Hello there, I'm a first time poster - but was recommended this site by a friend who says there's a lot of decent people here - I'd really appreciate any help on an insurance matter. I've got a lot of things happening at the moment, so I'm after the easiest solution.
Details are below, I'm after any advice on the following (I know I'm asking a lot - I'm a new driver and have not had any incidents before, any small snippets of advice are welcomed)
1. We're both keen to avoid the insurance companies, I haven't built up any no claims bonus yet and don't want to be penalised by a claim, even though I'm entirely innocent.
2. Ideally I'd like to be reimbursed for my loss when selling in 18 months time and do a fix-up job myself for now.
3. If I go through my own or the other party's insurance - what's the risk of them writing off my car if the damage is too expensive? I don't want the hassle of looking for a new one, and couldn't replace it with one as good.
4. Will a garage make a reasonable job, or can I fix the damage cheaply myself? (I'm reasonably handy).
5. Any pitfalls for handling this type of incident? (obviously I get the money up front - do i ask for cash? garage account paid up front? What if the cost is more than the estimate?)
All the best,
Glen
Details: J reg Honda Civic Saloon, good condition for age, low rust. Insured for 750 pounds, comprehensive, 0 no claims bonus (new driver), no protected discount.
Bump:
My car was hit while unattended in a car park. A witness saw the incident, and it appears the person drove into it at 45 degrees from the rear. It must have been at quite a speed as my car was pushed forward at least half a metre - and I found it against the front kerb (nestled in a small hedge...) The culprit left contact details, which checked out.
Legal:
I informed the police and received a call number (not a crime number). When I visited the station they confirmed that we should sort it out between ourselves and/or insurance companies. I rang my insurance's legal advice line, who advised me to go through my own insurance for minimum hassle, which will ultimately claim from the other party. However, this is in their financial interest, as when pressed they said my future NCD was at some risk because their policy is "no claim, not no blame" - their words.
The culprit is keen to pay for my damages, and I've said I will get an estimate on Tuesday and take it from there.
Damage:
The plastic bumper is compacted over about 400mm, but not cracked. The metal has been pushed in sufficiently to see from inside the boot, but I'm not sure if the floorpan has been bent, or just the bumber pegs have pushed it in slightly. The boot is slightly bent (less than 5mm) but will still close fine (it brushes a bit on the rubber seals though). Other than that, there's no damage to the paintwork and the car is driveable (although, it's embarassing to me - it looks like I've reversed into a bollard).
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As your car was hit while unattended, all blame is on the other party and you will not lose your NCD. The insurance company will not commit themselves on this untill a claim is submitted and they have heard both sides of the story. It would be far simpler if the other party is willing to settle without going through the insurers, but you need to make sure you can trust him. Give him a limited time (say seven days) to come up with the cash, after which you will put it in the hands of the insurers.
His insurers are duty bound to put you back in the position you were before the bump, so don't let them fob you off by trying to write the car off.
Good luck.
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Hi Glen,
Sorry to hear about your incident, but unfortunately car park knocks occur all too frequently :-( I think you're lucky to have such an (apparently) co-operative culprit!
The problem with bodywork repairs is that people often don't realise how expensive they can be to repair 'properly'. So the person who's agreed to pay for the damage may well change his/her mind when the cost becomes known.
You may be able to live with a less-than-perfect repair - in which case I'd press for as much cash as you can quickly obtain from the third party, and avoid any further dealings with the insurance companies.
Find a smaller repairer, explain the situation, and hint that the bill could be a 'cash deal'. In 18 months time, you'll probably have forgotten all about this incident - and the difference it will make to the car's value is likely to be small.
I'd act quickly, though - whilst the third party still has a guilt complex!
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You are in a strong position if you go down the insurance route as you have an independent witness.
However, if the culprit is "keen to pay" get the cash first before you get the repairs done.
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Glen
Sorry to hear about your incident. You said that your car is only insured for £750, and is probably worth about that. The car is now 12 years old and will be 14 years old in 18 months.
How much do you think the car will be worth in 18 months time? I would guess about £500 at the most.
The main question here should be, is there any significant damage to the car which will cause it to be dangerous? If not, then I would not even bother getting it repaired, just patch the boot so that it is secure and no water gets in, maybe touch up any areas where paint has lifted with one of those pens. You could probably get the parts required from a scrappers yard.
But I would be tempted to ask the other person for some £ to compensate you for the loss of value to the car as a result of the incudent. Say a figure of around £500, which will probably be less than the cost of 'proper' repair or the extra hike in insurance come renewal time. But would be enough to compensate you for any future loss.
So back to your thread, I'd go for number 2.
Jonathan
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My experience:
1990 Volvo 240 Estate hit in the rear whilst in traffic queue by Freelander (Driver admitted not paying attention and braked too late).
Hers was a company car and the small company said they would consider paying for it rather than go to their insurers if it was cheap enough. I informed my insurers (the AA) and they said they would do nothing until I advised if we had settled or not.
Damage: Right rear wing started to crumple, Bumper pushed in by 2 inches, cracked rear light cluster, etc
Cars estimated value from Parkers etc £1200
Estimate from local fixers £1600 - with caveat that there might be other stuff revealed when they started stripping down.
Company said could their guy have a look at it - he estimated £1200, but I was not entirely happy with his quote and I also asked for another car while mine was being fixed (I live 30 miles into the sticks) - this is where they started to grumble.
