Parked car accident. Advice needed.

porgiegeorgie · 17 March 2017 at 3:37PM

Hello,
I hope this is in the right place to ask this.

My car was parked on the street outside my house. This morning another car rolled back into mine, shunting mine back by about 10 feet. The back of their car hit the front of mine and was still like this when I saw it, I haven't moved mine yet. This other car must have been parked a little further up the road, beyond the driveway dropped curb in front of where I was parked, so would have rolled back a little distance before hitting my car.

I had a note on my car from the nearby nursery saying that a parent had taken photos at the time it happened and that my car had been pushed into another car behind, this third car had moved by the time I got there (they may have just moved so they weren't blocking the road, but they haven't left a note on my car). I've given the nursery my details so the parent who took photos can contact me, I'm not sure if they actually witnessed it happening or just saw it soon after. I have also taken my own photos of how I found it.

I left my details on the car that hit me asking them to contact me and I have since had a phone call from the owner of the car to say her husband has seen it. She said that they don't want to claim on their insurance for their car and that mine just looked a bit scratched (it wasn't possible to see the front of my car when I saw it so I don't know how accurate this is). I've said that I need to get mine checked for damage to be sure. She was at work and said she'll contact me with insurance details later.

If my car does need repairing should I be able to claim through their insurance? And since I have photos showing what appears to have happened will they have to admit liability? On the phone the woman seemed to be making out like it wasn't a big deal but my car did move by quite some distance.
If I go through their insurance am I still responsible for arranging having my car checked out or will their insurance do this?

Also, if damage has occurred to the third car that my car was pushed into, would this be the responsibility of the first car's owner or me? (I feel it should be the first car but when I mentioned it on the phone the woman said it might be my responsibility not theirs).I don't even have the details of the third car and only know about them from the nursery.

Should I contact my insurance now? If I claim through the other person's insurance do they need to be involved? I know when I renew I'll have to say that I was involved in a claim, but if it gets sorted outside of the insurance companies do they need to know?

The nursery suggested I might want to contact the police, and my mum mentioned the same. Should I contact the non-emergency number just to let them know what has happened? I know this is what you do for other collisions, I just wasn't sure about this one since it involved three driverless cars, I'm wondering whether this might be wise just because I don't have the details of the third car involved.

Sorry it's a bit long winded, I just want to get all the details in there. I've never been in this situation before so am unsure exactly what I should be doing!

Aylesbury_Duck · 17 March 2017 at 3:53PM

Your car was shunted back by 10 feet? Assuming it was parked in gear or with the handbrake on, or both, that's a heck of an impact. Get it checked as soon as possible because there must be more damage than just a scratch.

Ideally, you need the contact details of the independent third party who witnessed it so that your insurers can completely establish blame to sit with the other party.

Your insurance Ts&Cs will state that you must inform them, even if you subsequently don't make a claim. Failure to do so could invalidate your policy and lead to all sorts of future problems should any of the other parties report it. Claim from the guilty driver's policy and their insurance company should organise everything for you.

porgiegeorgie · 17 March 2017 at 4:20PM

Aylesbury_Duck wrote: »

Your car was shunted back by 10 feet? Assuming it was parked in gear or with the handbrake on, or both, that's a heck of an impact. Get it checked as soon as possible because there must be more damage than just a scratch.

Ideally, you need the contact details of the independent third party who witnessed it so that your insurers can completely establish blame to sit with the other party.

Your insurance Ts&Cs will state that you must inform them, even if you subsequently don't make a claim. Failure to do so could invalidate your policy and lead to all sorts of future problems should any of the other parties report it. Claim from the guilty driver's policy and their insurance company should organise everything for you.

Thanks, I'll get onto my insurance now.

Yeah, it's how far it has moved that's concerning me. I have a photo showing the dry patch on the road where my car started off compared where it has ended up.

Handbrake was on but it wasn't in gear this time (lesson learnt to always keep in gear no matter how small the hill) I also had my wheels turned away from the curb but my rear wheels have still mounted the (quite high) curb rather than coming to rest on it like you'd expect from a little bump.

Aylesbury_Duck · 17 March 2017 at 4:38PM

There's bound to be some underlying damage then. I cannot conceive there being just superficial damage if a car parked with the handbrake on has been shunted ten feet. Do not be pressured by the third party to try and sort it privately. Your car will need thoroughly checking over - don't do unnecessary mileage in it before getting it checked.

Ant555 · 17 March 2017 at 5:20PM

I'm having a hard time picturing just scratches left on a parked car that had been shunted 3 metres along the road and into another car.
Either your handbrake is rubbish or there is almost certainly going to be a bit more than 'scratches'

As far as I know as long as nobody is injured, you don't suspect any crime (drunk driving or stolen car for instance) and the other party has left details then Police do not have to be informed.

