Car Insurance claims

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Today was another extra ****** day for me.

A pensioner's car pulled out from a parking position on the right side of the road and hit my rear right door. He simply didn't look. The door is bent (but closes and functions 100% OK), there is some scuffing to the body further along and to the alloy wheel. I am sure there is no structural damage to the car frame. I hope this is not a Cat D write off. Today is my first day with Tesco and what a good start :shake:

Is my insurance going to go up after this, as it was not my fault? Will I lose that pointless 1 years no claim discount and if so would it really matter?
 
Why tell your insurance?

Give your details to the other party and let them sort it.
 
Is It a write off? What car and value.

Will it put your insurance up. Probably, but not this year, it will be next years premium that goes up.

yes you will probably lose the 1 years no claims as you will be making a claim. It used to be a fault claim but insurance companies now say any claim.
 
it is still at fault claims............. that they care about.

and in answer to the Op - no, it shouldn't. Why should you be penalised for some old differ being a bit ditzy?
 
It depends of if you have a protected policy or not which allows (depending on insurance company) up to 2 or 3 accidents over 3 years without loss of no claims discount. If you don't have a protected policy then more than likely you will loose some of your no claims bonus even if its not your fault. Insurance companies seem to work on a knock for knock basis, that is your company will foot the bill which is often cheaper that trying to claim off the other party involved. Not fair I know but thats how it works.

The only other way is to approach one of these no win no fee solicitors which I have used successfully when some nutter hit my car head on and pushed my car backward down into a 6 ft ditch beside the road causing over £9,000 worth of damage plus personal injury for myself and my passanger. Maybe worth a try to see if they can help, but you should always inform your insurance company. Just to add it is always advisable to notify the police as well incase an injury results and shows up some days later. Should you not take this last step, even if the police don't want to know, and a claim for injury is made then you could possible be in a bit of trouble.

In 50 years of motoring one learns a fair bit

Realspeed
 
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admirable said:
Can you prove this?
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It is law that you have to inform your insurance if there is an accident. The other party will inform their insurance who will insist on going through the OP's insurance so not informing your insurance company yourself could land you in trouble.

I fell foul of this myself once when I was involved in an accident. There was no damage to my vehicle and only a minor scrape to te other. He insisted that it was nothing and he would give me a call to let me know any cost of repair. He must have then realised it was a little more than nothing and obviously contacted his insurance company. The next thing I know, I get a call from my insurance company letting me know in no uncertain terms that I should have contacted them.
 
fabs said:
It is law that you have to inform your insurance if there is an accident. The other party will inform their insurance who will insist on going through the OP's insurance so not informing your insurance company yourself could land you in trouble.

I fell foul of this myself once when I was involved in an accident. There was no damage to my vehicle and only a minor scrape to te other. He insisted that it was nothing and he would give me a call to let me know any cost of repair. He must have then realised it was a little more than nothing and obviously contacted his insurance company. The next thing I know, I get a call from my insurance company letting me know in no uncertain terms that I should have contacted them.
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Yup, I just had exactly the same thing myself - three weeks before renewal. The other party had gone direct to their insurance company and I've got an outstanding claim against me which is causing problems.

As for the original question, if it was the other persons fault how is this even an issue? Just file a claim against them.
 
Read the small print.
 
realspeed said:
It depends of if you have a protected policy or not which allows (depending on insurance company) up to 2 or 3 accidents over 3 years without loss of no claims discount. If you don't have a protected policy then more than likely you will loose some of your no claims bonus even if its not your fault. Insurance companies seem to work on a knock for knock basis, that is your company will foot the bill which is often cheaper that trying to claim off the other party involved. Not fair I know but thats how it works.
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NO they don't - if an insurance co can get out of a bill they will do. If you call them and claim, they will fix your car and then try and claim off a TP for the costs. If it is a split liability, then they may well share costs.

What you need to do is to call the old duffers insurance co, ask them if they admit liability and would they like to manage the repairs for your car. This means they are in control off the costs so will be on top of things.

