Letter following accident - ‘uninsured losses’

Aretnap

Most of that they have no chance of claiming for; some of it (eg alternative transportation for a limited period) they might... but pass it on to your insurer to deal with and do not enter into any correspondence with the other motorist yourself. If you do receive court papers you should also pass them onto your insurer, who will deal with the claim on your behalf and pay any money which the other guy is awarded by the court (which won't be anything like what he is claiming).

Brummie85

Most of what they have stated they can ask for as being a reasonable loss. But I have some views on a few bits.

The gym is questionable and a fairly petty component of their claim. Even if they had a pricey monthly subscription to David Lloyd or Bannatyne's etc that is 'only' about £60. Personally, in this situation I wouldn't have put this in against the other party. It's just an extra bit of fluff because they feel like you ruined their month and want you to pay for it all.

Time for phone calls and parents time. Nope. They should have had plenty of time to do it - remember they lost a month of work and couldn't get to the gym, so that frees up at least around 170 hours assuming they work full time. No need to get your parents to sort your life out then, so no need to ask someone else to pay them for choosing to do it. £300 - they must have been on the phone to the insurers daily to justify this, with very little to show for it. Why they didn't just get a hire vehicle and claim for that instead (which they can do) is beyond me. They would have had a much better month.

Parts bought for the car. If they aren't fitted, they could be classed as general goods. The fact that the parts are no longer useful isn't really a valid reason to state them as an uninsured loss. Goods of any description should only be claimed for if they are damaged in the collision.. You wouldn't be able to claim for an undamaged piece of clothing, so you can't really claim for a set of car components that are still fine but are no longer required. If the parts were okay and they bought a like for like replacement vehicle -then there is also no loss as they are still suitable. If this is the case they are just being greedy with their claim.
If the parts were fitted, it's a similar principle. Cars that are written off following MOT, service or repair work aren't more valuable.. If you have had to spend £1k (as an example) in parts and repairs but then the car is written off for £2k a month later - you cannot ask for £3k from the insurer. The costs of the work carried out in keeping the car in good/road worthy condition are the owner's responsibility anyway. The £2k payout from the insurer assumes that the vehicle was well looked after and worth the market value, including parts and work needed to maintain it.

The £2500 difference between the insurers valuation and their expected payout. The car is the insured loss. I can't see how they may ask for it to be part of an uninsured loss claim as well. Insurers will normally low ball claimants on vehicle values in a write-off / total loss outcome - It is up to the claimant to negotiate with the insurer in order to reach a fair settlement. They should have rejected the offer and sought an independent assessor to value the vehicle and cost of repair. If they didn't get what they wanted for the car and rolled over to the insurers poor compensation - that's their own mistake.
It could also be that they undervalued the car to the insurer, in an effort to get a better premium. They can't tell the insurer it's worth £2k and then ask them for £4.5k back, nor can they then demand that you pay the difference. But this is for the insurers to look at what the declared vehicle value was. Only they would know what the claimant said the car was worth when they took out their policy.

As already said though. You should pass this on to your insurer to deal with in the first instance.

motorguy

Jhgf wrote: »

first time posting here, cannot seem to find anything quite like it...
At the end of July I had an accident where I hit a parked car late at night, the following day as soon as the insurers were open it was reported and both cars were insured with the same company. I am fully comp.
My car has been repaired but I have recently received a letter from the owner of the other vehicle stating they are not happy with the payout offer which they are still in dispute with the insurance company (their car was supposedly a write off) also claiming for uninsured loss which includes the following
Loss of earnings 1300
Time for phone calls dealing with the claim (including parents time?!) 300
Gym membership for a month as unable to attend ?!
Travel costs to View a like for like car 250 miles away?!
Public Travel costs Running errands for a family member
Previous wearable parts for the car purchased before the car accident
Decline in mental health status due to stress (amount undecided as yet)
Shortfall from trade book price to market value of car (2500)

Aside from a list and estimated values no evidence has been included.
I have been given x amount of days to respond to settle privately or I have been threatened woth court.
No idea how they have gained my address and my insurance company have denied giving out my details
Any views and advice would be appreciated

Not your problem. Pass it on to the insurance company. Sadly dolts like this are indulged these days.

FWIW stupidly high settlements after an accident are the norm. My son drove in the back corner of someone last year, damaging the corner of the bumper and scuffing a rear wheel arch and the guy put in for £30,000 of a claim for whiplash, loss of earnings, etc, etc. The insurance paid out over £20,000 in the end.

peter_the_piper

Probably started about the time of "No win No fee" solicitors.

missile

We were on the opposite side of this situation.

A neighbour reversed into my wife's car and did considerable damage. We did not have legal cover and £600 excess out of pocket. We contacted neighbour's insurance and they were "unhelpful". Asked neighbour to contact insurer. Neighbour seemed to think it was not his problem. Eventually we had to threaten to take neighbour to court before he contacted them and they sent us a cheque.

Never occurred to us to pad our claim for the considerable inconvenience we suffered as a result of his poor driving.