Bus took wing mirror off car...what to do?

Miss_Ratty

Basically we went out to my parent's in law car and the wing mirror had been ripped off (it was parked outside our house), and a note was left on the car from someone who witnessed a passing bus knock it off but not stop. All the bus details and witness details have been provided.

My query is what to do? Should we inform our insurance company? It's an old car and the damage is just the wing mirror, so i really don't want my in-laws premiums to go up by claiming through insurance, even though they weren't even in the car! Can one ring their insurance company to tell them about the incident and state that they don't wish to make a claim? Then will their insurance go up anyway? They are far too honest for their own good and would be likely to declare it in future when renewing insurances, even though we hope not to make a claim and go directly via the bus company (who have said we need to email them details, inform our insurers but that if there is little damage they will probably just pay for the repairs without going via insurance).

It seems awfully unfair that their 30 odd years of no claims could be countered by an insurance company using it against them even if they don't claim via the insurance.

Any information as to how to proceed would be greatly appreciated.

Should we also inform the police? The driver didn't stop, and in my mind, taking the higher moral ground, the driver should be given some words of advice by the company....the bus that did it has different drivers, but we live in a cul-de-sac and some drivers just tear through the road at crazy speeds for a suburban area, and it's not the first time cars have been damaged by them!

Many thanks in advance x

JustinR1979

Ring the company - I think they like to keep it in house, so would suit you both.

colino

As above but remember to calmly tell them you have an independent witness. Much easier to pay you off than have hassles with their insurers, LAs or Traffic Commissioners.

[Deleted User]

Bus company will tell you to prove it even though they probably have it on the buses own cameras.

I hate buses and they way they pull out of bus stops into the side of you when you are already commited, also barging their way through taffic on other side of the road.

Quiet_Spark

colino wrote: »

As above but remember to calmly tell them you have an independent witness. Much easier to pay you off than have hassles with their insurers, LAs or Traffic Commissioners.

If the "Claimed & Shamed" program on telly is anything to go by, then the bus company will be self insuring and the incident will have been caught on one of the many CCTV cameras fitted to the bus.
As it's only a door mirror, they will settle fairly quickly.

Deleted_User wrote: »

I hate buses and they way they pull out of bus stops into the side of you when you are already commited, also barging their way through taffic on other side of the road.

That's down to the driver, not the type of vehicle

Miss_Ratty

I did mention the independent witness and she said that they would also check their bus cctv...I'm quite happy for them to do so, as long as they don't try to wriggle out of it somehow!

Do we need to inform the insurance company anyway? I'm thinking what if we didn't but they then approached our insurers who then cancel the policy or something stupid because we didn't inform them!

colin79666

Miss_Ratty wrote: »

Do we need to inform the insurance company anyway? I'm thinking what if we didn't but they then approached our insurers who then cancel the policy or something stupid because we didn't inform them!

Check the terms and conditions. Many say you have to inform them even if you don't intend to use them to make a claim. Unfortunately they then deem you as a greater risk as you had an accident, even though it cost them nothing and it wasn't your fault - raising your premium next time.

JustinR1979

I don't see why they would want to talk to your insurance.
Technically you're supposed to declare it, not that I would.

Aretnap

Miss_Ratty wrote: »

Do we need to inform the insurance company anyway? I'm thinking what if we didn't but they then approached our insurers who then cancel the policy or something stupid because we didn't inform them!

They are obliged to inform their insurers of the accident, and to declare the accident to future insurers for the next 3-5 years, even if they don't want to make a claim through their own policy. Obviously many people who do have minor accidents do choose to sort them out privately do choose not to inform insurers - but this comes with the risk of having your policy voided if your insurer does find out in future. The risk of there being a record of the accident which could come back to bite them one day is probably greater if they're trying to claim from a large organisation, like a bus company, than if they were to accept a handful of banknotes from a neighbour who bumped their car.

Whether that's a risk they're willing to take is up to them - personally I wouldn't take it. If they claim directly from the bus company then informing their insurers won't affect their no claims bonus, and while it might have a small effect on next year's premium, it is unlikely to be anything too dramatic. Last time I had a play on a comparison site out of curiosity I found that a recent £1000 no fault claim would add just under a fiver to my cheapest quote - hardly worth risking a voided policy for.

DaveF327

Personally, I would only inform my insurance company after I've had some resolution from direct contact with the bus company.

Once they've paid you (out of court) for the damage or denied liability, then I'd inform my insurer with more detailed information with a heading "FOR INFORMATION ONLY" in large print.

gilbert_and_sullivan

You'd think the bus company would be glad to sort this amicably, and i hope they do, but don't hold your breath.

I have bitter memories of my dealings with Norwich Union, still the same as far as i'm concerned whatever they might like to call themselves now.

Due to the bus company being insured by them too they took great delight, the non customer service even laughing down the phone at me when telling me to take the bus compoany to court as they'd already settled the claim, against me i should add, despite there being several gobsmacked independent witnesses to the accident which was entirely the fault of the bus driver's deliberate actions.
They didn't even have the courtesy to let me know about any of this, it was only at renewal when i'd lost all no claims that i found out.

Yes of course i took them to court, young blokes of 25 working all hours God sent were always suing massive companies in court in the 70's.

Never seen a penny of my money again and never will.