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Mon 31 May 2010 13:34

Do i need to declare this accident? - Ben {P}

About a year ago I borrowed my mothers car to deliver an item to a shop for repair. At the time i had no car myself and was insured comprehensively under her policy. Sadly, on the way another vehicle struck the passenger side door of the car. The insurance companies negotiated for months and it appears her insurers paid out against her instruction. No action was taken against me by the police- i don't believe i was at fault but our insurers settled the claim.

I subsequently purchased and insured a car- 10 month bonus accelerator policy (my NCD had expired as i didn't insure a car for more than 2 years) and this is due for renewal with a month from now. I have filled in all details but I am faced with the question:

"have you made claims in the last five years?"

I personally have made no claims. There is a question mark that reveals further advice on answering the questions, it states:

" Please give us details of any accidents or claims you've had involving your car in the last 5 years. Please include incidents where you were not deemed to be at fault or where you were driving a different vehicle."

Looking at this i would answer no claims and no incidents under my own policy? Advice please i don't want to be withholding information but have had bad experiences phoning insurers- such as a 10% on the spot increase on a £1k policy for a sp30. Also if i call i fear i will have to pay the "renewal price" rather than the price they quote online. I presume if i have to declare all details i must contact mothers insurers to enquire exactly how much they paid out?

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Mon 31 May 2010 15:13

Do i need to declare this accident? - Ben {P}

I used confused.com. Admiral site states:

"Claims

Please complete this section with details for each accident, loss, theft or claim in the last three years (regardless of fault). This includes claims or accidents that have occurred while a driver was insured under your or any other policy."

So i must declare. But is it my duty to write to mothers insurer to ascertain the total amount they paid out?

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Mon 31 May 2010 15:40

Do i need to declare this accident? - LucyBC

The confused.com language is too vague. The rule is you have to answer their questions and as you said you could perfectly reasonably have blanked it.

However it is only really a comparison engine which produces a series of offers to insure you based on the disclosed information.

The insurance policy is a legal contract directly between you and your chosen insurer and their policy proposal will require detailed disclosure of any accident in which you (or any of the drivers on the policy) were involved.

The accident was a "material fact" and needs to be disclosed or they can refuse to indemnify - and also refuse to refund the premium once they have done so, meaning that you could be paying them for nothing.

You probably don't need to go as far as to contact the insurer for the amount but you do need to declare the accident and (if they ask) whether it was fault, non-fault or split liability.

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Mon 31 May 2010 16:03

Do i need to declare this accident? - Ben {P}

Thank you for your reply.

In an effort to disclose everything i could, i called Admiral. I explained what had happened, the guy on the phone enquired regarding the accident and i explained there was minimal damage to both vehicles (only a dent to my door) but the other party tried to claim for whiplash. He said "whiplash payout usually 2500, so put down 3000 on the form". I explained the other party had a hire car while his was repaired, he said "ok stick 3500 down, it doesn't matter, it wont invalidate your policy if not quite right, you just need to put a ballpark figure."

I tried calling the insurance company under whom the accident happened, but they will not disclose the figure to me, only to the policy holder. I don't feel at ease leaving things like this so think i will have to trouble mother to call the insurance company to try and obtain the data. I presumed such data were on a central register that all insurers could access. What would happen if the policy holder had died or left the country or i genuinely could not contact them?

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Mon 31 May 2010 16:55

Do i need to declare this accident? - LucyBC

You are worrying too much/.

They don't really pore over every proposal. There will be a weighting given for a fault claim against you. The precise detail of the amount won't matter. Multiple fault claims against you would make a difference to the premium but an incorrect settlement amount on a single claim won't make much (or any) difference.

Edited by LucyBC on 31/05/2010 at 16:55

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Mon 31 May 2010 21:33

Do i need to declare this accident? - Ben {P}

thanks again, I just wondered as when i amended to amount from 3.5k to 20k it made quite a difference to the premium, about 20 per cent. I will go with the guessed amount of the chap on the phone then if i cant easily get the exact figure.

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Mon 31 May 2010 23:15

Do i need to declare this accident? - Max Headroom

thanks again, I just wondered as when i amended to amount from 3.5k to 20k it made quite a difference to the premium, about 20 per cent. I will go with the guessed amount of the chap on the phone then if i cant easily get the exact figure.

Be careful about putting anything down that you cannot prove. The chap on the phone is just a chap on the phone, unless you recorded his call and took details of his name and position. Far better to say amount not known but that your guess is £xxxx as "guided by your Mr Chap on the phone".

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