Last week I was in slow moving traffic on a motorway and was hit in the rear by a following vehicle. The impact pushed my car into the car in front, causing a four-car shunt. The rear car belonged to a well-known company and the driver admitted full responsibility to their insurance company.

My car sustained minor front and rear-end damage; however, according to the repair company, the repair cost will exceed the value of my vehicle by about £1000. They have sent their report to my insurance company and I expect to be informed that the car is a write-off next week.

I understand that there is no legal obligation for an insurance company to restore my car to its original condition prior to the crash. However, please could advise me if it would be worth using the legal cover provided by my insurance company to sue the driver, or the company for whom he works, for the cost of fully repairing my car?

Also, it is my insurance company that is handling the claim rather than that of the third party. This will undoubtedly lead to me paying higher premiums in future, despite the crash not being my fault. Should I be dealing directly with the third party's insurance company in order to avoid this outcome?