As we were looking to change the Volvo anyway (long story) I chanced my arm and said "Split the difference - give me £1400 and call it quits", with me taking the risk that the need for more work is revealed that I would have to fund myself. Not surprisingly they didn't bite.
The Volvo was drivable and usable, but might not have passed an MOT with the damage (nominal cracked light cluster, but no white lights showing, bumper end missing one clip so "insecure"?), so I was happy to drive it whilst things were settled. In the end they said their insurance company would sort it out.
The insurance company inspected it and wrote it off, estimated the value at £1300, took £150 off for me "buying it back" and sent a cheque for the balance. I informed the AA and they were quite happy - no effect on NCD, though possibly my accident history was affected so slightly higher premium.
When the Tax and MOT ran out six months after the bump I put the car into the auction and netted £100 for it (and I had declared it as an insurance write off on the auction form).
Used this with the banked money from the insurance and put it towards the Astra.
Personally I viewed this as a satisfactory outcome. There was a bit of hassle over getting the quotes and chasing up the company to move things forward before it went to the insurers, but driving around in a dented 12 year old car did not particularly upset me. If it had been off the road then it would have been a different story though.
Considering I had been offered £400 as a trade in two years previously I was not unduly upset at the eventual settlement, so I suppose I'm with Jonathan on this one.
HTH
Chris TD
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I would go and get a couple of estimates for the repairs.
If they are less than the £750 see if the culprit will pay.
Once he sees that you're after a fair bit of money, he may change his mind and want to go through his insurance. If not, take the cash amicably.
The easy route if he gets awkward is just to issue a County Court Claim against him.
He can then pay up or his insurance co will and your own insurance is not involved.
You should advise them of the incident though.
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Sounds like the car will almost certainly be written of, my mate's Mondeo which was worth twice as much as the Honda was written off from very similar damage.
As you could claim directly from the other person's insurance I would just claim, get the car written off, take the settlement and buy the car back as scrap for a small amount, patch the repair, then run around in it and scrap it when you want to change. That's what my mate did and he ended up significantly better off as a result.
As you claim off the other party it doesn't affect your insurance or no claims discount at all, I claimed off the other person's insurance when I was rear ended, never dealt with my insurers at all, but it didn't affect things at renewal, I still declare it though obviously.
Good luck getting it sorted mate.
Blue
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Oh, I forgot to say what an excellent post that was, there's not many people lay the details out so clearly, it makes it much easier to get a good idea of the situation...
Blue
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To everybody who replied so far, thanks very much for the advice - it's certainly helping me to decide what to do. I hope to get an estimate for the work tomorrow, and speak to the culprit after that.
I'll be sure to let you know what happens (probably Wed evening).
Best regards,
Glen
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An update, and a quick question below,
I went to get a quote today at a reliable garage and they confirmed that it would cost more than its worth (750 pounds ) to fix - mainly because the metal panel was compacted (I'm assuming this is a crumple zone?). If I went through insurance, they'd recommend a write off.
At the moment, I agree with Jonathan and will ask for 500 pounds for my loss - but no matter how you look at it, I'm worse off. I'm guessing that without a firm quote, and if I ask too much, they'll just do it through insurance. I can't afford the time though and don't need any more legal hassle (I'm already close to taking my landlord to court... but that's another story...).
Now the question - given that I replace/straighten out the bumper with the money, will the car pass an MOT with a rear crumple zone damaged? I thought "of course" but I'll defer to the experts here.
All the best, Glen
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Best bet is to put it through an MOT to see if it fails or not. Without seeing it, any guess here will be just a guess.
As I said in my last post, don't bother repairing what doesn't NEED to be repaired, as long as the car is safe and secure, what do cosmetics matter? You won't be any worse off as in 18 months time the car will have minimal value, but you will have the extra £500 in your pocket, and whatever value is left in the car (which will be more than if it is an insurance write-off).
Regards
Jonathan
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I agree with Jonathan. Personally I wouldn't have insured it fully comp because its only worth a small amount anyway and you seem reluctant to use it (maybe not to you, but if its an extra 200 quid a year over three years you are looking at saving almost the whole price of the car).
Anyway. If you can get 500 quid, great. Take a big hammer and knock the dent out as much as possible (if you feeling really handy andy-ish then fill it/sand down/spray it/polish it and you should have almost repaired the dent. Then try to find a second hand (breakers) bumper and try to knock the bumper holders back into line. You should be £400 better off.
Also accept that you will probably end up with lots of bumps and dings in the first few years anyway.
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The vehicle structure relates to rust and protruding sharp edges, not to the integrity of the crumple zone of the car (unless the crumple zone is covered in rust and holes).
If the bumper is hanging off (or likely to) then it will most likely fail.
If there is excess corresion around a prescribed area (brakes,steering, suspension etc) then it will most likely fail.
If there are any protruding or sharp projections on the car then it will most likely fail.
Also if the damage has affected the steering/brakes or suspension then it may fail as well.
www.ukmot.com has more info.
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and one other thing. If you get the cash, go back to body repair centre and ask how much for a cash quote as you have most likely got the insurance quote (did they ask if it was an insurance job ?) and it will make a BIG difference.
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If there are any protruding or sharp projections on the car then it will most likely fail.<<
It will fail and before you get to the Testing Station Plod will have sheeted you for using a vehicle, the parts etc were in such condition as likely to cause danager.
DVD
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