What if? Car insurance question

butler_helen

I was hit by a driver whose policy was invalid. It was his fault... Insurance are dealing with it (we are with the same policy) - no problems.

What if it was my fault? Would my insurance pay out to someone in a rather nice car who shouldn't have been on the road in the first place?

I say no but my boyfriend says yes and I can't find an answer anywhere on the net - anyone know?

rs65

Your boyfriend is correct

System

"we are with the same policy"


You mean you own both vehicles and someone else was driving the one that hit you?

butler_helen

Sorry we are with the same company - not on the same policy.

Damned annoying if there wasnt clear fault and I had to pay to put an illegal driver back on the road! But hey ho... Useful to know.

InsideInsurance

Liability is determined on the events that are directly relevant. So if you take the example of a stationary vehicle waiting at lights and someone goes into the back of them. Even if the car in front had failed its MOT, its driver was drunk etc all of these are irrelevant to the fact their car was stationary and the other car has failed to brake in time.

Obviously depending on why the vehicle shouldnt be on the road may effect what the settlement give is. So with the above example if the lead vehicle was written off then you would be 100% liable but the settlement figure would be reduced due to the fact the car didnt have an MOT - the fact the driver was drunk may lead to a criminal conviction but in these circumstances would be totally irrelevant to the civil issue of liabilities and settlement

butler_helen

Thank you and thank you for the example - it makes sense now. (better example than my other half gave!).

InsideInsurance

It is one of the ones that was always used when training the first response teams on how to make an initial judgement on liability. They didn't have to be experts but know enough to make a good stab at which of the three departments to assign the case to (recoveries, disputes or fault) as otherwise they had a nasty habit of sending everything to disputes when they were the most expensive department to maintain.