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Insurance Payout - Help!!!

2

Comments

  • telly-addict
    telly-addict Posts: 525 Forumite
    Why don't you put a claim through your own insurance and check out their offer? Presumably they are also likely to write off your vehicle. At the same time, invite the third party insurer to have their engineer inspect the vehicle. Then you can weigh one offer up against the other. Just make sure that you don't accept either offer before you have full details of the other one.

    If you prefer the offer from the third party insurer, you can always withdraw the claim against your own insurer. In practice, I would be surprised if the third party insurer will make as good an offer as your own insurer.

    If you prefer the offer from your own insurer, you have at least got an admission of liability - so you insurer should be able to reclaim their outlay and so not affect your NCD. Even better if you can get the admission in writing. The added benefit of going through your own insurer is that they will deal with the salvage and won't make any deduction for salvage value from the final settlement offer.

    Although you obviously would prefer not to have had the accident, at least you should be in line for a prompt and fair payout.

    Good luck. Would be interested to hear what happens.
  • Bossyboots
    Bossyboots Posts: 6,754 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    The only reason we are even considering the other insurer's suggestion is that our insurer told us this morning that if we put it in to be costed and it is written off then we will not get it back. Therefore, we have to time it right so that the car goes on a day to suit us. I am still considering whether I want another car. If not, then it doesn't matter much when the car goes.

    If we go with the third party's insurer we will have the hassle of getting rid of the car. We are going to approach our dealer and see if he will take it off our hands for the spare parts as you cannot get them easily any more. If he is prepared to do that then we have a wider choice. I hadn't thought about the salvage value deduction and that may well be the figure that settles matters. Thank you for mentioning it.

    We have never known the other party's insurer's to make direct contact and it was a little disconcerting.

    I think you are right about getting both insurers to give an offer. We can obviously ask our insurer what they consider the write off value to be if that were the case and take it from there.

    I will let you know in due course what occurs.

    I went for a drive tonight just to settle my nerves. I was fine in the car but found it really painful to drive and my OH had to take over and drive back.
  • telly-addict
    telly-addict Posts: 525 Forumite
    Bossyboots wrote:
    We have never known the other party's insurer's to make direct contact and it was a little disconcerting.

    I went for a drive tonight just to settle my nerves. I was fine in the car but found it really painful to drive and my OH had to take over and drive back.

    There is an increasing drive to "get in there early" when it comes to settling a third party claim. Partly to reduce costs, but also to provide a good service to a claimant (who is after all a potential customer when it comes around to renewal) and to comply with the Court's directive to promote a consensual approach to dealing with third party claims.

    Sorry to hear that you're suffering, but agree that it's best to get back on the road sooner rather than later. I'm sure (from your various posts in the past) that you are fully aware of the possibilities of making a personal injury claim against the third party insurers.

    Good luck with your negotiations.
  • MarkyMarkD
    MarkyMarkD Posts: 9,912 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    Bossyboots wrote:
    Sorry to hijack this but I didn't want to start another one along the same lines.

    This morning someone ran into the back of my car. There is quite a lot of damage although it is driveable. I could go through my insurers who have indicated they believe it would be a write off and we would agree.

    However, the other girl's insurers have just telephoned me to say that they admit liability. I described the damage to her and she said it sounded like a write off. They are offering to agree a settlement although when she checked the book price, it was high enough value to say she would send an engineer. The price they are considering is nearly 3x what we thought it was worth. They have said though that if we do that, we can keep the car. I am not sure what we would have to do then. Although it is driveable it is a bit of a mess and you cannot open the boot. I would not plan to drive it and I am sure there must be DVLA implications if it is written off.

    Can anyone give me some thoughts. In particular I note that MarkyD says they cannot write the car off so I am wondering about just insisting they repair it. My OH though had been on at me to change my car as he would like me to have one with air bags. I am short in height and would be quite badly injured in a head on crash as the steering wheel is so close to my stomach. I had also considered just getting rid of the car anyway. I don't want to be stuck with a heap that I cannot get rid of.
    Whilst I don't consider the third party insurer has the right to write off your car, if they choose to do so and offer a generous settlement you would be daft to refuse it IMHO.

    Air bags have been found to injure short drivers because they don't act on the right part of the body - I've read advice that you should sit as far back as possible from the steering wheel (which is probably not easy as your legs are presumably not that long either - no offence I hope!).
  • Bossyboots
    Bossyboots Posts: 6,754 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    MarkyMarkD wrote:
    Whilst I don't consider the third party insurer has the right to write off your car, if they choose to do so and offer a generous settlement you would be daft to refuse it IMHO.

    Air bags have been found to injure short drivers because they don't act on the right part of the body - I've read advice that you should sit as far back as possible from the steering wheel (which is probably not easy as your legs are presumably not that long either - no offence I hope!).

    No offence taken, your presumption is right. The car I would consider getting has adjustable seating and when I drove one as a courtesy car I was further back. I know I would be injured by an airbag but I figure the injury would be survivable whereas a steering wheel through my chest opr abdomen wouldn't be.

    We are keeping all ouroptions open at the moment. Having looked at the car again we now wonder whether it might be repairable if the parts can be obtained (that might be the sticking point) in which case we will go with the third party insurer as they will provide a courtesy car.
  • Bossyboots
    Bossyboots Posts: 6,754 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    A mini update. The assessor says that to repair or not is borderline but he says my car is lovely. My husband asked him about third party insurers repairing cars regardless of the value as they were obligated to do and he said that they don't do that any more.

    We are now awaiting hearing from the insurance company with an offer but the assessor has said we should ensure they take it away.
  • MarkyMarkD
    MarkyMarkD Posts: 9,912 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    "They don't do that any more" LOL. IT'S NOT THEIR CHOICE!
  • Bossyboots
    Bossyboots Posts: 6,754 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    MarkyMarkD wrote:
    "They don't do that any more" LOL. IT'S NOT THEIR CHOICE!

    I was hoping that would be your response.

    Will keep you updated. My hubby has mentally moved on to getting a new car anyway so provided the offer is right, I think we will take the money as long as they will take the car away. We have worked out a figure we would be prepared to accept. Anything less and we will push for a repair and hope they will negotiate to the middle of their offer and repair costs.
  • telly-addict
    telly-addict Posts: 525 Forumite
    I go back to what I said earlier in this thread. The third party insurers are not under any obligation to repair the vehicle. If the repair costs exceed the pre-accident value (PAV), then the the true measure of indemnity will be the PAV.

    This will suit you in any case, by the look of things. Just be persistent and keep pressing for a decent offer.

    Good luck.
  • Bossyboots
    Bossyboots Posts: 6,754 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Having discussed it with our local dealer who looked over the car, he has said that he cannot imagine they will have it repaired. He is so confident of that, he has allowed us to put down a deposit on a new car which he will refund without penalty if my car is not written off and I want to pull out of the transaction.

    Now I hope they write if off because I rather like the one we want to buy but at least we are now covered vehicle wise whatever the outcome.
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