A Pagani Zonda S supercar is the subject of a £300,000 insurance payout after it crashed in Scotland in September during a test drive, leaving it in need of extensive repairs.
The car, which cost more than half a million pounds new, was travelling on a narrow country road near Aberdeen when the accident happened, leaving it crashing through a fence and hitting a telegraph pole.
However the money will not be going to Formula One world champion and racing legend Sir Jackie Stewart.
Despite persistent rumours to the contrary, originally started by a Scottish newspaper, he was not driving the car at the time of the accident.
In fact, a spokeswoman for Sir Jackie has told the BBC: “Sir Jackie wasn’t in the country. He’s never driven the car and doesn’t know the owner.”
That would seem to lay that one to rest.
The insurance tab is being picked up by Aviva, the insurance giant formerly known as Norwich Union. A spokesman confirmed that the claim was “out of the ordinary” and the largest ever made in respect of a private car in the UK.
The car has been sent back to the manufacturer in Modena, Italy, for specialist attention. It is a real rarity, as not many more than 100 have ever been built, and they are produced at the rate of around 10 a year. This was a factor in Aviva’s decision to pay out on the claim.
Formula One champion Juan Manuel Fangio was involved in the early development of the car, which is manufactured from specialist materials including carbon fibre, aircraft aluminium and titanium.
Hear a Pagani Zonda in action here.