I was hit by a deer....

sheldon08

and now it looks like my car may be written off. It's all going through my insurance just now.

I've started looking around on line at other cars and looking for insurance quotes etc. My question is this: When I declare that I've had an accident is it fair to tick the 'other party at fault' box? No other vehicles were involved. I wasn't injured. The deer ran at me across the motorway and hit the drivers side of the car.

The difference in 'no other vehicle involved' and 'other party at fault' is quite substantial.

Hintza

No probably not. The main thing being you have had a claim against your insurance and not a third parties insurance. Check out all the boxes and pick the most relevant.

(It could also be argued that you were driving with undue care and attention....having said that I would think that would be harsh.)

Did you get the carcass?

sheldon08

Ah ok, yes that makes sense. Thank you.

No, the Highways Agency came and removed it. I would never have managed to lift the thing into my car anyway;)

prowla

I once hit a deer; luckily for me it only popped my bumper, but unluckily for the deer it bounced off my car into the oncoming traffic.

I was driving along at 60 at a sensible distance behind another car and the deer just ran into the road in front of me and stopped there.

zappahey

Hintza wrote: »

(It could also be argued that you were driving with undue care and attention..)

Having hit a deer on my motorbike some years ago, I can say with some authority that no amount of care and attention would have made it avoidable.

scottishperson2

Try hitting a moose, usually ends up with fatalities all round.

sheldon08

Hintza wrote: »

(It could also be argued that you were driving with undue care and attention....having said that I would think that would be harsh.)

It was raining heavily, visibility was poor and I was driving at a good distance from the cars and lorries in front of me at 60mph. The deer hit me from the side. I must admit I wasn't driving along with my head to the right looking out of the drivers side window 'just in case';)

photome

Hintza wrote: »

No probably not. The main thing being you have had a claim against your insurance and not a third parties insurance. Check out all the boxes and pick the most relevant.

(It could also be argued that you were driving with undue care and attention....having said that I would think that would be harsh.)

Did you get the carcass?

You wouldnt say that if you had seen a deer run out in to the road.

I have and if the deer had come out of the hedge a second or two later i would have hit it.

Belnahua

I hit a deer, wrote off my car about 3 years ago. Headlights smashed, bumper, wing, and bonnet dented.

It was actually better to not claim for me, and just pay for the repair, which the garage did a good job of patching up. So instead of a £2000 insurance bill, it was £200 for 2nd hand parts and living with a few minor"dents" in the wing and bumper (the bonnet straightened out and T-cut)!

Hence no need to declare any claims!

Strider590

The holier than thou crowd will be along shortly......

I had a car written of by a badger, 11pm, no street lights, I just saw a flash of white and heard a loud bang, the car left the ground as it went in under the bumper and decimated the engine bay...... But the afore mentioned crowd deemed it still to be MY fault, lol......

Ignore the keyboard warriors, there's often nothing you can do in these situations.

Sambucus_Nigra

I've been there and done that with a deer - M5, at night; had a dent in the offside wing and hoof marks scraped down the side of the car. And a bit of blood on the front. Yuk.

Very very frightening and like you, I wasn't driving looking out the passenger side window, I was looking out the front. Even if I had looked out the passenger side window; it only shows at night once it's in the headlights; not all deer come with Rudolph noses. [In fact, I think that's made up, and not real at all].

Due care and attention indeed. Oh dear....





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