Okay, tonight I did something incredibly stupid.
In the gym car park I looked behind me, saw there was a Clio trying to get around me whilst I waited for somewhere to park. The gap in front was narrow so I reversed, but looked at the Clio trying to get past... and not the Corsa immediately behind me. Other car's bonnet is crumpled, grille caved in, lights and wings are fine, bumper should pop back into place. Basically a typical enough car park accident, small earthquake in Peru, not many dead.
The police didn't attend so little or no chance of a due care prosecution either.
Anyway, on to the question, which is one that I genuinely cannot answer. My car is completely undamaged. Everything is exactly as it should be. Therefore I don't need to make any claim whatsoever for my own car and obviously the other party will be claiming through their own insurance and recovering their excess from me/my insurer.
I've declared the claim to insurance because I don't want whiplash to rear its head in a few days, weeks or months. I've also admitted liability at the scene. However, given that if my insurer picks up the bill for the other party, will I have to pay my own excess? Does my policy (which has 4 months to run) terminate and require me to find insurance again?
In other words, is the excess applicable to the whole policy or just to the comprehensive element, which is intact?
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Usually the excess applies to your accidental damage only, not the third party claim.
The policy will continue up to next renewal when you will suffer loss of no claims discount if not protected
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Correct.
I work in this very area of accident/breakdown/insurance and can confirm your excess is only payable if repairs are made on your car. There is no excess payable at all (unless you have a specific clause regarding this - but very unusual) for third party repairs.
You have done the correct thing in reporting the incident - hope you specified to your insurer it was for 'notification only' and 'no damage claim intended'.
This covers you if you then find your insurer at renewal says you had a claim in 2006.
Also, I would expect your insurance company has a third party care team that would offer to sort out the third party's damage, once you have reported it, because I would assume you admitted liability which would then flag up the other party as the 'Claimant'. Some (most ?) insurance companies have these 3rd party care teams in place to get hold of the repairs themselves and so avoid any spurious repairs/claims/personal injuries and so on that might arise if you leave it to the other party.
jdc
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Hiya,
I have just been through a similar process, except I have to go on a driving course and get a new car!
Anyway, your question about the policy's ending? I totalled my own car completely, but nevertheless the policy carries on for my next car. Direct Line simply settled the claim, taking the excess of the final amount and amended the car details to show my new car. It's almost as if nothing has happened. Same policy number, same everything almost. Weird. I shall certainly pay for this in future, but at the moment everything is pretty normal.
Small aside. Has anyone been on one of these Driver Improvement Courses? It is a good idea, and miles better than prosecution or points, but I am dreading it. When you have your first accident in almost thirty years, it does seem weird to be on the naughty side of it all. I could kick myself. I was quite shocked to find out that careless driving carries almost as much punishment as drunken, murderous, dangerous driving. If you go to court, that is.
The irony is that when the police arrived they said I needn't have called them. I shopped myself! Never mind. I would have felt terrible if some blowing piece of bumper had caused another accident. And as you say, it's hardly an earthquake, is it? Luckily.
Good luck with your claim.
Alijazz
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The irony is that when the police arrived they said I needn't have called them.
You only need to inform the police if there is personal injury. Otherwise just exchange names and addresses, and names of insurance companies. Involving the police unnecessarily is just asking for trouble.
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L\'escargot.
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Escargot, you are right. But if anyone had seen my engine blowing around on the A46 and flying up in big pieces against the windscreens of cars and lorries, I think they might have been tempted to call the police to avoid further accident.
Or, as my hubbie says, "No good deed goes unpunished!"
Alijazz
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Ouch. You feel sooooooooo stupid when you do something like that. Sympathies!
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Stupid for sure.
I backed in to a car a couple of year ago that was parked behind me when i arrived and was still there when i got in to leave.
Wasnt as though i was trying to reverse out of a tight place.God talk about feeling stupid!!
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Others have answered, and I'm sure they're right. However I don't have time to read it all so just in case....
If your insurer is dealing with the matter, then they will pay the third party's excess.
If your insurer is not dealing with it, then you will have to pay the tp 's excess. However, if your insurer is not dealing with it, then knock for knock or similar will not apply and the TP insurer may look to recover the full amount, including repairs, from you. You might want to include that in your calculations when deciding whether or not to claim for the TP damage.
Also, be careful about submitting a claim form "for information only". If the TP claims you will want your insurer to deal with it, consequently it is not for information only.
One would only expect your policy to immediately finish if your own car was a total write-off and even then, not always. For an instance like this then that will not happen.
You have a number of sections in your policy; usually something like accidental damage, fire and theft, third party, glass, rugs and clothing - or something recognisably similar. Each section *may* have its own excess. Hence the terms £50 AD excess (accidental damage) or £50 AS excess (all sections).
An excess such as an AS excess which includes third party risks is not usual, bit not unknown. It is particularly noticable on a policy with a Lloyds syndicate. So you will need to check your own policy. Hwoever, the odds are that no excess will apply, and an AD excess does not apply to the TP section.
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.... and obviously the other party will be claiming through their own insurance and recovering their excess from me/my insurer.
Are you sure? I wouldn't, I'd put it in the hands of my 'legal cover' to claim from you / your insurer. He'd have to do this if he only had third party cover.
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