Insurance Claim

**Craig** · 30 Dec 2004, 14:29 (Ref:1189918)

Okay so most of you who know me and my driving won't believe it but today, after five years of owning my car, I had my first crash! Only a little knock really and I don't think it's worth the effort of claiming to be honest - front wing creased, but will probably pop back out, headlamp cracked, that sort of thing.

Now having never had to make a claim before I could use some help - am I supposed to notify the insurance company or don't they care? What happens if the other party wants to make a claim - I suspect they will as the two doors on the drivers side were dented in - will I be in poo if I don't notify my company?

All a bit of a pain in the arse really. I was only taking the 'long way round' as I had so much time to kill this morning and decided to drive down a little road I took every day for 10 years without incident. Now, the first time I've driven down it in four years, I stack the poxy car! Oh well!

**Craig** · 30 Dec 2004, 14:41 (Ref:1189924)

Also, looking at my insurance documents, I have something called 'Maximum No Claims Bonus For Life' - I presume this means I'll not lose my NCD? (Though I'm sure my premium will go up nonetheless...!

)

StephenRae · 30 Dec 2004, 14:55 (Ref:1189929)

You will have to inform the ins. co otherwise when the third party decides the 'whiplash' you caused is life threatening the ins. co. may have a getout.
You may as well get your car repaired by the ins. co. as you will have to pay the 'excess' anyway!

**Tim Falce** · 30 Dec 2004, 15:36 (Ref:1189953)

Quote:

Originally Posted by StephenRae

You will have to inform the ins. co otherwise when the third party decides the 'whiplash' you caused is life threatening the ins. co. may have a getout.
You may as well get your car repaired by the ins. co. as you will have to pay the 'excess' anyway!

It all depends who is to blame, Craig will only have to pay his own excess and can get it back if it is the third party's fault. If the damage is minor I would do it myself as even though you have to inform the insurance company it will affect future premiums if they have to pay out. All this assumes it is Craigs fault.
I have just gone through all this and my car was off the road for 4 weeks for just a bumper and a bit of paint. It all ended up being a nightmare and I didn't have a courtesy car.

**Craig** · 30 Dec 2004, 15:58 (Ref:1189962)

No - it was my fault. Fella in people carrier came towards me as I entered a tightish slippery downhill bend. A small lock-up so came off the brakes, on the brakes, off the brakes... then there just wasn't room to avoid him as the back left wheel locked up on the mud at the side of the road and turned the front of my car into the side of his.

I'll have a look at my documents to see how I report it. If the insurance company are going to pay out to repair matey boys car then I may as well have mine done too. My cousin runs a body shop so I'll see if he can organise a couple of quotes...

How frustrating. But there we go - it happens - could be worse!!

JohnMiller · 30 Dec 2004, 15:58 (Ref:1189965)

Quote:

Originally Posted by falcemob

It all ended up being a nightmare and I didn't have a courtesy car.

Moral of story - buy quality cover (and read the documentation).

**Tim Falce** · 30 Dec 2004, 16:08 (Ref:1189973)

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnMiller

Moral of story - buy quality cover (and read the documentation).

It's a trade off between cost and cover. I have been with Direct line for years. I wouldn't expect the car to be off the raod for amonth for a new bumper but the morons at the rapair centre didn't order the new bumper until they had stripped the front off, then found there was a couple of weeks delay for the parts.

Moral of story is it doesn't matter where you get your insurance, they are only intersted in taking your money, not giving service.

Lee Purnell · 30 Dec 2004, 16:22 (Ref:1189977)

Craig, I simply can't believe it is your first ever claim...

How the hell did you manage to go so long without a cliam? Must be because you are such a careful driver??

Bare in mind, the first time I ever got in a car with you, you scared the **** out of me!!

If you can keep you NCD then I guess in theory your premium shouldn't go up too much if at all...

JohnMiller · 30 Dec 2004, 16:55 (Ref:1189988)

Quote:

Originally Posted by falcemob

Moral of story is it doesn't matter where you get your insurance, they are only intersted in taking your money, not giving service.

Perhaps true, but you might be best advised to ensure you have a policy with a guaranteed courtesey car.

This has come in very useful to me over the years, and reminds me of the time I wrecked the courtesy car while my motor was having a front-end rebuild and they had to ship me another courtesy car on a truck and take the first one away!

**Craig** · 30 Dec 2004, 17:26 (Ref:1189997)

How did I go so long without making a claim? hmmm... company vehicles

hehe No, seriously, this is the first ever claim if you set aside two knocks I had inside a week back in, I think, 1994 and those *were* company vehicles

PS Now you see why I wouldn't let you drive in Florida... hahaha! How easy would it have been for you to tonk that hire car into one of those Mexicans working on that dirt track!!

**Craig** · 30 Dec 2004, 17:29 (Ref:1189998)

LOL @ John! We once had a courtesy car where I used to work as one of our drivers had rear-ended a parked car on the A22 coming back from Eastbourne. As we were about a close for a two-week break I asked if I could use the courtesy car over the holidays. Amazingly they agreed. I'll never forget the noise that car made as we (all six of us) pulled to the side of the road after ragging the nuts off the thing for a couple of hours driving to the coast! It had done a grand total of 550 miles when it was towed away. Apparently it was engine related... in that it needed a new one

ooops. hehe

JohnMiller · 31 Dec 2004, 07:45 (Ref:1190349)

Funny that. I was delighted when my Cavalier SRi was sent to the Merc dealer for repair but disappointed when they gave me a Suzuki Swift as a courtesy car.
Mind you, they were new(ish) out back then and were supposed to give fantastic performance through very high revving.
The rev counter ran out at 9,000 but it redlined at 8,500 IIRC. The garage warned me not to exceed this but my friend swore it would do over 10,000. My friend was wrong and the bloke at the garaqe swore too... I'm quite sure they didn't believe my claims and send me a super-soft Galant GLSi, which was also very 'solid,' as a replacement.

