Hit by stolen car - Claiming from MIB

socks_uk

I was driving home from work on Bank Holiday Monday when I was reversed into, at speed, by a stolen car trying to escape from a police car. There were a few witnesses who helped me ( I was in shock but not injured) and gave me their contact details, which I passed on to the police.

The 3 'kids' in the car have, thankfully, been caught but my car is in a rather bad state. I'm only insured 3rd party, fire & theft as it's only an S reg Rover 200 but I have informed my insurance company (ASDA) of the incident.

The policeman who took my witness statement was also the policeman who was driving the police car that was in pursuit of them. He told me that I could claim from the MIB (motor Insurers Bureau who compensate 'victims' of uninsured drivers). He said to keep any receipts for repairs.

The trouble is, not only do I not have any spare cash to pay out up front at the moment, the repairs will cost more than the value of the car. I've got one quote already at over £2000. The car's probably only worth £1000 at the very most.

I was just wondering if anyone else has had dealings with the MIB and can tell me the procedures. I don't even know how to contact them or if they will contact me being that it was an uninsured driver that crashed into me.

My added problem is that my car tax is due for renewal end of May and the MOT is due mid June (which I've been told it will fail from the damage) although I do have off road parking should I decide not to tax my car until it's fixed.

Has anyone got any advice for me? Thanks.

mattymoo

Take a look at the MIB site for more info
http://www.mib.org.uk/Default.htm

These claims are far from straightforward. The MIB need to investigate the claim and the uninsured driver. In certain circumstances the vehicle owners insurance company will be asked to deal with the claim as Road Traffic Act insurers.

If the thief has been identified they need to try and obtain his co-operation and agreeement to reimburse them once they have settled your claim. Most thieves just tend to stick 2 fingers up to this process.

The MIB site does explain the process. As for time scales, simple cases tend to take 4-5 months.

Hapless_2

If the car is only worth £1000 and the repairs would be £2000 then I should imagine the car would be an economical write off. When you take it for another quote, ask them if it is worth repairing, if not could they put down in writing that it is not economical to repair the car.

socks_uk

Thanks for the replies guys...

I posted my MIB insurance claim yesterday so we'll see how long it takes to get a reply. I ended up with 2 quotes around £2000 and 1 at around £1000. I just sent the £2000 estimates with my claim.

In the meantime, I was thinking whether I should re-tax my car for just 6 months, then at least I could legally drive it to the garage for repairs or even part-exchange, although I only have a month to do this as the MOT runs out mid June. This is such a headache!

ooo000ooo

If the car was stolen and the owner had insurance, do you not claim off his insurance?

jonuk7

i had the same thing in Sept 2001, i was hit clean of my motorbike by a stolen car, wrote the bike off, left me in hospital for 4 weeks (2 weeks dont remember as was unconciouss) anyway i got out and spoke with the police etc and they said goto the MIB, i spoke to a solicitor who i was getting to deal with the claim, (NOT a no-win no-fee one, she claims my expense etc then hers seperatley) she did everything, got the bike officially written off, cost of damage to my clothing etc then the loss of work time etc and personal injury all in she claimed for £19500. This was ongoing until i finally received a payout from the MIB for £18970 in November 2003!! 2 years it took for them to do what they needed etc and mine was pretty major, so hopefully they have speeded up their system otherwise you may be waiting along time..

socks_uk

ooo000ooo wrote: »

If the car was stolen and the owner had insurance, do you not claim off his insurance?

It was the policeman who said I should claim off the MIB. I'm only insured 3rd party, fire & theft so can't claim off mine (i don't think).

I'm sure the MIB will tell me if I should be claiming from the owner of the stolen vehicle because they'll not want to pay out if I can.

socks_uk

jonuk7 wrote: »

This was ongoing until i finally received a payout from the MIB for £18970 in November 2003!! 2 years it took for them to do what they needed etc and mine was pretty major, so hopefully they have speeded up their system otherwise you may be waiting along time..

Gosh! I can't wait 2 years! I certainly hope they have speeded things up. Thanks for telling us about your experiences jonuk7.

lousheff

Something similar has happened to me. My car was parked outside my boyfriends house when his neighbour reversed into it. He is a 17 yr old uninsured provisional driver. I called the police who said there was nothing they could do and that i had to inform my insurance. My insurance said i would lose my 4 yrs no claim discount and would have to pay the first 500 pound. The damage will cost just under a grand to repair and the uninsured driver agreed to pay me back. This was nearly 4 months ago and although i ask him for the money on a regular basis, i have so far seen nothing. I really don't know what to do, the police and my insurance have been so unhelpful. Surely they should have been able to do something as he was uninsured and didn't hold a full uk license? Can anyone offer any advise?

socks_uk

lousheff wrote: »

Something similar has happened to me. My car was parked outside my boyfriends house when his neighbour reversed into it. He is a 17 yr old uninsured provisional driver. I called the police who said there was nothing they could do and that i had to inform my insurance. My insurance said i would lose my 4 yrs no claim discount and would have to pay the first 500 pound. The damage will cost just under a grand to repair and the uninsured driver agreed to pay me back. This was nearly 4 months ago and although i ask him for the money on a regular basis, i have so far seen nothing. I really don't know what to do, the police and my insurance have been so unhelpful. Surely they should have been able to do something as he was uninsured and didn't hold a full uk license? Can anyone offer any advise?

Try looking at the MIB websitehttp://www.mib.org.uk/NR/exeres/5DD086A4-4037-4B8D-BDAD-E891DF0F4DA9.htm

Hope the link worked.

tali

same thing happened to me -trouble was stolen car was uninsured by legitimate owner aswell ,as it was untaxed on his drive.
police caught thief but never got back to me and probably spent more time taking my details down and seeing evidence of my documents
Not truly convinced my MIB , too many get out clauses and exemptions "we cant do this we cant do that" and smallprint