Was involved in a car accident earlier today, whos liable?

OnanTheBarbarian

Altarf wrote: »

I disagree.

It is not the OP that has done anything wrong, but the OP's passenger, so it is the passenger that is liable for the damage both to the other driver's car and the OP's car.

And the liability of the passengers falls under the scope of cover of the OP's vehicle insurance policy.

So if he doesn't stop messing about, the odds are the other party will just involve their insurers or a claims management company, who will just do a MID search and go straight to the OP's insurer.

JustinR1979

Altarf wrote: »

I disagree.

It is not the OP that has done anything wrong, but the OP's passenger, so it is the passenger that is liable for the damage both to the other driver's car and the OP's car.

However you dress it up, it's the OP's car and insurance that are involved and will have to pay.

OddballJamie

bery_451 wrote: »

Of course I have witnesses, 2 passengers in my car witness it plus there's CCTV that will prove the speeding.

As Justin wrote, people in the car don't count in England.

Even if they did, what would they say?

A car was speeding along close to the vehicle we were in, so we decided to open the car door into it.

Or

We opened the car door without looking into a passing vehicle causing damage, it may have been speeding or possibly too close. However we don't know because we didn't look first.

JustinR1979

OddballJamie wrote: »

As Justin wrote, people in the car don't count in England.

Even if they did, what would they say?

A car was speeding along close to the vehicle we were in, so we decided to open the car door into it.

Or

We opened the car door without looking into a passing vehicle causing damage, it may have been speeding or possibly too close. However we don't know because we didn't look first.

Hilarious isn't it, didn't see it but it was speeding.
How you work that out I don't know, but I suspect abuse of prescription drugs is involved in the process.

OddballJamie

Altarf wrote: »

I disagree.

It is not the OP that has done anything wrong, but the OP's passenger, so it is the passenger that is liable for the damage both to the other driver's car and the OP's car.

The passenger exiting the vehicle is a elderly passenger in 60's. Doesn't have sharp senses like us young ones.

As the OP was already aware of their passenger's difficulties they should've helped them safely exit the vehicle.

Perfect world the passenger would cough up, but that's not going to happen so the insurance steps in.

Altarf

JustinR1979 wrote: »

However you dress it up, it's the OP's car and insurance that are involved and will have to pay.

Again I disagree.

The accident was caused by the passenger, there was nothing that the OP did that caused the accident.

From my insurance policy -

"This policy covers you for all amounts which you legally have to pay as a result of an accident involving your vehicle"

The OP doesn't legally have to pay.

The insurance policy goes on to say -

"Cover provided for other people
If you give your permission, we will provide the same cover to the following people:
...
any person travelling in or getting into or out of your vehicle"

The bolding is in the insurance policy wording.

So if the OP's insurance is the same as mine, if the OP want's their insurance to pay, then they will. If they don't they won't.

OnanTheBarbarian

Armchair experts everywhere

bery_451

OnanTheBarbarian wrote: »

Original Poster, save yourself a lot of messing about and just accept the fact that you are liable for the actions of your clump of a passenger who has opened your car door into a passing vehicle.

You are liable and either you settle up with the other party for their damage directly and get them to promise never to report the matter to their own insurers etc, or you swallow and report the matter to your insurers.

Given that you have described the damage to the other vehicle starting down the side of the car, rather than the front bumper etc, this is all the evidence the other party needs to hose you down for this.

Forget about the speeding allegations. usually when somebody's car is hit unexpectedly the perception that the other vehicle was speeding is immense. I deal with road accident claims day in day out and the degree of exaggeration people put on the speed of the other vehicle is staggering sometimes. i.e. clients saying they were hit from the side at 50mph by the other car. (erm if you were hit in your driver door by another car doing 50mph you wouldn't be talking to me right now)

Stop looking for get out of jail cards and either pay the other dude off, or phone your insurer.

Don't we have to report it to the insurers anyway cause its the law to do so?


Once its reported then do either of us lose our no claims bonus after reporting then we decide settle with cash without involving insurers.

BeenThroughItAll

Altarf wrote: »

Again I disagree.

The accident was caused by the passenger, there was nothing that the OP did that caused the accident.

From my insurance policy -

"This policy covers you for all amounts which you legally have to pay as a result of an accident involving your vehicle"

The OP doesn't legally have to pay.

The insurance policy goes on to say -

"Cover provided for other people
If you give your permission, we will provide the same cover to the following people:
...
any person travelling in or getting into or out of your vehicle"

The bolding is in the insurance policy wording.

So if the OP's insurance is the same as mine, if the OP want's their insurance to pay, then they will. If they don't they won't.

You actually went and checked your own insurance policy? Wow. Kudos, but you must have too much time on your hands.


Leaving aside what the policy wording says, the OP should, IMO and morally speaking, let their insurer pay or pay up themselves. If they hadn't had the idiot passenger in their car, the other party's car would not have been damaged in this incident.


In my eyes, it's a case of "man the !!!! up and deal with the problem you were complicit in causing by putting that passenger in that seat on that day at that time".

DUTR

bery_451 wrote: »

Don't we have to report it to the insurers anyway cause its the law to do so?


Once its reported then do either of us lose our no claims bonus after reporting then we decide settle with cash without involving insurers.

Your no claims gets affected if one party makes a claim on their policy.
Eg If I was the 3rd party in your incident, I would simply report the incident to my insurers, if you want to settle with them yourself, that would be up to you, for me, the claim would be settled by you or your insurers. It would show on my renewal as incident fully settled or similar.

PS It seems odd that you have not said what the 3rd party said at the time I'm sure they said " Don't worry maam, I was speeding through ignorant to the hazard of someone exiting a vehicle, here are my insurer's details for you to claim against".