Advocates state difficulties of obtaining compensation for explosion damage in Stavropol

If the incident is officially recognized as a terror act, compensation for the cars damaged in the explosion in Stavropol, in which Zaur Gurtsiev was killed, is available only to CASCO insurance owners.

The lawyers interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have commented on the issue of compensation to the families of those killed during terror acts and the owners of cars damaged in such acts.

If the event is officially recognized as a terror act, compensation to victims’ families is regulated by the Federal Law of March 6, 2006, No. 35-FZ "On Counteracting Terrorism", said Timur Filippov, an advocate.

"According to Article 18 of this law, the state is obliged to compensate for the damage caused to the life, health and property of individuals as a result of a terror act. Compensation is carried out at the expense of the federal budget, and also – if possible – at the expense of the property of the persons involved in committing the terror act. The compensation amount may be further established by separate resolutions of the Russian Government (for example, in the case of the terror act at the Crocus City Hall in 2024, the victims’ families were paid three million roubles each from the budget of the Moscow Region)," Mr Filippov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. Besides, victims’ relatives can file a claim for compensation for the suffered moral harm based on Article 151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation. The compensation for moral harm is collected from the guilty parties if there are duly established grounds, the advocate has explained. "If the casualty had dependents, they are entitled to monthly payments in accordance with Article 1088 of the above Civil Code, while payments are due to minor children, disabled people, elderly parents and other persons who were dependent on the casualty. If the explosion is not recognized as a terror act, but, for example, occurred as a result of an emergency accident (gas of fuelling station explosion, etc.), no mandatory federal compensation is envisaged. Such payments are possible, but only by decision of regional authorities (for example, during an accident in Makhachkala in 2023, one million roubles were paid to each of casualties’ family). It is possible to receive compensation if there is a claim against the guilty person (for example, against the owner of the building or the company, or the person in charge of safety, or if there is voluntary insurance). That is, in the case of "ordinary" explosions, payments are possible, but not guaranteed by the law," Timur Filippov has concluded and explained when speaking about compensations for damaged cars that the issue of compensations for property damage (including cars) that occurred as a result of a terror act is also regulated by Article 18 of the above Federal Law No. 35-FZ.

"However, in practice, car owners can receive compensations only if they have the CASCO insurance, which includes the risk of a "terror act". Regular OSAGO policies don’t cover such risks. State compensation for damage to citizens' property in such cases is not automatic and depends on the specific payment mechanism provided by the authorities. Thus, if the state has failed to adopt a special resolution on compensation for property damage, and the owner has no insurance that covers terror acts, no compensation will be made," Mr Filippov has noted.

The lawyer, who spoke to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent on condition of anonymity, said that payments to relatives and friends of those killed in terror acts is regulated by the "Rules for the provision of other inter-budget transfers from the federal budget, the source of financial support for which are budgetary allocations from the reserve fund of the Government of the Russian Federation, to the budgets of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation for the financial support of certain measures to eliminate emergency situations of natural and man-made nature, the implementation of compensation payments to individuals and legal entities who suffered damage as a result of a terror act, and compensation for the damage caused during the suppression of a terror act by lawful actions" adopted in 2019. According to these rules, family members (spouse, children, parents and dependents) of citizens who perished as a result of a terror act and/or when a terror act was stopped by lawful actions are entitled to compensation in the amount of one million roubles for each deceased person, divided equally among all the family members.

The lawyer has also noted that the owners of the cars damaged in the terror act had to include the relevant clauses into their insurance policies during consultations at the insurance company's office in order to receive compensation for the damage. "The risks of terrorism and sabotage acts must be specifically stipulated. If there is a need to receive compensation, it will be necessary to provide the relevant documents proving that the damage was caused by a terror act. The Ministry for Emergencies (MfE) can provide such an examination," the lawyer has stressed. As for those whose insurance does not include such a clause, according to the law, insurance companies are not obliged to compensate them for anything; and the authorities only issue compensations for the essential property, which does not include a car. According to the lawyer, now the authorities of the relevant regions can provide compensations to victims whose cars were not covered by insurance, or whose insurance had no clause on damage as a result of a terror act.

This was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on June 2, 2025 at 12:28 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.