Puppy RTA should we go insurance route?

Magnoliahaze

Hi, our 18 week old lab pup escaped from garden last week and had a lucky escape with a land rover discovery. Absolutely no scratches, bumps or bruises on 14kg pup, think it just scuffed her R rear leg, she was up on her feet instantly and scarpered off. We’re very grateful that the driver was able to break in good time and dog was/is ok. We spoke with vet who advised to keep an eye on her and bring her in if any concerns- there were none. But... the driver is now claiming £250 to remove and refit his bumper as one of the clips broke. Clip is £6, remainder is time cost. We are absolutely aware that we are responsible for any damage the puppy caused, but find it hard to believe she could cause £250 worth of damage to a big sturdy car without any damage to herself, it’s possible the bumper was already the few millimetres out he says kshe caused. Driver did not report the incident to police, he doesn’t want to go through his insurance, he wants us to pay up or deal directly with our insurers. He commented that £250 wasn’t much in his world which riles us:mad: can he dictate that his insurers are not involved? Should he have reported to the police? We accept liability for any damage caused by our dog but dispute that she caused this damage. Also think £250 labour to replace £6 part is excessive. Any advice on how to proceed greatly welcomed. Thanks

Zorillo

Report it to his insurance company, and tell them you dispute liability.

Quentin

He can certainly make a claim against your insurer, though that would involve him having to notify his own insurer too


But this may not end at this £250


Once you agree to pay for the damage caused then you are liable for all costs incurred over the incident (eg more damage found when bumper removed/car hire whilst repairs carried out etc plus all his other losses )


Report the incident to your own insurer and tell the third party to claim off insurance


The driver commits an offence by not reporting this to the police

Retrogamer

I can understand where the driver is coming from.

£250 for labour sounds about right for dealership prices and if it's fairly modern, or has full service history then dealership repairs are still a prefered option by most.

If he claims through his insurance, he will get his money back for the repairs and also the hire car but it's likely that he will be penalized for the claim, even if it's non fault and he will likely have an increased premium for the next 5 years through no fault of his own.
That's why he'll be wanting to settle cash.

However, although you are liable for the costs of the repairs and any potential hire car costs or further damage discovered, he cannot dictate if you go through your insurance or not. For this one, if i was you. I'd go through insurance.

Aretnap

The driver only had to report the accident to the police if he didn't give you his name and address at the time - I presume you spoke to him at the time given that he knows it was your dog and you are in contact with him now? In any event his failure to report the accident after the fact would not affect liability for the accident itself - it would be an entirely separate matter.

It's not unusual for labour costs to be much greater than the cost of parts - the fact that a part is cheap doesn't mean it's quick or easy to fit. And the driver is entitled to use a repairer of his choice. If he wants to take his new Land Rover to the rather expensive Land Rover dealership rather than the cheap back street garage that's his choice - is a myth that you can demand that he gets three quotes and chooses the cheapest one.

So basically you either agree a sum with him that you're both happy with or you go through your own insurance. As it doesn't sound like your happy with what he's asking for, and there's a risk that he could come back and ask for further costs (eg hire car) I'd go down the insurance route myself.

D_M_E

If you're going to pay him the £250, get him to sign a written confirmation that the payment is in full and final sttlement of his claim and get it witnessed as well if possible so there's no comeback further down the line.

hollie.weimeraner

Aretnap wrote: »

The driver only had to report the accident to the police if he didn't give you his name and address at the time - I presume you spoke to him at the time given that he knows it was your dog and you are in contact with him now? In any event his failure to report the accident after the fact would not affect liability for the accident itself - it would be an entirely separate matter.

By law, all drivers involved in an accident where an animal has been injured or killed should stop at the scene. They are required to swap details with others involved "as well as" reporting the incident to local police within 24 hours. However, there are some anomalies within the law that do not make it a legal requirement to stop if you hit a cat or a deer. This is because the definition of an animal in the law covers only cattle, mule, !!!, goat, pig, horse and dogs


So I would go through the insurance as the driver should still be informing his insurer anyway.

This way it may deter him if it's existing damage

Aretnap

hollie.weimeraner wrote: »

By law, all drivers involved in an accident where an animal has been injured or killed should stop at the scene. They are required to swap details with others involved "as well as" reporting the incident to local police within 24 hours. However, there are some anomalies within the law that do not make it a legal requirement to stop if you hit a cat or a deer. This is because the definition of an animal in the law covers only cattle, mule, !!!, goat, pig, horse and dogs


So I would go through the insurance as the driver should still be informing his insurer anyway.

This way it may deter him if it's existing damage

The requirement to report only applies if for any reason you don't give details at the scene.

Quentin

Aretnap wrote: »

The driver only had to report the accident to the police if he didn't give you his name and address at the time.....

Not according to the Nottinghamshire Police website (nor according to Law!)


https://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/faqs/i-have-hit-dog-my-car-what-should-i-do

If you hit a dog with your car, you must report this by calling 101.

hollie.weimeraner

Quentin wrote: »

Not according to the Nottinghamshire Police website (nor according to Law!)


https://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/faqs/i-have-hit-dog-my-car-what-should-i-do

:beer:

It's only non reportable in the case of a damage only RTC where the drivers have exchanged details at the scene.

Aretnap

Quentin wrote: »

Not according to the Nottinghamshire Police website (nor according to Law!)

https://www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/faqs/i-have-hit-dog-my-car-what-should-i-do

Sites like that are often incomplete, if not outright wrong. Better to look at the actual law

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/section/170

If for any reason the driver of the mechanically propelled vehicle does not give his name and address under subsection (2) above, he must report the accident.

Even if a person is injured the duty to report only arises if you don't also produce your insurance certificate at the scene. There is no type of accident where the duty to report applies in all circumstances.

Incidentally there is case law to say that where the duty to report does apply it must be done in person, not over the phone. So the Nottinghamshire site is wrong on two points.