Mont Blanc tunnel closed Sept to Dec 2023 for repairs

Crikey, that's quite a long time, how long is the detour?
 
Crikey, that's quite a long time, how long is the detour?

That’ll depend on which way you go on the day. But don’t worry, you’ve got a bit over five months to work it out:

118f7c86372c011a4d93295626b8a258.jpg



PS The tunnel was closed for three years, commencing March 1999, which is a very long time. I know this only as we were the products liability reinsurance broker to Volvo at the time. It was a Volvo lorry which caught fire, so they were joined into the very lengthy criminal trial but were found ‘not guilty’. There was though significant civil damages and defence legal costs which followed, which Volvo and our reinsurers paid for.
 
Both detours could be a challenge in December!!!

GSB probably not so bad as the highest part of the pass can be bypassed via the tunnel, I suspect the PSB is closed in winter?
 
That’ll depend on which way you go on the day. But don’t worry, you’ve got a bit over five months to work it out:

118f7c86372c011a4d93295626b8a258.jpg



PS The tunnel was closed for three years, commencing March 1999, which is a very long time. I know this only as we were the products liability reinsurance broker to Volvo at the time. It was a Volvo lorry which caught fire, so they were joined into the very lengthy criminal trial but were found ‘not guilty’. There was though significant civil damages and defence legal costs which followed, which Volvo and our reinsurers paid for.
Interesting. I believe the fire was caused by a lit cigarette butt being discarded out the drivers window and entering the engine air filter. Is this correct?

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Both detours could be a challenge in December!!!

I wouldn't want to be in the area in a motorbike in December.
If in summer, and on a Motorbike, I'd really wouldn't want to cross via the tunnel.

If going through Switzerland (St. Bernard) at this point it might make sense to go through Lugano/Milano through Gotthard Tunnel.
The only downside of traveling through Switzerland is a slightly longer trip time.
 
Interesting. I believe the fire was caused by a lit cigarette butt being discarded out the drivers window and entering the engine air filter. Is this correct?


As I recall, it was never proven categorically as to what caused the catastrophic and terrible fire, which all but destroyed the tunnel and killed so many people. Our ‘interest’ in it - as the reinsurance broker - ceased when Volvo, as the truck manufacturer, were found not guilty in the criminal trial. We did though go on to collect the claim on Volvo’s behalf from reinsurers for the civil damages and legal costs which followed the criminal trial, the criminal trial having taken precedence.

Volvo’s lawyer was a very urbane and very senior French lawyer from a top Paris law firm. Not surprisingly, it was not cheap.

He spoke and wrote absolutely perfect English and explained very complex legal matters in an easy to understand way, often to a room full of reinsurers. I went to listen in on some of them, though it was my colleagues who dealt with the products liability. Ironically, towards the end of the proceedings, the lawyer changed law firms, going to work for what was in affect the ‘opposition’. But, before doing so, he gave a clear promise to everyone that he would have nothing to do with the affair in his new home and would discuss it with nobody. He remained absolutely true to his word; a real gentleman and definitely someone you would want ‘On your side’ when the chips were down.
 
Interesting reflection on events and matters, Wapping. How nice to be able to share your experience of watching a distinguished professional's personal integrity... I think that we all benefit by being reminded of this in current times.
 
Thank you.

The claim was also ‘interesting’ in that Axa, the giant French insurance company, were the insurers of the tunnel itself and had a share of the Volvo products liability, too. Axa’s participation on the tunnel was larger than their share of the products liability but they were the ‘lead reinsurer’ on the liability. They therefore had a conflict of interest, potentially paying out less, if the claim went down the liability channel. For other reinsurers, the position was reversed, where they had more exposure (it would cost them more) if it went down the liability route and less if it went down the property route.