However, if you car is not worth much and you are concerned that the car could be written off, it is worth getting a quote for the repair yourself to see if they will right off the car.

You can also accept a settlement in lieu of a repair - you can simply ask them for some money -and that will be the end of it. What you then do with the money is up to you, so if you are happy to drive around in a damaged car then that is fine, or you could source a replacement door from a scrap yard and swap it yourself?

you could also speak to the old duffer and see if he wanted to settle without going through the insurers. He would then have to foot the bill himself. In this way of handling it, it means that if you were to choose not to mention it to your insurance co, whilst strictly you would be lying to your insurance company - which is not recomended and is not strictly legal - it would be hard for them to find out that you had been in a bump.

And count yourself lucky it happened on day one of your Tesco policy. If it happened on the last day of your old policy, you would have had to tell tesco about the bump, which at that point would count as 1) an accident (premium up) 2) a claim (premium increase) and 3) they would be unable to issue your no claims guarantee (BIIIIIG premium increase).

Hope this helps.

Oh, and if you drive anything bigger than a micra, whilst your car is being fised find a good reason to need a larger car and ask the other insruance co to get you a hire car.
 
Davec223 said:
Is It a write off? What car and value.

Will it put your insurance up. Probably, but not this year, it will be next years premium that goes up.

yes you will probably lose the 1 years no claims as you will be making a claim. It used to be a fault claim but insurance companies now say any claim.
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No, it means a claim against your insurance policy - as in they have to write a cheque. If you ring and report the accident, but tell them there is no claim, they you do not lose it.

If you ring and ask them to fix your car, it is a claim. If they subsequently are able to get this money from a third party - the at fault insurers- then the claim is then a non fault claim with no cost to them, so you keep your no claims bonus.
 
Be careful. Most insurers insist that you report any claim or possible claim within a prescribed period or as soon as reasonably practicable, and this includes a claim against you. This is usually one of the terms and conditions of cover, and failure to comply can provide grounds for repudiation.

You didn't say if there are any independent witnesses. The other party could report the accident to his own insurers, giving a different version of the facts. "I was waiting to pull out and he stopped and waved to me, then he suddenly accelerated. It was his fault." People lie to insurers all the time, and often convince themselves that their own version is actually correct. Report the accident now to protect your own interests, and don't approach the other party's insurers. Your own insurance company will regard this as interference and could use this as grounds to repudiate too.
 
daugirdas said:
Is my insurance going to go up after this, as it was not my fault? Will I lose that pointless 1 years no claim discount and if so would it really matter?
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Claims that are fully recovered from the other party do not generally affect your renewal premium or your no claims.

Regarding whether or not to tell the insurance company mentioned by others, it should be borne in mind that insurance contracts are unusual in law in that they are governed by the principle of utmost good faith, which means both parties are required to disclose anything that may be relevant to the other even if not asked. Most other contracts are not so stringent.
 
You must tell your insurance company. It's a material fact, whether the accident is your fault or not. As the other party is entirely at fault you claim off their insurance. You tell yours and contact their insurance company. As your vehicle was parked at the time it's unlikely to affect your premium. Don't go down the route of getting the other person to pay money for a repair as if you have any issues with them paying their insurer can deny responsibility as you have decided not to claim from them.

If you're offered any accident management facilities don't touch them as they're a sure fire way to get an inflated claim and potential expensive hire car charges if the other insurer thinks they are excessive which happens quite frequently.
 
