Car hit my front drive wall

Aretnap

iceangel8 said:

I have been googling and non fault claims will make you policy increase by 50%.  Would it be best just to get him to knock down the wall?  

Have you been Googling those shock horror Daily Mail stories about how wicked insurers will charge customers UP TO 50% higher premiums for a no fault claim. With the "up to" in very small print, because "in one extreme case it was 50%, but about 10% is much more typical and sometimes it makes no difference at all" doesn't make such good clickbait.

I can only speak for myself, but I've made several fault and no fault claims on home and motor insurance policies over the years, and none has ever put my premium up by anything even close to 50%. If you're really worried about it, get a quote on a price comparison site (incognito browser mode, nearby address, false name) with and without a claim to see what difference it might make to your own premium. I suspect that the difference will be less than the cost of repairing the wall.

One other thing to consider is that if you claim on your own policy it should cover the full cost of repairing the wall. Whereas if you claim from the third party insurer they would only be required to settle on an indemnity basis, ie if it was an old wall coming towards the end on its life anyway they would not necessarily pay the full repair cost - they would be entitled to factor in a deduction for wear and tear if you were essentially replacing an old crumbly section of wall with a brand new one.

Aretnap

iceangel8 said:

Flight3287462 said:

One thing is for sure, the wall will not be repaired whilst it's frosty.

How you deal with it is up to you two choices wait and get him to repair or report it to his insurer.  You may want to inform your insurer too for information purposes, I wouldn't expect that to make any difference to your premiums unless you eventually claim through them.

How do you know he was speeding?

The CCTV camera film shows him driving fast and then in the bend skidding into my wall.  I do not know the speed but he was driving way too fast for the icy road conditions 

It doesn't really matter whether he was coming round the bend at 90 mph or at a crawl - if he hit a stationary object (like a walll) he's going to be liable either way.

iceangel8

That's so interesting thanks so much for your input.  So they won't pay for a new wall.  It's complete midfield.  

iceangel8

This is getting stressful as he's refusing to give me his insurance details and gave me his home address which when I looked it up is actually his building company address that he works for so he's not straight with me. Why are people so dishonest!!! 

Ebe_Scrooge

iceangel8 said:

This is getting stressful as he's refusing to give me his insurance details and gave me his home address which when I looked it up is actually his building company address that he works for so he's not straight with me. Why are people so dishonest!!! 

Don't go giving yourself a hernia over it.  If he's playing silly bu&&ers then just report it to the police and let them deal with him.  They'll be able to get his insurance details for you, and may or may not prosecute him for failing to supply them at the time, and/or driving without due care and attention or whatever.  Not that you'll be particularly bothered about that, I suspect, but they'll be able to give you his insurance details, and you claim against his insurers.

SergeantBaker

iceangel8 said:

This is getting stressful as he's refusing to give me his insurance details and gave me his home address which when I looked it up is actually his building company address that he works for so he's not straight with me. Why are people so dishonest!!! 

@Car_54 gave you a link yesterday, use that to get his insurance details. 

iceangel8

I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone!!! I paid £10 for his car insurance and called.  They were amazing all I have to do is submit 3 quotes and they will sort the claim.  I don't even have to submit a claim via my building insurance.  I can't believe it was that easy and I now don't have to deal with him face to face.  Huge thanks 

diystarter7

iceangel8 said:

I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone!!! I paid £10 for his car insurance and called.  They were amazing all I have to do is submit 3 quotes and they will sort the claim.  I don't even have to submit a claim via my building insurance.  I can't believe it was that easy and I now don't have to deal with him face to face.  Huge thanks 

Hi OP

We are glad to have helped

Important to note that your update, and feedback will help many that may read this thread today and in the future.

Good luck and I guess a lot of stress has been removed.

Take care

DullGreyGuy

iceangel8 said:

SergeantBaker said:

iceangel8 said:

Herzlos said:

You could always offer to take a cash deposit which you'll give him back when he fixes the wall. Or if he refuses, just claim from his car insurance.

The problem I have is that he is working on the building site I have no idea what he does.  He was in a private car not a company van how do I know he's experienced in building walls and whether he uses good materials.

So claim from his car insurance, but phone your own home insurance for information only purposes as there will be a record of the incident on the insurance database. 

So can I call his car insurance and set up a claim I thought data protection would prevent me?  I'm just so worried my home insurance will go up because of this claim 

As a form of compulsory insurance its slightly different, your a small admin fee anyone can get the details of the insurer of a third party vehicle they've been involved in an accident with explicitly so a claim can be lodged, eg in the event of a hit and run where you dont know the driver.

Most insurers will accept a third party report, though some will demand that its in writing. They wont take any action until they have discussed with their insured. A minority of insurers wont act until you have a judgement against their insured if they've had no report from their own policyholder. 

m0bov

Make sure you get a crime number as well for your case.