Your insurance company will have to be informed as the third car might be asking for your details.
Ref the third car - I wonder if the nursery person took pictures that include its registration number? It would be good for you if they did actually see it happen and were prepared to offer a witness statement in your favour.
If the third car gets in touch then remember to ask for THEIR insurance details too - it is an exchange of details and its sometimes useful if this turns into a problem for you later on. Hopefully it should be very straightforward especially if there IS a witness.

You say that you could not see the front of your car at the time (was it dark?) but have you had chance to look at it now?

As already suggested, you need to try and get hold of the details of the witness yourself and not rely on messages being passed on. As its late on the Friday, if you have not already got them then it might have to wait until Monday nursery opening times?

porgiegeorgie · 17 March 2017 at 8:32PM

Ant555 wrote: »

I'm having a hard time picturing just scratches left on a parked car that had been shunted 3 metres along the road and into another car.
Either your handbrake is rubbish or there is almost certainly going to be a bit more than 'scratches'

As far as I know as long as nobody is injured, you don't suspect any crime (drunk driving or stolen car for instance) and the other party has left details then Police do not have to be informed.

Your insurance company will have to be informed as the third car might be asking for your details.
Ref the third car - I wonder if the nursery person took pictures that include its registration number? It would be good for you if they did actually see it happen and were prepared to offer a witness statement in your favour.
If the third car gets in touch then remember to ask for THEIR insurance details too - it is an exchange of details and its sometimes useful if this turns into a problem for you later on. Hopefully it should be very straightforward especially if there IS a witness.

You say that you could not see the front of your car at the time (was it dark?) but have you had chance to look at it now?

As already suggested, you need to try and get hold of the details of the witness yourself and not rely on messages being passed on. As its late on the Friday, if you have not already got them then it might have to wait until Monday nursery opening times?

I couldn't see it because the other car was still embedded in the front of mine and I didn't want to risk moving it if in case it is damaged underneath, I've seen it now. The visible damage is: bits of plastic broken off the bumper/front grille area; the bumper has come loose on one side but is still attached; the front registration plate is quite broken but still attached and readable. It doesn't look too bad. As far as I'm aware my handbrake is/was fine.

The insurers of the car that hit me have contacted me to let me know that their insurance will be covering it and I've agreed for my car to be collected on Monday. There is some uncertainty about whether my car can be classified as "drivable" as it is; the lady from the underwriter said that because my bumper has come loose this means it isn't drivable (their reason is that the police might pull me over if they see it) and so organised for enterprise to contact me about a temporary hire car but enterprise have said if the bumper is not hanging off by much and isn't touching the ground (which it isn't, it just looks like it's unclipped from around the light fitting) this might not classify it as undrivable, and if it is deemed drivable by the insurance company I'll be liable for the costs of the hire car while I have it.

I have to admit, it doesn't look *that* damaged on the outside, but I'm more concerned about any the damage that isn't visible so have no intention of driving it until I know for sure. While I hope it isn't seriously damaged, I also don't want to have to pay for the hire car if it is just superficial, and not being a mechanic myself I have literally no idea until it has been inspected by the garage so I don't understand what they expect me to do?

My gut feeling is that it will have received some damage just because of how far is has moved, but I am quite a cautious person.

I've had no contact from the witness yet so still have no idea what's going on with the third car. The nursery mentioned the make, model and colour of car and that it is local to the village and I think I know which car it is, so I may just go find them myself. I'll contact the nursery again on Monday too about passing my details on to the parent.

Anyway, thanks for the input. I'll have a think on what o do about the hire car situation.

pinkshoes · 18 March 2017 at 3:15PM

My KA was shunted from behind, looked fine, but then required £2500 of repairs and was never quite the same again!

JP1978 · 18 March 2017 at 3:25PM

The third car (the one that your car hit) is still the responsibility of the car that hit you. Although its probably good to have all insurance details (to make it easier for the insurance companies), there is no way that liability rests on you with this.

We dont know the incline of the road in question but assuming your handbrake was on enough to stop your car moving, then thats all you need to do. IF you had of been in gear, your car would not have rolled back BUT would have been damaged far more than it is now!

Car_54 · 18 March 2017 at 3:35PM

JP1978 wrote: »

The third car (the one that your car hit) is still the responsibility of the car that hit you. Although its probably good to have all insurance details (to make it easier for the insurance companies), there is no way that liability rests on you with this.

We dont know the incline of the road in question but assuming your handbrake was on enough to stop your car moving, then thats all you need to do. IF you had of been in gear, your car would not have rolled back BUT would have been damaged far more than it is now!

So, if it had been in gear, it would not have hit the 3rd car.

But it should have been in gear (Highway Code 252), so I would suggest that the OP's negligence caused or at least contributed to the damage to the 3rd car.

tho_2 · 18 March 2017 at 3:48PM

Highway code 252 only applies on hills. You don't know the incline.

Car_54 · 18 March 2017 at 4:04PM

tho wrote: »

Highway code 252 only applies on hills. You don't know the incline.

Oops! Careless assumption on my part.

Parked car accident. Advice needed.

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