsory cover. If its door was also damaged, do not transfer the answer concerning a third party’s car to that repair. Any optional protection must be identified in the contract; do not assume own-damage cover exists.

Sources: Tribunal de Justiça da União Europeia — acórdão de 15/11/2018, C-648/17, ECLI:EU:C:2018:917; factos, n.os 30–48 e dispositivo lidos em 02/11/2026 ↗ · Diário da República — Decreto-Lei n.º 291/2007, artigos 1.º-A, 11.º e 14.º completos; consolidação em vigor, última alteração indicada 20/03/2025; lidos em 02/11/2026 ↗

Record the incident and use the appropriate channel

As practical preparation, safely record the location, the position of the cars, the door used and what each person observed. Context and damage photographs may help explain the sequence. State that a passenger opened the door; do not turn it into a moving collision in an attempt to simplify the claim. Keep necessary details in the private claims channel, without posting registration plates or documents in comments.

For an incident that has already happened, follow the policy’s claims instructions and use RMACHADO’s Support and claims route to organise the question. To compare future protection, select Motor under Request a quote. A quote request does not automatically report this accident, activate insurance or confirm payment for repairs.