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My daughter had an accident when she was a learner, without a qualified driver in the car - can her insurer ask for £10k to cover their losses?
Over two years ago, my daughter had a minor accident whilst driving as a learner. At the time, she did not have a qualified driver in the car accompanying her. My daughter's insurance company declined to cover my daughter as she was not driving within the terms of her licence. My daughter was convicted of not having a driving licence and not being insured for which she received six penalty points. The cost of the repairs to my daughter's car were around £300. Two weeks ago, my daughter received a demand for £10,000 from her insurance company to cover their losses for this incident, followed by a threat of county court action today if the £10,000 is not paid within a week. What is your opinion regarding this demand? They declined to insure her, so should anything be paid? She doesn't have a spare £10,000, what action should she take?
Asked on 27 March 2018 by Andy Podmore
Answered by
Honest John
The insurer still has to provide cover for any third party claim against your daughter under the Road Traffic Act. They will argue that they then also have the right to reclaim the losses they have incurred as a result of your daughter's negligence and not driving within the terms and conditions of the contract. Your daughter is technically liable for the £10,000, but she could argue that they refused to insure her so any claim then made against her should have been made via the Motor Insurance Bureau as she had no cover in place. The chances are very very slim of this being successful as your daughter has been caught driving without a qualified driver. This being the case, all you can then try to do is mitigate the loss. Ask the insurer for a breakdown of the full outlay of cost, and ask the insurer to advise what actions they took to mitigate the losses that they are now trying to pass onto your daughter.
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