Claiming on car insurance for bodywork repairs?

Stayinginisthenewgoingout

Hi all, I have a couple of areas on my car of significant-ish dentage and bodywork damage due to my incompetent car maneuvering skills, I would estimate that repair would cost in the region of lets say £1000 at least, possibly up to £1,500 (I have not been to a garage as yet for an official quote). No other persons/vehicles etc were involved when the damage occurred (only naughty walls and posts that got in my way...), so in other words no 'accident' has occurred as such that I would report to the police. I have a protected no claims bonus, and only a £250 excess to pay, so was thinking it would be worth claiming on my car insurance to have the bodywork repairs done. However is it really as 'easy' as this, is it technically possible under the terms of what car insurance will cover for? What kind of questions might they ask me in order to be satisfied I could claim via insurance? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, many thanks.

gardner1

your premium will still go up sharply if you claim. Protected no claims just means if you claim your PNC will stay at (for example) 60%.
£1000 premium before claim would mean you pay £400....after claim premium goes up to £2000 would mean you pay £800

Stayinginisthenewgoingout

Ok thank you for that information, I think what I'm learning is that it is technically possible to claim (i.e. valid) but I need to weigh up how doing so may impact me financially in long term given increase to my insurance premiums (my NC bonus is 80%).

rs65

Each accident will be a separate claim with £250 excess each.

societys_child

If they would cover it, it's not worth it.

If you can't DIY, find a local small body repair place, it'll work out much cheaper in the long run.

System

£250, the amount you'll have to pay, can get a lot of bodywork done in some places. Certainly where I am it'll cover the cost of replacing a bumper or a wing or a wheelarch which I'm guessing is probably the bit(s) you've damaged. It would certainly be better than forking out on the insurance.

eddddy

Each incident will be a separate claim - with a separate excess.

So, for example, if you've had 'bumps' on four separate occasions, you'll have to pay 4 X £250 in excesses.

And sticking with that example, if you were to make 4 claims in one policy year, I suspect that you would find it very difficult to get a mainstream insurer to cover you for the next few years.

z1a

Get rid of the car and use PT before you squash somebody.

kmb500

rather than assuming it's £1000 I think you should go to your local garage and ask them to give you a quote.
Only then can you decide whether it's better to repair it yourself or go through an insurance claim.


I was in a similar situation to you last year - a deer charged head first into the side of my car and did a lot of damage to several body panels and the door. My excess was £500 and I was sure it would be £1000+ to repair. Turned out to be £475 so less than the excess on my insurance, and that way I also avoided my insurance company bumping up my premiums and screwing my no claims bonus.

jimjames

You may be able to get a dent repair company to sort it - really depends how significant the damage is