My car has been written off. Do I still own it?

TSx

slaptastical wrote: »

I paid £4000 for my car 6 months ago and it has a very low mileage. The back end is done in enough to call it a write off, but everything else is fine. I've been given a guaranteed quote from a company of £600 as salvage and that includes the car being collected, which is why I'm keen to come to an agreement where I keep the car, (unless they increase their offer) but also why the 3rd party probably want it, as there is still value in it.

Aretnap - surely what I am or am not entitled to only applies in the case of insurance getting involved. Outside of insurance it's between me and the 3rd party what we agree on.

Aretnap was correct in that if you can't agree a settlement then the legal position is that you are put back in the same financial position (either a settlement and they retain the salvage, or a settlement with a deduction for the salvage value).

Of course if it doesn't get as far as a court, they could agree to pay you 2x the market value if they wanted - but it's useful to know what the actual legal position is.

tasticz

Print some ads from autotrader for your car try make it like for like and ask for the value to replace it just because you paid 4000 doesn't means your cars worth 4000 it could be going for 2000 right now or in some rare cases gone up to 6000 either way they have to put you back in place you were per accident so if you can get a similar
Car for 2000 then I say it's a fair deal. But personally I wouldn't accept it for a car u paid 4000 only 6
Months ago

Just say give me around 3800 cars ures put it straight up no games

specialboy

Don't forget to tell your insurance company that you have been involved in an incident, for information purposes only.

CKhalvashi

rs65 wrote: »

Whether you keep the scrap or it becomes theirs is simply down to you and them to agree. There is no rule as you are just coming to an agreement between yourselves.

I agree with this part.

I would be a bit concerned that if they keep it, a write off may end up back on the road without being registered as a write off.

It won't have been written off, though.

Just because a car is accident damaged, doesn't make it unroadworthy when repaired.

CK

Norman_Castle

slaptastical wrote: »

My car was involved in an accident that wasn't my fault and has been written off.
The other party has claimed full responsibility and wants to settle outside of insurance. They have given me an offer but as part of that offer they want to keep my written off car (the other party who wrote off my car happen to be a garage).

Am I correct in thinking that if we settle outside of insurance then I am still the legal owner of the car, regardless of where the car is or what condition it's in? And this is because it does not become property of the insurance companies because they are not involved.
If I'm the legal owner still I could sell the car for salvage and reclaim some value on it as well as accepting an offer from the other party directly.

Thanks for any advice.

They are buying your damaged car and paying you its pre accident value. Once they have bought it they are the legal owner and can do what they want with it.

Aretnap

slaptastical wrote: »

Aretnap - surely what I am or am not entitled to only applies in the case of insurance getting involved. Outside of insurance it's between me and the 3rd party what we agree on.

Of course you can agree to anything you like, so long as he agrees as well. It sounds like he hasn't agreed to what you want (yet). If you can't agree between you then you can't force him to accept any particular arrangement, all you can do is go through insurance instead. Keep this in mind when deciding what to ask for.

For a guide on what to expect if you went through insurance see here

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/technical_notes/motor-valuation.html

If the car was bought "recently" for £4000 the market value would generally be assumed to be the purchase price, so you'd be entitled to £3400 plus salvage rights, or £4000 if the insurers keep the car. However the Ombudsman doesn't define "recently". Six months might be seen as a bit too long, in which case you'd have to factor in a bit of depreciation.

InsideInsurance

slaptastical wrote: »

PasturesNew - this is what I thought, the car is legally still mine. I should have the option of accepting an offer from them and still being able to sell my written off car for scrap.

Tasticz - even if the 3rd party pay me the value of the car I don't see how it can become theirs as they are not an insurance company, just a garage/breakdown company.

Insurers are not unique, if someone gives you the market value of your vehicle pre crash then they'd be entitled to the vehicle if they wanted it as otherwise you've had betterment because you've got the cash for the full car value and the value of the salvage.

Now before getting hung up on things, check if they actually want the salvage or not, if they do then you can negotiate a lower cash settlement with you retaining the vehicle (as an insurer would do)

Derwent

Its very simple really, and the whole accident and write off stuff is a red herring. They are not offering to "write off" your car, they are simply making an offer to buy your car at an agreed price. If you accept the offer then you are agreeing to sell the car to them and they become the legal owners of it. They will then most likely repair it and re-sell it to recoup some of their money.

macman

Legality doesn't come into it. You are free to agree, decline or negotiate whatever arrangement you wish, including or not including the car with the cash settlement.

John_Pierpoint

Who says it is a write off?

I am no expert but all these transactions are now computerised, in a (failed?) attempt to clean up the insurance scams and cut and shut aspects of the dirty business that is the insurance/motor trade.

Insurance companies can obviously make more money by writing off your motor at a low value, deducting your excess £300 (say) and then collecting a "scrap" payment for what ever is left, at the garage that still has the mangled metal. Job done.
Given a bit of work by a guy in a farmer's barn, using parts from a breaker, that written off car could become a death trap or more likely something pretty well as good as new.
Oh my God a week later it gets written off again, could that have been a staged accident or a tragedy for the person who bought a nice motor in good faith?
So write off's are write off's and should not go back on the road until they have been reclassified and retested.
My daughter got a legitimate but written off car from her boyfriend's dad, who happened to be a garage owner - but she was almost in effect then driving on third party only what ever the insurance policy might say.
Even if you have not told your insurance company about this situation, they could find "your" car popping up on a list of back-on-the-road retested and recategorised cars; now you have broken your contract of utmost good faith with those lovely people who are always on your side, called your insurance company.

The days of being able to write off cars multiple times should be over - but whether paying for all this nanny state legislation makes Britain a better place is debatable.