Been in first car accident tonight - what do I need to do

lexilex

I'm hoping to get an appointment with my gp tomorrow to see what he thinks about the whiplash and how serious it is I've nothing to compare it too, so although I'm in pain I can't really say how bad it is IYKWIM

From the little test I did on one of the comparison sites it looks like my premiums will go up a little, which is daft seen as I wasn't at fault

Quentin

As you only have tp insurance your own insurers won't help out.

You need to claim everything direct from the third party.

They won't have to pay any excess for your claim.

Consider placing the matter with a claims handler who will sort everything out for you.

DirectDebacle

lexilex wrote: »

I'll let travel insurance know when I sort it then. I had no intentions of lying just wasn't sure if it was something they needed to be made aware of.

I'm having second thoughts about claiming after talking to my mum and dad. They have just said what happens when it comes to looking for insurance next year. They always ask if you have made any claims in the last 3 years. If I say yes over this are my insurance premiums going to go up?

Maybe worth asking this on the insurance board too actually.

AFAIK TP insurance will work like this. Re the damage to the vehicles. You cannot claim on your insurance for repair of damage to your vehicle. Therefore no claim = no loss of no claim bonus.

The other driver can claim on your insurers for damage you cause to their vehicle. If that claim is met then = loss of some or all of your NCD.

Under the circumstances of the accident you described it seems unlikely the other driver will try to claim on your insurance for repairs to damage to their vehicle which was caused by her.However you never know. This is why I was urging to ensure their is a police report. You said yourself there was a part admission of liability made by the other driver to the PCSO.

As far as the personal injury goes. This is not a claim on your insurance in respect of damage to vehicles. It is you suing the other driver for damages for injuries caused as the result of an RTA for which they were responsible. (You could do the same if you were a pedestrian and had legal protection on your home insurance policy for example.)

In practice this will involve the legal people for which you took extra cover out negotiating with the other drivers insurers over compensation. If a claim is met then the legal team will claim their costs from the other insurers in addition to your compensation.

So do not worry too much about NCD. In the scheme of things it is not that important. Your neck is. Repair or replacement of your vehicle is. Fair compensation for pain/suffering and expenses is. None of this should cost you or your insurers any money.

Do what you have to do with reporting to the police. See your doctor, inform the legal eagles who will act for you. They can then be left to get on with it and you can concentrate on recovering. Go on holiday and enjoy yourself and don't worry about it. You have paid the premiums for others to do that.

mum2one

DirectDebacle wrote: »

I wish I had a crystal ball. Some posters apparently have.

They know you have whiplash (because you posted the diagnosis) so they now know how severe it is, how much pain you are suffering, what restrictions it has on your life now and in the future and that you will be recovered in a few days. They also know you won't suffer financially.

All bad advice and should be ignored at all costs.

The facts are you have been involved in a personal injury R.T.A. By law this has to be notified to the police. A PCSO was at the scene but a PCSO is not a police officer. Check with your local police station that an accident report has been recorded by the PCSO. If not then attend the police station with your driving documents and report the accident. At some stage your insurance company will require the accident report no. Make sure you have that before you leave the police station.

As in my previous post at the moment you have no idea how long this injury will take to heal. My experience was particularly bad and after almost 25 years has not fully recovered. I certainly hope yours was nowhere near as severe.

Don't let crass remarks such as 'compensation culture' or 'we all pay' deter you from receiving any necessary medical treatment for your injury or any compensation you may be able to legitimately claim.

As a young driver you will have paid a substantial amount for your insurance and legal protection so make sure you obtain the maximum benefit from it. This is a money saving site and it would be bad advice to pay for insurance and not take advantage of the policy when you need to claim.

Good luck and look after the neck. It is the only one you will ever have and I wish you a full and speedy recovery.

A big thank you, in the nicest of ways, for someone being honest and helpful. I have been involved in 3 car accidents, the 2nd one was a rear end smash, and I was injured. Unfortunatley as a result of the 1st 2 car accidents when I had my dd, I ended up permantely disabled as my back could not cope with a pregnancy.

mum2one

OP - Ignore the negative comments, for every thread there is always going to be some form of disagreement with whats been posted, whether that be by the opening post of a reply.

Your Ins - as previously commented on 3rd party, means any accident to your car you have to sort urself, if u were at fault the other party or parties car would be covered.

