Is it worth suing the person who is at fault in the car accident

Mishomeister

Now, this is at this point very hypothetical thread as the situation that I am in hasn't reached such stage and the third party insurance are still doing the things at their end.

But assuming...

Can I do the below:

1. Third party's insurance gets back to me with the resolution that I am unhappy with such as not admittimng their clients fault or offering me the resolution I am unhappy with eg. writing my car off and paying me the amount I don't agree to represent the market value of my car.

2. I refuse to continue with the claim thrue the third party insurance

3. I sue the third party for the costs of the repairs and increases in my insurance premium due to this not my falut accident.

Your thoughts?

EdGasketTheSecond

You can sue the TP for whatever you like. They will pass that up to their insurance who will likely pay rather than mess around with court however you might struggle to get increased insurance premiums reimbursed as you won't know what they are and generally they cannot be claimed.

Car_54

It it might be better to let your own insurers deal with this. They’re the experts, whereas you’ve no idea (or you wouldn’t be asking on here).

Aretnap

Car_54 said:

It it might be better to let your own insurers deal with this. They’re the experts, whereas you’ve no idea (or you wouldn’t be asking on here).

Plus if you're concerned about getting a fair value for your written off car, claiming from your own insurer is the best option, because that way you have the option of complaining to the Financial Ombudsman if you're not happy with it. The Ombudsman is (a) free and (b) more pro-consumer than a court tends to be.

Whereas if you're not happy with the valuation that the third party insurer offers you, your only recourse is indeed to take the other driver to court. Which means, as above, that in practice you end up back dealing with his insurance company, and if it does go to court you'll be up against a trained solicitor, with costs awarded against you should you lose, and no reason to think that the outcome should you win would be any better than you'd have got from the Ombudsman.

(Admittedly costs would not be too bad in the small claims court - but they would not be zero either).

EdGasketTheSecond

But let's say the difference between wht the OP gets offered and what he might claim is less than £1K; then would the insurer go to court to save £1K when they might well lose? After all they do try it on with low-ball valuations and quite often you cannot replace what you lost with what they offer so are not 'put back in the position you were before the accident' like is supposed to happen ideally.

The_Rainmaker

Just get the car written off and buy back the salvage (I paid 9% on my last one) and repair.  You will have your car back and a few quid in the bank.

If you think the insurer is going to give you £5k for a 15 year old banger it isn't going to happen. (Figures for illustration only)

Mishomeister

Just to clarify. The car is probably worth circa £1400. The damage is not of the type that affects the driving experience, safety etc. Just a couple if dents which however will have majot affect on its selling price. I am concerned with a write off as a car is an automatic seven seater petrol car. It took me two or three months last time to find that type of car (Zafira) in a decent stage and a really low milage last time. If my car is written off and taken away from me I will need time (And I work full time which doesn't helps) to find a similar car within my budget and whilst I am looking for it to hire a car which costs. Claiming on my insurance is not an option as firstly the excess is huge and secondly why should I if the accident wasn't my fault.
For me the acceptable outcomes would be either for them to fix my car or pay me money eg. write off minus scrapage value. 

The_Rainmaker

Mishomeister said:

For me the acceptable outcomes would be either for them to fix my car or pay me money eg. write off minus scrapage value. 

That is just what I have told you to do.  I assume you have the car in your possession  (makes it a lot easier) just talk to the engineer (if he visits he may not) or the call centre and sort it out.

AdrianC

Mishomeister said:

Just to clarify. The car is probably worth circa £1400.

You haven't said what the damage is, but it's almost certain that anything more than trivial bolt-on cosmetics will be a write-off. Anything requiring paint or new metal is a cert.

The damage is not of the type that affects the driving experience, safety etc. Just a couple if dents which however will have majot affect on its selling price. I am concerned with a write off as a car is an automatic seven seater petrol car. It took me two or three months last time to find that type of car (Zafira) in a decent stage and a really low milage last time.

That's not the insurer's problem.

If my car is written off and taken away from me I will need time (And I work full time which doesn't helps) to find a similar car within my budget and whilst I am looking for it to hire a car which costs.

The insurer will only pay for the hire car until such time as the write-off is agreed. Insisting on a hire-car is a great way of pushing a borderline claim into write-off, simply because a hire-car while the car is off the road is expensive.

Claiming on my insurance is not an option as firstly the excess is huge

That was your choice when you took the policy out.

...and secondly why should I if the accident wasn't my fault.

If the other insurer agree that it was their driver's fault, then absolutely they'll take the claim on directly. But that doesn't affect how a claim will be assessed.
If they don't agree, then all bets are off - simply because why should they pay for something they perceive is partly your fault...?

For me the acceptable outcomes would be either for them to fix my car or pay me money eg. write off minus scrapage value.

They decide whether to fix or pay the write-off amount, not you.
There is no way on this earth they will pay you more than the market value of the car. If it's a CatN write-off, non-structural damage, then - yes - I'd expect them to allow you the option to buy the salvage back. But you have no right to insist on it. Once the car is out of your physical possession, the chances of it happening become a lot lower. Paying you in lieu of a write-off is another option for very minor damage on an older car.

born_again

Mishomeister said:

J Claiming on my insurance is not an option as firstly the excess is huge and secondly why should I if the accident wasn't my fault.

Well if it's not your fault then excess is not a issue as it is claimed back for 3rd party. 
You are also aware that no matter what you will have to declare the claim & amount. Which will effect future premiums.