Insurance claim, but company not playing fair!

Bazdaa

A relative of mine was involved in an accident, where she went into the back of another car on a main road. She has accepted liabillity and has 3rd party fire and theft insurance.

The problem is that the insurance company offered her just under 1200 pounds for her car (which they claim is a write off). She accepted this offer. However they then advised her that they would need to take her excess of 400 pounds of the money. They have also now come back and advised her that they will be taking the remaning premiums from the money as well, and therefore advised her that they will send her a cheque for 109 pounds!

I would like to know if they can do this (as I suspect they can) but also if she has to accept thier offer and sell the car to them, or if she can refuse the offer. I would appreciate as much information as possible, as well as any other ideas that you may have.

Cheers Bazdaa

Bossyboots

Firstly, if she only has 3rd party fire and theft cover then her insurers wouldn't be paying out for her own vehicle, just the one she hit.

If she was not happy with the offer on the car, then she should have said so at the start and negotiated a higher figure with them. She would have to prove though that the car was worth more than they say. I am not sure she can now ask for more. Her policy will most likely cover the issue of them paying her out on a write off and keeping the car. I think she has agreed to settle and there is no going back.

As for the deductions, of course they are entitled to make them. If she claims on the policy then the whole year's premiums are payable as is the excess. If the vehicle had been worth less than it was, she would be looking at paying them more money, rather than them sending her anything at all.

Your thread title is misleading, as there is no question here of an insurance company not playing fair. They have made an offer which was accepted and they are making deductions for payments to which they are entitled. What is unfair about that. They are hardly going to send her £1200 and then ask her to return the excess and premiums now are they?

losgiganteskid

Quite right Bossyboots - clearly we don't have the correct info here from the thread instigator, if she has received an offer the policy cover must be Comp, particularly as the accident was her fault !

Bazdaa

Sorry my mistake, she is fully comp.

She did accept the offer, when it was £1200. After which they wrote to her about the deductions.

I would like to thank you for your comments. However if it is going to come in the form of your 4th paragraph, then I would prefer you did not bother. Its obvious that I am not fully aware of the procedure (and you are) and seems a bit unfair as I am surprised that she cannot keep the car as they are only going to pay her £109 for it.

I asked for advise not a dressing down!

Bazdaa

Noozan

Bazdaa wrote:

I am surprised that she cannot keep the car as they are only going to pay her £109 for it.
Bazdaa

If you have accepted the settlement offer; then once you have received the monies, the car belongs to the insurance company. (You could possibly negotiate to keep the car and receive a (much) smaller settlement.)

You can't take the money and keep the car - that's like selling a car to someone, cashing their cheque and then deciding not to let the buyer have the car because you wanted more money for it!

dunstonh

Car insurance is paid in advance for the year ahead. In the event of a write off, the annual premium outstanding is still due to be paid and the insurance company is acting as it should to collect that premium.

A number of contracts (in all walks of life) are due to be paid annually but companies allow monthly payment. However, it doesnt mean you are paying as you go.

She is also lucky that they are taking the excess from the settlement. Often, you have to pay the excess by cheque whilst the claim is being investigated.

Her excess is very high and that is the risk you take when you try to reduce your premiums. In her case, the risk didnt pay off and it has cost her now.

All in all, i'm afraid it appears the insurance company have acted correctly.

Bazdaa

I guess when you put it like that, everything is crystal clear. Its funny, as I would normally be the first one to explain and advise family and friends of whats right and wrong, but this just seemed so criminal!

It seems to me now that she would have been better off going 3rd party fire and theft!

Thanks for info all.

Bazdaa

impy78

But if she was tpft, she wouldn't have got anything at all?

Bazdaa

impy78 wrote:

But if she was tpft, she wouldn't have got anything at all?

Compared to £109 and the insurance company taking the car. As least she would have been able to keep the car.

I'm not a mechanic, but that car is not a write off. Same way that when some idiot put a brick through the rear window of one of my cars, that the loss adjuster said it was about £100 away from being a write off. Write off a car because of a piece of glass, ye right.

Bossyboots

Its the labour costs that put up the price. With my car, the parts were relatively cheap but the labour alone was over £1000. I got our dealer to check the car out for value so I could make an informed decision about what to do and he said that the problem was the specialist gear needed to do some of the repairs. He considered that they were not repairs that could be done at home so I did not have that option. He also advised (and I had been told this before by the police) that it is unwise to drive a vehicle that has suffered significant accident damage). I also got a friend who buys old cars and rebuilds them to check my car out (just in case the dealer scented a new sale) and he agreed that although the parts were not going to be that expensive, one of the repairs would require specialist equipment and skilled knowledge to do. In total, the cost of repairs was assessed at several hundred more than the car was worth and we bartered the insurance company upwards of the book price.

There are also problems with the DVLA in relation to cars that insurers have written off.

If it is not too late, she could ask for the category of damage the assessor has awarded and decide what to do from there. There is some info on the categories here http://www.car-crime.com/write-off.htm http://www.car-crime.com/salvage_category.htm.