Outgoing minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen will appeal in the claims handling of the stint drama. In the accident involving the electric wagon, often used by schools and childcare centers, four children were killed in 2018. Immediately afterwards, the stint was taken off the road. It was a major expense for institutions, which now had to arrange other transport.
The judge ruled on March 4 this year that the State should have offered schools compensation immediately when the stint was taken off the road, but Van Nieuwenhuizen disagrees. According to her, it was necessary for safety reasons that the electric wagon immediately left the road and there was no time to wait for the compensation procedure first.
In addition, she disagrees with the judge's verdict on a tougher version of the stint. According to Van Nieuwenhuizen, this 1200-watt version has not been approved by the ministry and should therefore never have been on the road. She thinks it's a souped-up version of the 800-watt stint. It has been approved.
Council of State
But the judge sees the heavier version as the same vehicle. If no distinction is made, institutions that used the heavier stint may also receive compensation. If the minister is right, then only institutions that used the lighter, approved version may be compensated.
The minister now wants a decision from the Council of State, the highest administrative judge in the Netherlands. Before she starts paying compensation, she first wants to await that decision.
There is now a replacement for the stint: the BSO bus. It was approved for road use at the end of last year. Drivers must first undergo training before being allowed to drive the vehicle.