**Craig** · 31 Dec 2004, 08:58 (Ref:1190368)

hahaha

rdjones · 31 Dec 2004, 09:57 (Ref:1190382)

All I can to say to this Craig is Good Luck. I am still trying to sort out my insurance claim from the accident that I was in back in April, it's been a long processes of letter writing and phone calls and I am still not getting anywhere. As I say good luck.......

garcon · 31 Dec 2004, 11:43 (Ref:1190444)

Craig, I'm trying to hold it in but it's no good...

Ahem. Sorry.

Firstly, let the insurance companies work out whose fault it was - unless you're willing to pay for the other guy's repairs...! Assuming you're not going to do that, you'll need to inform your insurance company and give them the other guy's details, he'll do the same. Sounds like your no claims is protected so your premium shouldn't go through the roof.

Unfortunately the others are right - it always seems to take at least 4 weeks to get any repairs done however minor. Take it from someone who knows, it's far simpler and quicker to do it properly and write your car off altogether. Y'know - properly, to the extent that there can be no doubt. One visit from the assessor and the cheque's in the post within the week.

Kicking-back · 31 Dec 2004, 11:45 (Ref:1190445)

What's the specific problem, rd?

**Craig** · 31 Dec 2004, 11:55 (Ref:1190450)

Gee, thanks Garc

To be honest I have to laugh too. Especially as I have now read my insurance documents and found I'll get a courtesy car to play with...! oooh... what fun we can have with that around the fields on the farm where I work...

rdjones · 31 Dec 2004, 12:03 (Ref:1190452)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kicking-back

What's the specific problem, rd?

I was in a head on accident with a motorbike, the chap on the motorbike flow over my car and broke his leg, both my car and the bike where written off .

The basics of accident are that I was turning right into junction and I was hit between the middle of the bonnet and the lights of the drivers side, the point of impact was somewhere around the white line in the middle of the road. I was doing around 10mph at time of impact where as the motorbike was doing somewhere in the region of 50 to 60mph.

Now my insurance company have said that I am at fault as it was the bikes right of way, which according to the highway code is correct. But I am challanging this as there are other factors which need be to be taken into account and so far they haven't, ie the speed of the bike remember we are in a 30 zone here, the postion of the impact the distance from a left hand bend to the point of impact, which has been estimated would have been covered in about 2 seconds, in which I case I would have never have seen him. The other thing that is hold things up is that police have still not produced a report. You have to remember this accident took place at the back end of April and we are now in 2005.

Thats the basics. I have written countless letters and made god knows how many phone calls and I am not getting anywhere at all. I have now put my case into the hands of a solictor..

garcon · 31 Dec 2004, 12:14 (Ref:1190457)

Sounds like you have a reasonable case there rd - it's always a hard slog this sort of thing but keep at it.

JohnMiller · 31 Dec 2004, 12:24 (Ref:1190468)

But if someone is speeding it doesn't give one a right to pull out in front of them. Difficult case and, without your insurnace companies support bvery difficult to see you getting anywhere.
And don't forget even if it was change to a 50/50 fault you would still lose your NCB...

**bella** · 2 Jan 2005, 14:04 (Ref:1191610)

back to craig's incident, i think it's best in general if you keep it away from the insurance companies. if you change companies don't you have to declare any incidents, and you'd lose your no claims bonus then. simple answer would be not to change companies i guess...
when i hit the back of someone, first thing i said was "let's keep it out of the insurance companies", and luckily she agreed. fact was, technically it was my fault but in practice it was hers. there was more damage to my car, but nothing serious that needed replacing.

craig, if your cousin has a body repair shop, i'd say it'd be a good idea to keep it out of the insurance companies cause he could give you a set of fair quotes that reflect the actual value of the damage and do it for you for a good price? (don't insurance companies only use their approved repair people?)

**Craig** · 2 Jan 2005, 19:14 (Ref:1191773)

Got to be honest and say whatever happens happens. I haven't got the inclination to sit and argue about it and run round a dozen places getting quotes, etc. I'm more than likely to run the car until it dies anyway and I'll probably end up viewing the minor damage purely as 'character'

Then again, if the premium is gonna go up this year (I got an SP£0 recently too), then I may take a leaf out of my old mans book and use it as an excuse to trade up

hehe

**Spudgun** · 3 Jan 2005, 23:03 (Ref:1192535)

Quote:

Originally Posted by garcon

Firstly, let the insurance companies work out whose fault it was - unless you're willing to pay for the other guy's repairs...!

That's exactly what I was going to say.

On my cover it says in the small print to never admit fault when informing them of an accident regardless of the reality. I imagine it's so it gives the insurance comany at least something to work with even if it does turn out to be blatantly obvious. If it involves shelling out they'll fight to the death.

**Craig** · 8 Jan 2005, 11:46 (Ref:1195810)

Well I took the motor in this morning for repair. Decided I'd get it done - had been thinking of not bothering - as I have decided I'd quite fancy a new un later this year

Ragging round in some poo old Corsa right now... think I may have amused them when I left their yard with a bit of a burnout... NOT

hehe

Lee Purnell · 10 Jan 2005, 10:26 (Ref:1197090)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Craig

... think I may have amused them when I left their yard with a bit of a burnout... NOT

hehe

That sounds like the Craig I know

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