i had a car crash !! please help

alanco15

Hi all, i had a crash not my fault, other driver admits blame and police prosecutuing.
I only have 3rd party/fire/theft. will my insurance still deal with the claim for me or am i on my own. I am waitng for them to call back.

I was very lucky just suffered some whiplash, and wrist sprain, will they pay anything for the injuries or just my car, also i had a passenger who has bruising to chest and sore knee, will he be able to claim anything from the other insurance.

sorry for all the questions but never had an accident before , we are both off work for a few days.

any advice would be much appriciated.

jwil

Sorry to hear about your accident. I had an accident in a car which was TPFT and not my fault - my insurance company dealt with it. Ensure you report any injuries to them.

huckster

Not all Insurers will help you with a claim against a third party, unless you have legal expenses cover with the policy.

So you could be faced with having to approach the third party Insurers yourself or using a accident claims management company to do this for you.

As you have been injured, if you don't have the legal cover, I would recommend that you use an accident claims management company. As soon as they hear about the injury and circumstances of the accident, they will be really keen to obtain your business. It will not cost you anything, as they will recover their costs from the third parties Insurers.

Just be careful, as some of the claims management companies e.g. Driveassist can be a pain to deal with. Many posters have alleged that they have tried it on with mysterious scratches to the cars, to get money out of them for repairs. Better to use the accident management companies that are actually part of a firm of solicitors. If you google, you will find many.

alanco15

thanks for replies, can anyone recommend a good claims company, my car is a tota lwrite off , cost of recovery and also personal injury claim (myself and passenger ), thanks all again

adamc260

Contact the third parties insurer if they accept liability. They will pay for the value of your car, provide hire, pay recovery costs and deal with your personal injury most likely.

BLT_2

alanco15 wrote: »

Hi all, i had a crash not my fault, other driver admits blame and police prosecutuing.
I only have 3rd party/fire/theft. will my insurance still deal with the claim for me or am i on my own. I am waitng for them to call back.

I was very lucky just suffered some whiplash, and wrist sprain, will they pay anything for the injuries or just my car, also i had a passenger who has bruising to chest and sore knee, will he be able to claim anything from the other insurance.

sorry for all the questions but never had an accident before , we are both off work for a few days.

any advice would be much appriciated.

Whiplash, wow what a surprise, who didn't see that one coming. And this is why our insurance premiums are so high, because everyone who has even the slightest prang automatically gets whiplash and tries to milk the situation. Are you sure you didn't lose a strand of hair in the seat belt as well, you should mention that. Did your passenger get a cracked fingernail?

Watch this space for the OP complaining next year that his insurance premiums have gone up.

Penketh

Whilst I'm sure your sarcasm is kindly meant!!, :undecided, you appear to be making an assumption that the whiplash is some sort of scam.

I have also just been in an accident and received injuries, why should I be out of pocket because of somebody else's mistake?

The same applies to anybody who is injured in any accident for which they are not responsible.

If you are genuinly injured then you should claim, which is the advice I have been given by everyone who took the time to reply to my post.

While I'm aware that some people do make fraudulent claims regarding whiplash, this should not be used as a stick to beat genuine claimants with.

Good luck with your claim and I hope you get more support from the other people who reply to your post.

adamc260

BLT wrote: »

Whiplash, wow what a surprise, who didn't see that one coming. And this is why our insurance premiums are so high, because everyone who has even the slightest prang automatically gets whiplash and tries to milk the situation. Are you sure you didn't lose a strand of hair in the seat belt as well, you should mention that. Did your passenger get a cracked fingernail?

Watch this space for the OP complaining next year that his insurance premiums have gone up.

I agree that pretty much everyone jumps on the bandwagon for injuries but we shouldnt judge if the OP does or doesnt have it... if they don't and they're claiming then its fraudulent... if they genuinely have an injury then they're entitled to seek compensation. Sadly, most people don't have it nower days and see it as a quick way to earn money... but when peoples insurance premiums skyrocket they'll soon think 'that quick buck wasnt worth it!'

vaio

Quentin wrote: »

......You can cut out the middleman and go direct to a PI claim firm of your choice. Some win no fee firms will pay a commission direct to you in return for you going direct to them.

