CCJ For an insurance claim I told my insurers not to pay

DullGreyGuy

MEM62 said:

Last time I was there was around 5 years ago and we could not look at the Adam Room.  The features that left the biggest impression on me were the Lutine Bell and the hand-written register of lost shipping.     

Still debated why it says St Jean on it if it were for HMS Lutine. 

There's also the Nelson Collection. 

Lloyds often opens up for the London Open House weekend, for those that want to visit and dont know someone with a pass. Have to say the place has a very different feel though when no one is working -v- when the room is full of underwriters at their desks and brokers floating about trying to get their slip filled. 

WellyBase

DullGreyGuy said:

MEM62 said:

WellyBase said:

I clearly remember the guy on the phone saying "so you're instructing us not to pay the claim" and I said yes. 

I believe, but am open to being corrected, that the underwriter reserves the absolute right to decide how any claim is settled.  There is a clause in all policies to this effect.  You would not have had the option to instruct them not to pay.  Either way, not keeping all parties updated with your current address was not wise.  

The law requires them to pay in certain circumstances but it requires the third party to make the demand after obtaining a judgement 

The insurer (dont like the term underwriter unless you literally mean the person who's job it is to stamp and sign Lloyds slips under the risk which is where the term "under writer" stems from) will have discretion as you state but they can choose to exercise that discretion to follow the customers request up until the law states they must pay. Most argue that insurers that follow your instructions are better than those that tell you tough luck and override your decision.

ThorOdinson said:
You could contact your old insurance and ask why they didn't deal with it. It's unlikely that they have a recording of you telling them not to pay it, and you could argue that the implication was not explained to you properly at the time. Raise a complaint if they won't deal with it. It's a long shot but there isn't much else you can do, and at least it's low risk.

They will have a file note of the instruction as that will be kept for at least 7 years given the law of limitations, if they have a call recording is a different matter.

Insurers are not advisors and neither are they lawyers, whilst they can go further in a claims setting than they can in a sales situation it is limited. In my claims days had the OP called us we would have looked at the prospect of success, if it was borderline then we'd have sent a letter of indemnity saying they had to reimburse us of any additional costs incurred caused by them leading the action but we remained liable for the original claim. If it was a case we felt fairly sure would be lost we'd tell them tough luck we'll be dealing with it. 

In your last paragraph, you mention you worked for an insurance company. Are you saying that the insurer remains liable to pay regardless of the situation?

Aretnap

WellyBase said:

DullGreyGuy said:

MEM62 said:

WellyBase said:

I clearly remember the guy on the phone saying "so you're instructing us not to pay the claim" and I said yes. 

I believe, but am open to being corrected, that the underwriter reserves the absolute right to decide how any claim is settled.  There is a clause in all policies to this effect.  You would not have had the option to instruct them not to pay.  Either way, not keeping all parties updated with your current address was not wise.  

The law requires them to pay in certain circumstances but it requires the third party to make the demand after obtaining a judgement 

The insurer (dont like the term underwriter unless you literally mean the person who's job it is to stamp and sign Lloyds slips under the risk which is where the term "under writer" stems from) will have discretion as you state but they can choose to exercise that discretion to follow the customers request up until the law states they must pay. Most argue that insurers that follow your instructions are better than those that tell you tough luck and override your decision.

ThorOdinson said:
You could contact your old insurance and ask why they didn't deal with it. It's unlikely that they have a recording of you telling them not to pay it, and you could argue that the implication was not explained to you properly at the time. Raise a complaint if they won't deal with it. It's a long shot but there isn't much else you can do, and at least it's low risk.

They will have a file note of the instruction as that will be kept for at least 7 years given the law of limitations, if they have a call recording is a different matter.

Insurers are not advisors and neither are they lawyers, whilst they can go further in a claims setting than they can in a sales situation it is limited. In my claims days had the OP called us we would have looked at the prospect of success, if it was borderline then we'd have sent a letter of indemnity saying they had to reimburse us of any additional costs incurred caused by them leading the action but we remained liable for the original claim. If it was a case we felt fairly sure would be lost we'd tell them tough luck we'll be dealing with it. 

In your las wet paragraph, you mention you worked for an insurance company. Are you saying that the insurer remains liable to pay regardless of the situation?

Yes, Section 151 of the Road Traffic Act requires an insurer (if asked to do so by the third party) to satisfy any judgement which is issued against you in relation to a car accident. 

It's precisely why most insurers will tell you to get stuffed if you demand that they didn't settle a claim against you when they have judged for themselves that your case is hopeless - they still end up having to pay when you lose the court case, and end up on the hook for legal costs as well.

The closest they can get to avoiding their liabilities would be by agreeing with you not to settle the claim on condition that you agreed to pay them back anything that they are ultimately forced to pay out if the case goes against you. That's something that you would have to have agreed to explicitly at the time - yelling down the phone "I really really didn't want you to pay this!" doesn't by itself render you personally liable for the eventual settlement.

So it is worth contacting the insurer you were with at the time and finding out what actually happened and whether they ultimately settled the CCJ on your behalf.

DullGreyGuy

WellyBase said:

DullGreyGuy said:

MEM62 said:

WellyBase said:

I clearly remember the guy on the phone saying "so you're instructing us not to pay the claim" and I said yes. 

I believe, but am open to being corrected, that the underwriter reserves the absolute right to decide how any claim is settled.  There is a clause in all policies to this effect.  You would not have had the option to instruct them not to pay.  Either way, not keeping all parties updated with your current address was not wise.  

The law requires them to pay in certain circumstances but it requires the third party to make the demand after obtaining a judgement 

The insurer (dont like the term underwriter unless you literally mean the person who's job it is to stamp and sign Lloyds slips under the risk which is where the term "under writer" stems from) will have discretion as you state but they can choose to exercise that discretion to follow the customers request up until the law states they must pay. Most argue that insurers that follow your instructions are better than those that tell you tough luck and override your decision.

ThorOdinson said:
You could contact your old insurance and ask why they didn't deal with it. It's unlikely that they have a recording of you telling them not to pay it, and you could argue that the implication was not explained to you properly at the time. Raise a complaint if they won't deal with it. It's a long shot but there isn't much else you can do, and at least it's low risk.

They will have a file note of the instruction as that will be kept for at least 7 years given the law of limitations, if they have a call recording is a different matter.

Insurers are not advisors and neither are they lawyers, whilst they can go further in a claims setting than they can in a sales situation it is limited. In my claims days had the OP called us we would have looked at the prospect of success, if it was borderline then we'd have sent a letter of indemnity saying they had to reimburse us of any additional costs incurred caused by them leading the action but we remained liable for the original claim. If it was a case we felt fairly sure would be lost we'd tell them tough luck we'll be dealing with it. 

In your last paragraph, you mention you worked for an insurance company. Are you saying that the insurer remains liable to pay regardless of the situation?

I still work for insurance companies, just no longer in claims. 

Somewhat, and it's important to note that the law is there to protect the victim not you. Section 151 of the RTA requires that they satisfy a court order, if requested to do so, including if the driver was not covered by the policy either by not being named or breaching the driving licence etc. However Section 151 also gives the insurer the right, after settling the third party claim, to pursue you for the money in certain circumstances. 

Add to the above your policy terms may give them further rights to pursue you for the monies