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as above you have to report an accident to your insurers whether it was your fault or not, not doing so can land you in bother.

will your premium go up? unfortunately more than likely, after a non-fault accident many moons ago i was told by my insurer that i was now statistically more likely to have a fault accident. no idea how that works to be honest..
 
srichards said:
You must tell your insurance company. It's a material fact, whether the accident is your fault or not. As the other party is entirely at fault you claim off their insurance. You tell yours and contact their insurance company. As your vehicle was parked at the time it's unlikely to affect your premium. Don't go down the route of getting the other person to pay money for a repair as if you have any issues with them paying their insurer can deny responsibility as you have decided not to claim from them.[QUOTE/]

Yes, and no. Your claim is against the other party, not his insurer and you have no right of recourse against them. Report the matter to your own insurance company, who will exercise subrogation and try to recover from the other driver. He will, in turn, refer it to his insurer. They will usually sort it out between themselves, but these things don't always work out the way you want them to. You can, of course, initiate action against the other party directly, but your insurer will reserve the right to wash their hands of the matter as you have interfered with their right of subrogation.

If you're offered any accident management facilities don't touch them as they're a sure fire way to get an inflated claim and potential expensive hire car charges if the other insurer thinks they are excessive which happens quite frequently.
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A lot of insurers sub-contract to claims management companies now. That's OK, just decline the offer of a rental if you're liable for any unrecoverable costs.
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Somebody drove a delivery van into my parked car in November, and drove off. As it happens my car was parked outside my studio, my CCTV recorded what happened and so I simply claimed from his insurers. They didn't admit liability but they did collect my car, they got it repaired and returned it in perfect condition. They also instructed a claims management Company, their decision, and they arranged a hire car for me. Unfortunately it was a Peugeot 3008, but at least it was a car...

I didn't tell my insurance company as it was nothing to do with them and because there was no claim that involved them. A friend of mine notified his insurance Company when his car was stolen, 2 days later the car was recovered and he then notified his insurers that there would be no claim, but they took away his no claims bonus anyway, apparently making a note that a claim would be received soon was enough to justify this...
 
no no no no no you don't have to tell your ins co, if not making a claim...... if it's not going to cost them they don't give a flying.......

See the post above - by Garry Edwards.

All above board... all fine.
 
Read the small print on your policy, don't rely on what is being said here.
 
I phoned tesco on Sunday, and they hadn't setup anything at the time. They phoned me back today, asked some questions, etc. I have 2 options: get it repaired now, pay excess and try to claim from TP, or wait for the to pay. I think I'll wait, as I can still drive the car, and haven't got much spare cash after paying some hefty bills. I hope the other insurance will step in quickly.
 
Nothing wrong with you ringing them and asking where the claim is up to, and allowing them to organise repairs, car hire etc. What kind of car is it?
 
lawrie29 said:
Nothing wrong with you ringing them and asking where the claim is up to, and allowing them to organise repairs, car hire etc. What kind of car is it?
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It is the same hopeless Merc A170 from the last decade. At least spare body parts should be easy to find :lol:, but not in that colour :thinking:. And then I still have to sue the dealer for gearbox repairs. I bet that car is unlucky and should be disposed off.
 
If it isn't worth much and parts are expensive then it might get written off :) Insurance repairs have to use new panels and spray them.
 
srichards said:
If it isn't worth much and parts are expensive then it might get written off :) Insurance repairs have to use new panels and spray them.
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If they go to Merc then it will be expensive. Scrap sells doors complete for £40-50, and the rest is just polishing and spraying.
 
If they ran into you did you not ask them to sign a note accepting responsibility when you exchanged details? it is "no claims bonus" not "no blame bonus" if you don't claim from your insurance or have them do any work it should not affect you. If you have the third parties insurance details contact them asking what they intend to do re repairs, I'm sure I have been in a similar situation and never contacted my insurance, although the only witness was a police officer the third party was unlikely to contest blame.
 
neil_g said:
will your premium go up? unfortunately more than likely, after a non-fault accident many moons ago i was told by my insurer that i was now statistically more likely to have a fault accident. no idea how that works to be honest..
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Not Admiral by any chance ? They tried this with me a couple of years ago and I told them where to stick the price increase, they soon came back with a better price for me.
 
daugirdas said:
It is the same hopeless Merc A170 from the last decade. At least spare body parts should be easy to find :lol:, but not in that colour :thinking:. And then I still have to sue the dealer for gearbox repairs. I bet that car is unlucky and should be disposed off.
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This is how to make the best of a bad situation.

