Court Orders INSS to Restore Driver’s Pension: Landmark Decision in Cantabria. A driver from Cantabria has won a court case to have his disability pension reinstated after it was suspended by the INSS due to a missed MRI. The reason was equipment failure, not any refusal by the patient. The agency is now required to pay all owed amounts.
The INSS in Cantabria revoked the disability pension of a 56-year-old driver, citing an alleged improvement in his condition. However, a key medical examination—an MRI—was not performed due to a technical issue: the machine was out of order. The court proceedings showed that the failure to undergo the exam was not due to the patient's unwillingness to cooperate, but solely because the equipment was malfunctioning.
Since July 2022, the man has been officially recognized as unfit to work in his profession due to severe spinal problems: he was diagnosed with disc degeneration, arthrosis, and post-surgical complications. Despite this, in 2023 the INSS initiated a case review and scheduled another MRI to assess the progression. The driver came to the hospital on the appointed day but was unable to undergo the procedure—the machine was broken. He was promised a callback, but the only missed call was interpreted by the agency as a refusal to cooperate.
On this basis, the INSS announced the termination of payments starting January 2024, claiming that the patient did not attend the examination and his condition had improved. The man was left without a pension, despite persistent pain and limited mobility, and took the matter to court.
Court decision
In December 2025, the court of first instance in Santander sided with the driver. The INSS appeal was rejected: court ruling No. 346/2026 emphasized that the absence of an MRI was due solely to technical malfunction, not to any action by the patient. Moreover, further tests, including electromyography, confirmed chronic nerve root impairment and loss of muscle strength, making it impossible to return to previous work.
Why this matters
The court stated: disability pension cannot be revoked solely due to a formal administrative procedure or the absence of one of the tests, if it could not be performed for reasons beyond the patient's control. Actual, medically confirmed improvement is required. In this case, there was none.
Consequences for INSS
Now INSS must reinstate payments from February 2024 and compensate all pension arrears. This decision may set an important precedent for other cases where technical failures or system errors lead to loss of social benefits.
Issues of interaction between citizens and government agencies, and risks associated with technical failures, are becoming increasingly relevant. For example, new tax rules for owners of tourist apartments also require special attention to details and procedures to avoid financial losses.
A court decision in the case of a driver from Cantabria emphasizes: even formal system errors should not deprive citizens of legal payments if their situation has not changed and they are not at fault for the disruption of the process.
