Car Accident help

amyuk09

I had a minor car accident on Weds afternoon. Totally my fault, was changing lanes, thought I had room and didn't see the car in my blind spot. It was in traffic so quite low speed and just minor body work really. Had a discussion with the other person and we decided to visit a local garage to get an estimate on the work to their car. We found a garage that was nearby and nearby the other owners home. He gave us a quote and said infact if we left the car there he could have it done by Thurs PM or Fri AM at the latest. Discussed this with the other person and they were happy with this as they would get it back quickly and we wouldn't have to go through Insurance. The mechanic asked me to pay in full up front as he has had occurrences in the past that when people are paying for someone else's car they don't come back and pay. It hindsight I should not have done this but I was quite shaken up and just happy I could get it sorted so quickly. Anyway it is now Sunday and the car is still there. The owner went to pick it up this morning after being pushed back several times and is not happy with the work. They are going back tomorrow morning after the garage has 'fixed' what they're not happy with but to be honest neither of us are particularly confident in him now.
Any advice appreciated PLEASE!

amyuk09

I do have a receipt for the work.

Retrogamer

The driver of the other vehicle has a right to seek either financial recompense for what has happened to their car, or else the car should be put back to the way it was before it was damaged.

If this garage fail to return it to this level of repair, the other party may pursue this through their own insurance company who will then pursue either you or your insurers.

I'm not sure what you can do to protect yourself given the circumstances but this is the risks that can appear when you try and resolve it outside insurance.

amyuk09

we are dealing with it very amicably and I am happy to get the repair work done and pay for it. It was also their choice not to go through insurance.
Just so annoyed at this Garage for messing us around and wondering if I have any comeback with the Garage if we are not happy with the work?

TrickyWicky

amyuk09 wrote: »

didn't see the car in my blind spot.
Any advice appreciated PLEASE!

Sure, save yourself the hassle and check your blindspot not just your wingmirrors

Quentin

You need to complain to the garage (you have the contract with them over this issue, not the owner), and will have to pursue them yourself if they refuse to put this right.

Bear in mind the innocent third party gets all their costs off you (or your insurer), not just the repairs paid for, and can bill you for a replacement car whilst theirs is being repaired, so maybe leaving it to the insurers to sort out may be cost effective in the end. (And you can always reimburse your insurer to get your lost NCD reinstated)

Stoke

I think you took a risk not getting a second opinion. Even if I was happy with the first quote, I'd have wanted a second. It's a good opportunity to gauge the attitude of the garage and it's employees.

When they say they aren't happy? Why? How is the garage not fulfilling it's duties? They're slow or the work is not of decent quality?

arcon5

To be fair to op if I was the other guy I wouldn't be happy going to multiple garage just for quotes!

Problem is the garage would have a right to perform remedial works, if that fails you could potentially go elsewhere and pursue the first garage for the cost of remedial work.
But the guy has a right to be reimbursed for all out pocket expenses he wouldn't have otherwise incurred. So to keep the cost of car hire, additional travel costs, lost earnings etc down you need to keep the guy happy.

Seems you've got yourself a bit of a balancing act here.

And the longer it goes on the more likely the insurance company will be involved... In which case not notifying them of the accident for information purposes may well be your downfall if they for example cancel your policy.

Quentin

arcon5 wrote: »

.......And the longer it goes on the more likely the insurance company will be involved... In which case not notifying them of the accident for information purposes may well be your downfall if they for example cancel your policy.

This incident only happened last Wednesday, so there is no likelihood whatsoever of the policy being cancelled because of late notification.

(Might be different should the policy be renewed without informing then, though!)

And of course the third party may have got cold feet after all this hassle and informed his insurer so he has belt and braces for a claim should the hassle continue.

amyuk09

The Garage have been slow in doing the work and the quality. Actually went to the Garage today and the work is crap. he has even resprayed the keyhole and you can still see the dents. We have taken the car and I am seeking a refund. However the owner has now gone to other garages and is being estimated a lot more. Which had that been the quote in the first place I would have gone through Insurance anyway.
How do I stand if I contact the insurance after work has been carried out?

Stoke

amyuk09 wrote: »

The Garage have been slow in doing the work and the quality. Actually went to the Garage today and the work is crap. he has even resprayed the keyhole and you can still see the dents. We have taken the car and I am seeking a refund. However the owner has now gone to other garages and is being estimated a lot more. Which had that been the quote in the first place I would have gone through Insurance anyway.
How do I stand if I contact the insurance after work has been carried out?

In my opinion Amy, you stand to learn a very valuable life lesson, which will have cost you a lot of money but will hopefully save you some if the issue ever happens again.

Like I said above, a second opinion here would have done you the world of good. When the second garage said double the price or whatever, you could have instantly reconsidered using insurance as there's a fairly good chance your premium wouldn't rise that much. I would suggest demanding a full refund from the garage involved, however I'm guessing as it was a 'backstreet' garage you might struggle to get any kind of money back I'm afraid.