Google cashback injury solicitors. Offers of £300+ are fairly easy to find - and that's just for giving them your case!.

Wherever you go, (via your insurer or direct), they will only take you on if they consider you have a good chance of winning.

...........................

R3negadeuk

Imo Op seems genuine.

Here is my advice...

First thing you and your passenger need to is go to your GP or hospital as soon as you can. Firstly, you may need treatment, secondly, if you are going to make an injury claim, everything needs to be clearly documented.

The next thing I would suggest is to contact the other drivers insurance company. Explain your situation, and if the incident has been reported by the other driver, the insurance company will do everything they can to help you. If you deal directly with the insurer, the settlement will be faster and you would still get what you would than if you went to a solicitor.

To reiterate the previous point, an insurance company will only compensate you for what you are legally entitled to, this would mean injury compensation, vehicle repair or total loss costs, replacement vehicle costs or loss of use, loss of income and personal belongings. This list is not exhaustive, but it is typical.

When you speak to the insurer, explain that you have an injury, you require assistance for your vehicle(you are TPFT). If you need a replacement vehicle, then ask for one. Also explain what other losses you may incur, i.e. days off work.

Do not lie or fluff out your claim. If anything does not ring true, you may be investigated for legitimacy. If anything is deemed to be fraudulent your claim may be put on hold and may be revoked. The insurer may then take legal action against you.

As long as you tell it exactly how it is, you have absolutely nothing to worry about.

If the insurer cannot help you at this stage, advise the insurer that you will seeking the advice of a solicitor, that will then be your next step.

Personally, I do not advocate solicitors as they will claim back everything that I had mentioned above, however, the will charge an insurance company thousands of pounds for the privilege. These costs will be pure profit for the solicitor which you will not see a penny of.

If you need, I can recommend a number of law firms which are more legit than others. I would recommend going to a motor accident specialist and not the donkeys that you see on the ad breaks on day time telly.

In respect of the injury claim, do not think you are in for a windfall. With just whiplash you are looking as low as 750 quid. More realistically tho about 1000 to 1500 top end( I have no pound sign lol). The compensation is based on what type of injury and the prognosis. Whiplash is classed as soft tissue injury and cannot really be proved that you have or have not got it, as opposed to a broken bone, which can be proven based on evidence.

If you have any further questions, please let me know.

fwiw I am not a solicitor, but this is pretty much my day job dealing with this stuff.

R3negadeuk

adamc260 wrote: »

I agree that pretty much everyone jumps on the bandwagon for injuries but we shouldnt judge if the OP does or doesnt have it... if they don't and they're claiming then its fraudulent... if they genuinely have an injury then they're entitled to seek compensation. Sadly, most people don't have it nower days and see it as a quick way to earn money... but when peoples insurance premiums skyrocket they'll soon think 'that quick buck wasnt worth it!'

I agree with what has been mentioned here.

There are 2 major problems that have led to a massive influx of fraudulent claims, these are:

Criminal gangs. Some of these operations are nationwide on a huge scale. We are talking millions of pounds. Fortunately, these are getting picked up quick these days and people are going to jail for a long time.

And more seriously - firms of solicitors.

Not so much in the context of this thread. But if you look where the catchment group of most of the adds are, you will find them right after the bingo ads during the Jeremy Kyle show. Law firms will actively lure people in with the promise of riches, but the poor muppets that go along with this scam are just stooges.

Yes, if succesful, you will keep a whopping 100% of your compensation. However, the law firm will keep the costs which can be 200/300/400% or more than the actual compensation.

Some solicitors will run a claim for anything. I have heard about a girl who was intoxicated and fell over who got told she had a good case to sue(unsuccessful). To the man who crashed his car and blamed the incident on stepping on a grape whilst shopping 15 minutes prior(unsuccessful). With these two in particular, there where about 10 months combined disputing the cases. No one actually got anything, but it would have cost thousands just defending against these claims.

In my lifetime, I would like to see the majority of these firms closed down. Trouble is, by that time they have already feathered their nest.

I would like to mention that this is not all firms. Some are good, just lots are very very bad.