We, as the broker for the liability, realised this and explained the misfit to Axa in Paris, along with the conflict of interest they potentially faced over what would no doubt be a lengthy legal and claims process. In a gentlemanly way, Axa also separated the two into two separate departments, handing over their rights to an independent reinsurer (it was I think Gerling, Germany, themselves very large) who were number two on the liability policy to negotiate and run the liability claim on Axa’s behalf. In short, Axa left it to Gerling, for good or bad. This compromise we then had to ‘sell’ to all the other reinsurers on the liability policy; likewise Axa and their reinsurance broker had to ‘sell’ the compromise to the property insurers, too. In these negotiations, my colleagues were helped tremendously by the Volvo lawyer and by Axa / Gerling’s own lawyers, arriving at the happy compromise. It all worked perfectly. When the civil liability claim was finally agreed, we collected millions of pounds from the reinsurers very promptly.

If nothing else, it proves that insurance does work. The tunnel was rebuilt (a huge, very technical engineering and expensive feat in itself (the heat of the fire had cracked the very rock of the mountain) but more importantly the families of those killed or badly burned / injured in the fire and the costs of those disrupted by three years of tunnel closure, along with the court costs, were all paid.
 
Fascinating... Thanks for sharing your insight (a new perspective, perhaps, on the French commercial environment.... And interesting to see that Franco-German trust level. I am sure that it was difficult work, nonetheless!
 
The insurers / reinsurers were a big geographic mix, with us in London. It was a real effort, with lots of help, to pull them all together. As the claim / court hearings went on for years, my colleagues obviously had to renew the liability policy several times during the process; another interesting task, as you can imagine. The property brokers had to also renew their policy, too. Hey-ho, I guess it’s what we and the underwriters get paid to do.

I think there was another twist in the story. The trials / hearings in court were going to be huge, with lots of witnesses and press interest. It was proposed to transfer it all to Paris, as there was no courtroom large enough otherwise. The locals thought wanted, for very understandable reasons, to hold it locally, not least so that justice could be seen to be done. The hearings were held in a gymnasium, re-licenced (if that is the word) as a court.

There was definitely a twist, as to which laws (criminal and civil) would apply, as the tunnel joins two countries. I cannot remember how that was decided on. I seem to recall that there was a lot of translation between French, Italian and other languages, throughout all the proceedings, maybe also into / from some local dialects.
 
Both detours could be a challenge in December!!!

The Frejus tunnel route is fine all year round, it completely avoids having to go over any passes just like the Mont blanc tunnel. It might take a bit longer depending on your destination.
 
Thanks for your illustration of the very interesting and complex insurance claim Wapping. Concise and factual as ever.

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I wouldn't want to be in the area in a motorbike in December.
If in summer, and on a Motorbike, I'd really wouldn't want to cross via the tunnel.

If going through Switzerland (St. Bernard) at this point it might make sense to go through Lugano/Milano through Gotthard Tunnel.
The only downside of traveling through Switzerland is a slightly longer trip time.

I did think about putting the thread in the Campervan section as they are likely to be most affected e.g. if heading for a bit of snowboarding then onward for a bit of winter sunshine in Puglia.
 
It's good to know still!
I do Monte Bianco every time I drive to Rome and back by car. Generally at least twice a year.

I used to go through Switzerland but, as stated above, I find going through France way faster. I can get south of Turin from London in a day.
 
When I was driving I used go into Italy through Gothard to access Milan, but coming back was usually from Turin so would choose between Monte and Frejus. Monte was quicker but in winter more prone to snow.
 
Just did the Mont Blanc tunnel last week on the GSA travelling from Chamonix to Aosta. The aggressive French woman in the ticket kiosk with zero charisma and a bad attitude stiffed me 51 Euro for a return when I only wanted a single trip, all the others paid 34 Euro, rode off quickly due to a big queue building behind me and didn't realise till I checked my receipt at the hotel later: Watch how much the buggers try charging you. (She was a right miserable cow!). Gave me a right lecture about no slower than 50kph, no faster than 70 kph, no stopping in the tunnel and keep 150M apart (two blue lights) before she would raise the entry barrier.

We were originally going up over to Italy via the Route Du Roselend but the connected Route Du Cormet was closed off down by the lake to all traffic and we were running too late in the day to keep trying the other passes in the hope they were open so we took the tunnel.

Came back via La Thuile and the Petit St Bernard to Bourg St Maurice two days later with no problems but still quite snowy up top for late May-Early June.
 


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