First thing monday check your legal cover, its usually in addition to ur insurance policy, if you have legal cover let the insurance company deal with it, there a lot better than the "no win - no fee companies"

Earnings - Expenses are more than just lose of earnings, its not endless but can include, telephone calls, postage, presrription charges, basically things that you would not of incurred had u not been in an accident.

You need to keep a diary of how your feeling, in relation to restricted movement, did anyone have to do anything for you, eg, in my case I couldnt lift my dd out of the bath, I had to have someone to do that for me.

Keep a record of who you see, dates, times, etc,

Hopefully with this legal cover they can assist you in dealing with the other party, as their insurers will want to minise any costs, I dont mean hire a £300 a day car, but if you have to get a bus, a taxi, a lift, but pratically is always use the cheapest and best option.

You only get one body, look after it, you know what feels right, and what doesnt, you could have 10 people have the same incident as you, and they would all be displaying different symptons.

I know its hard, but u will need to get behind a wheel again, I knwo your confidence may be knocked, but remember it wasnt your fault, accidents do happen and unfortunatley it happened to you.
x

pandora205

I had a similar accident about 3 years ago when I was hit by a police van! I was sent to hospital and told I had whiplash, offered a collar which I declined. The police (who had to be called to check procedures as it was one of their vans) told me I would need a hospital number in the event of a claim. (There were 3 police vehicles called to the scene and everything was done in great detail. Apparently the unmarked van was on an undercover operation when it hit me!)

As it happens my injuries weren't serious, though I couldn't work for a couple of days nor take the kids to swimming, go to the gym etc for about a week. My insurers handled everything. I was given a hire car - not least as my car was declared a write off and it took some time to get the money through. The hire car was minute though - a micra - which was smaller than mine and a bit of a problem going on holiday for a week with 3 kids.

With regard to the injury, I was asked to go for a medical about 3 months after the accident! By then it was a rather hazy memory apart from the facts. I was asked lots of questions, some of which appeared to be quite leading (Do you ever have flash backs when driving along this route, etc.) My insurers legal department handled everything, declined the first offer of compensation (which apparently is usual) and I was awarded £1100, which seemed huge to me for a week or two's injury.

My advice to you would be keep detailed records and ask the hospital for a number to use with your claim. Keep any receipts such as taxis if you need them while car hire is being sorted. Let your insurers do the rest.

lexilex

Well, not really got much further today with everything.

I went to doctors this morning who said the whiplash is quite bad. He said it was restricting all movements and has recommended physio, sent the letter off to them today. Also been given some more tablets and some cream.

Got in touch with legal team who told me they would sort out both repairs and the injuries because I paid for the legal advice in with my insurance. Told me the solicitors should have been in touch this afternoon, they haven't so will give them a ring tomorrow.

The other ladies insurance rang me this morning whilst I was on the way. I asked them to call back later as I was just going in to doctors. Dad said he wasn't sure whether I should be talking to them with it going through my insurance. Anyway, they rang back later and just wanted to know if I had a solictor and when I told them yes said they would deal with it all.

Oh, rang the police, they took the details but I never got an accident number, said somebody would be in touch for more details. PCSO just been round to ask what the injuries are and said someone else will be in touch.

DirectDebacle

Good news. Just about all the things you needed to do are now done. As long as you know the name/no of someone from your police station you can give that to your solicitor if you don't have an accident ref. no. You can get on with other things now and don't forget what others said about keeping receipts/records of costs incurred because of the accident. Travel to physio/doctors etc. As soon as you can try driving your dads car around the block just to try to get yourself back in the saddle so to speak.

lexilex

I've got a log book number that I was given when I rang this morning.

I just want to get my car into a garage to see what the damage on that is now, hopefully that will be sorted tomorrow.

Rikki

lexilex wrote: »

All I've done is inform my insurance I have whiplash and told them I want to claim for the damage on my car.

They know how long I have had the whiplash for, and they will be told when (hopefully very soon!) the pain has gone away. Surely they aren't going to pay out on the presumption that long term damage has been caused?

As far as I'm concerned the pain I'm suffering now was not there before the accident happened so why should I just put up with it? It's not my fault I am at the moment unable to do things, like I had to pay for a taxi to get to the medical centre today because I can't drive, boyfs having to get taxis to work because he can't get a lift from me, stuff like that.

I aren't going to make out that the pain lasts longer than it does, I'm been perfectly honest with my insurance, I will tell them when I feel the pain has gone, it's then upto them then what happens with regards to a claim.

This is why you have the hire car option so you don't get this added expense.

Whiplash is not the same as bruising you were diagnosed with at A&E after the accident.