1. ring his insurance co, and ask if they accept liability. If they say yes, then game on. If they say no, then ask why not, they may be waiting on paperwork.

2. Go to three garages and get quotes. Go to merc, go to 2 other bodyshops of reasonable size near to you. Also ask how long the repair should take, I would expect about 5 days. make a note of the time this takes and the mileage you have driven. Also find out how much it would cost to get a replacement door and get it sprayed to match (Fred in a shed will be cheapest)

3. Ring the other insurance co and tell them the three quotes. Send them copies if they want them. Now, say to them that you would need a hire car of a similar size because of family/mileage/kit you put in it - explain a micra size car is too small (what the bodyshop would provide). Work car hire on about £20+vat a day to them. Add this to the cost of the repair, and also your time (at whatever hourly rate you get paid) and mileage at 0.50p per mile. Add on another £10 for various phone calls. All of these are justifiable costs in sorting out the claim (bear in mind if you were injured then they would be paying you in the thousands).

4. Ask them for a cash settlement. Say you would rather sort the whole thing out when you have time and you would be happy to settle for XXXX figure - base this figure on the cost of the repairs+car hire+ time+miles+calls+any other legitimate cost. Bear in mind insurance companies cannot claim back VAT. Make sure the settlement more than covers the cost of a used door and a door spray (you could ask someone like Chipsaway to do this, though I would recomment someone with a spray booth) and they will send you a check in full settlement of the claim. THey will be happy because the claim is sorted, no injuries and no ongoing repair with car hire racking up every day. You are happy as you can buy a replacement door and still have some money left.

This is all perfectly legal. You are not defrauding anyone, the other insurance company will see yu as saving them money, and you can be up a little bit yourself. IF you are right about how you do the repair, and are happy with the repair having no guarantee.

HTH
 
Just something worth noting that somebody further up the thread asked.

You have to have 4 years no claims before you can protect it as far as i recall.
 
lawrie29 said:
This is how to make the best of a bad situation.

1. ring his insurance co, and ask if they accept liability. If they say yes, then game on. If they say no, then ask why not, they may be waiting on paperwork.

2. Go to three garages and get quotes. Go to merc, go to 2 other bodyshops of reasonable size near to you. Also ask how long the repair should take, I would expect about 5 days. make a note of the time this takes and the mileage you have driven. Also find out how much it would cost to get a replacement door and get it sprayed to match (Fred in a shed will be cheapest)

3. Ring the other insurance co and tell them the three quotes. Send them copies if they want them. Now, say to them that you would need a hire car of a similar size because of family/mileage/kit you put in it - explain a micra size car is too small (what the bodyshop would provide). Work car hire on about £20+vat a day to them. Add this to the cost of the repair, and also your time (at whatever hourly rate you get paid) and mileage at 0.50p per mile. Add on another £10 for various phone calls. All of these are justifiable costs in sorting out the claim (bear in mind if you were injured then they would be paying you in the thousands).

4. Ask them for a cash settlement. Say you would rather sort the whole thing out when you have time and you would be happy to settle for XXXX figure - base this figure on the cost of the repairs+car hire+ time+miles+calls+any other legitimate cost. Bear in mind insurance companies cannot claim back VAT. Make sure the settlement more than covers the cost of a used door and a door spray (you could ask someone like Chipsaway to do this, though I would recomment someone with a spray booth) and they will send you a check in full settlement of the claim. THey will be happy because the claim is sorted, no injuries and no ongoing repair with car hire racking up every day. You are happy as you can buy a replacement door and still have some money left.

This is all perfectly legal. You are not defrauding anyone, the other insurance company will see yu as saving them money, and you can be up a little bit yourself. IF you are right about how you do the repair, and are happy with the repair having no guarantee.

HTH
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Thanks. I did that. They insist that their repairer takes over
 
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