My insurance not willing to pay

HANDBREAK

Hi guys,

I am new in here ( welcome to me ) , well this is my story.

More than 2 months ago I was involved in non fault accident, I collided with a car that pulled out from a side road (failed to mark a stop).

the third party admitted liability but my insurance keeps telling that what the expert says about the damage of the car does not match with what you actually told us. and some damages might m=not be related to the accident. They sent me loads of form to fill in including drawing diagrams about the situation at the time of the accident. my car has been stored in the garage (meccanic) who is charging me £25 a day. my car is badly damaged tax/mot expired cannot keep it at mine.
So, basically they told me that my car is a total loss what make them have to pay me and pay the garage as well but they are not willing to do so. they keep calling me up asking the same questions again and again, asking me to give them permission to speak to the dvla to get all information regarding my licence (which I did). calling the garage asking random questions.
I had a curtosy car after 40 days they took it away and said this is the policy, your case is taking time. I am without car and It is affecting my job as well as my social life.
They are looking for every single excuse to tie me up

Please help !! any ideas, any suggestions

vax2002

Why are you claiming from your policy ?
You should be claiming from the party that admitted liability and making them claim on their insurance.
Obtain 3 quotes for the damage to your car plus the storage costs and send the other driver an invoice.
Call your insurance and tell them that due to a frustration of your contract you will be handling the matter yourself and passing details of the delays in a complaint to the ombudsman, as you have a duty to mitigate your losses you must remove the claim from your policy and it will be made directly with the other side.
Then send the other driver the bill for the quotes with your contact details, wait 14 days and then send a reminder, then a letter before action for county court.
If this is ignored, issue county court proceedings for your losses .

chanz4

Op are you not telling us something, as stated above if its claiming from another sides insurance they wouldnt be going into so much depth. What else was damaged before /after the accident

HANDBREAK

The car was not damaged before the accident it was spotless. My insurance has not refused to pay me yet but it is clear that there avoiding to pay by seeking for every unecessary details.
they are saying the damages might not be caused by the accident, the storage is going up they dont seem to be worried.

The car I collided with was a hire car, driver admitted liability as well as the hire company.
I am not sure about the first step. do I need to hire a solicitor to act on my behalf ? if yes How can I find a one? or CAB would do! as I think that the court is the last thing I need to do.

Is it possible to redraw my claim?

Thanks

lisyloo

as I think that the court is the last thing I need to do.

Why do you think that?
I'm not sure you know what we are talking about here (no offence).
Small claims court doesn't use solicitors and is very cheap (starts at £35).
Why don't you want to go that route? What's your objection?
If the other driver/insurer got legal letters about going to court they would start doing things that's for sure.

Is it possible to redraw my claim?

What do you mean by redraw?
Redraw the pictures? or withdraw?


In your position I would not be going he court route. That will cost money, needs you to do stuff and be assertive (no offence but I don't believe you are well positioned) and carries some risk.

I would have at least started a formal complaint through the insurers complaints process by now and would have sent it recorded delivery to make sure it got there.

The assesor obviosuly things there is something dodgy here.
Either your account of events is inconsistent OR there is something wrong with your car that you weren't aware of.

Your other option is to get an accident management company involevd. Personally I don't like them and I believe they carry some risks (for example you may end taking a day off to go to court if the other insurer doesn't like their exhorbitant car hire fees).
So if you can manage with transport for work for now, then I would personally fire off a complaint ASAP, in face I would have done it 6 weeks ago.

Christopher7

Hi

What were the accident circumstances and what damage was done to your car? Also what damage is the insurance co engineer refusing to cover. I have to say that they usually give policyholders the benefit of doubt but they have also been known to be wrong.

As Lisyloo says I wouldnt go the court route yet. Contact the inurance company and raise a formal complaint. If you get no joy refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service. The insurers will want avoid you taking this route as they have to pay for the complaint to be investigated even if they were proven to be right.

I would stick with your insurers and avoid Accident Management Co's or passing the claim onto the TPI, as they most probably come up with even more stuff they aren't willing to pay for. The TPI will most probably leave you to deal with the salvage of the car and the garage's storage bill.

lisyloo

I would be a little concerned about the storage charges if you decide to withdraw your claim now.
You can't necessarily expect a third party insurer to pick up the bill whilst you haven't told them directly about the accident for 2 months.
I would be pursuing your own insurer first.

InsideInsurance

Are your insurers aware its accruing storage charges? What does your policy state about them? Normally insurers are liable for storage charges which is why they immediately move the vehicle to one of their approved garages which dont charge them fees.

HANDBREAK

The insurance wanted a repair/estimate from their approved garage, I suggested to get it from the main bwm dealer. They accepted but told me that I have to pay with an excess of £200 in case I choose where my car should be repaired ( happy days). After that they called to reported that my car is total loss because the estimate was high and some kind of a salvage company is coming to pick up the car. The garage asked me to pay the storage and did not want to release the car to the salvage people. I called the insurance to inquire why they do not want to pay the storage and also if there is any offer to make. They refused to say anything and advised me to tell the garage to let the car go which the garage had refused. From that day the insurance started investigating the claim. The garage is charging us £25/day plus vat and I have no idea where this is going. I have been sending complaints letters to them and ordered them not to call me again to ask me same questions again and again and they must do it in writing.
Now they are playing another card which is the car damage. They said the damages might not be caused by the accident.
Shall I take them to court or I should wait until they refuse my claim. Because so far they have not refused it yet.
Please help

Thanks everyone

joseph_11

Sorry Guys i need help asap. please read !!!

I had a car accident on Tuesday, we are both blaming each other for the accident, I am scared that at some point my car insurance company will get back to me asking for a copy of my driving license were they would see my points which I did not tell them about. Is there any way round this? Is there a possibility they may not ask for my license?


thanks

opinions4u

joseph_11 wrote: »

Sorry Guys i need help asap. please read !!!

I had a car accident on Tuesday, we are both blaming each other for the accident, I am scared that at some point my car insurance company will get back to me asking for a copy of my driving license were they would see my points which I did not tell them about. Is there any way round this? Is there a possibility they may not ask for my license?


thanks

I really hope they do ask to see your licence.

Insurance fraudsters like you should go to prison. You're lucky. In the unlikely event you do get prosecuted you'll probably be punished with a small fine.

Why should others have to pay more for their insurance because you tell lies to get a cheaper premium?

Oh, welcome to MSE.