Motor insurance write-off payment problem

Tinuel

All,
Wonder if you can help me.
My car was written off due to a road accident that wasn't my fault.

Due to that, the car was written off and a settlement was reached for a fair amount. The courtesy car was taken away, after 14 days, and still no cheque.

After calling the motor insurance a number of times, we were told that the underwriters were holding the payment.

This is due to when we first did the policy (a few years ago), I named the missus as the main policy holder, but the V5 actually has me as the registered keeper.
They now want a written explanation as to why, as I should be the main policy holder.

At the time I thought nothing of it, and wasn't trying to scam or fraud the insurance.
It was the first time I had a "joint" motor insurance with someone, and I named her the main policy holder, as she was the one driving the car most of the time (that was my thinking behind it).

So now, I am left with no courtesy car, no car and no money to buy a new one.

When I write back, can I allege the above (that I did not know it was against the rules) when writing back?

- Can I ask for a new courtesy car, since the claim isn't fully settled yet?

- Can they refuse to honour the payment and I am left with no car and no settlement?

Many thanks!

BertTheRaccoon

I am not an underwriter, but I cannot see anything manifestly wrong with your situation and there has been no deliberate intention to deceive here.

Your reason for having the missus as the policyholder seems justified given that she is the main user. However, if the car is legally yours, your wife as the policyholder does not have an insurable interest in the vehicle as it is not strictly her property.

This is probably the main issue your insurers are getting excited about. The other issue is that they may be checking back on the information you first gave them when taking out the quote and policy. i.e. did you state to them within that call or web based quotation that your wife was the owner or you?

If there was a misrepresentation made there, this could be another excuse to mess about for many weeks and even decline the claim.

You are probably going to tread a path of misery with your insurers, who will be in no hurry to make the payout and will continue dragging their heels.

It is very unlikely that you will get another courtesy car as this is a novus actus intervenus (intervening act) and therefore secondary to the actual need to claim in the first place. i.e the need to continue hiring a replacement car is due to these administrative problems and it is something that cannot be directly attributed to the person who caused the collision.

I would co-operate with your insurer and give them the information they need, but if you find yourself another week or so down the line and they are still playing about, you have the option of phoning the insurer of the party at fault and get them to take you under their wing and make a payment to you for the write off value. They will most likely want to get their own independent inspection done before agreeing a settlement with you.

If you pay to hire a car in the meantime, it will be from your own pocket and you will not stand any realistic chance of claiming those costs back from the other party.

Hintza

The third party should be paying out, so your insurance policy arrangements should be of no interest to them.

I would also be suing the third party for losses that you will incur through increased premiums for the next 5 years.

So why is your insurer involved?

mikey72

We've insured each others cars for as long as I can remember. I'm the main driver and policyholder on her car, she's the same on mine.
It's always been declared on the proposal, although some have merely asked if the car if owned by me or my wife.

BenL

The V5 states that the registered keeper is not necessarily the legal owner of the vehicle. Your wife could easily be the legal owner of the vehicle and the main insurance policy holder - you may just be better at paperwork for the tax etc and so are the registered keeper.

Are you legally married? You say "missus" so I assume you mean wife and not girlfriend. Surely they understand joint finances and you may have bought it as a family/household car and only 1 person can go on the paperwork.

A lot of people with 2 cars take which ever one is on the bottom of the drive when they go in the morning and it maybe different to the one they came home in the day before - it's just the way families work!

Tinuel

Thanks for the answers.

To clarify, yes, we are legally married and she is my wife. I also spend large periods abroad, which is one of the reasons why she is the policy holder (I am working abroad right now for 3 months, back to the UK on weekends).

The other party is at fault, my car was hit on the rear at the traffic lights. But the other party is still disputing it and both insurances are trying to sort it out.

The quote was web based, but I honestly can't recall now, after all this time, what info was entered, when filling the details.

They wrote that they were not aware of this (registered keeper not the main policy holder) and had they known at the start, the risk would not have been acceptable...

I am gutted with all this, because my old banger is still good to drive, but it's currently at an insurance authorised garage. They suggested a write off, as the cost to repair would be greater than the value of the car.


Had I known that it would be this hassle, and they would now use this to dispute and it can take a long time to sort it out, I would have declined the offer and had it repaired myself...

My wife is now left with no old banger, no write-off money and no courtesy car for the next week or two...

mikey72

Tinuel wrote: »

.....The quote was web based, but I honestly can't recall now, after all this time, what info was entered, when filling the details....

It'll say on the policy documents.

I've never had any insurer refuse on ours, if the car is owned by the spouse.

redux

I can't see why your insurers make any distinction between you or your wife being on the registration document, as surely in law you own it jointly anyway.

I'm single and own one car, so it's not relevant to me, but I just checked my policy schedule, which includes the phrase:

You, or your spouse, civil partner, partner, parent or child are the legal owner and the registered keeper of the car.

Edit: and the proposal doesn't ask which.

Quentin

You need to clarify the problem, as needing a correct "main policyholder" doesn't make sense.

There is a "main driver" (who you nominate when taking out the policy), and a "policyholder", not a "main policyholder".

As you are married, then the car is in your joint ownership, and so the name on the v5 is irrelevant.

(Does the policy stipulate anything about the policyholder being the Regustered Keeper?)

Tobster86

Me & my partner are respectively cross-registered and insured and even used (though that's a secret...damn. Well, they didn't have a 'whichever one of us bloody well wants to use it' tick box!).

The registered keeper is not the legal owner and I would point that out.

We're not married and don't legally have to be. That's what 'cohabiting/common law' means and it has the same legal status as people that want to sanctify their relationship with the government or a bearded guy in the clouds.

So on those grounds, 'both of us legally and jointly own the vehicle. Only one of us can legally be the registered keeper. Hand over the money'.

dacouch

Which delightful Insurer is it?