Worth Claiming On Car Insurance?

underachiever_2

My son in his first year of driving crashed his car into our drive wall whilst parking, no injuries just pride.

Damage to the car looks like at least a new door and maybe the sill, question is should he claim for it bearing in mind his excess is quite high (maybe £500 but need to double check) and will mess up his NCD and no doubt increase his policy costs for Year 2.

Should he just look to take the hit and pay for the repairs out of his pocket or scrap the car as the cost will be erode any value and take it as a costly life lesson?

vacheron

It hugely depends on the value of the car and the premium he is currently paying, and the repair cost, but my philosophy is to never claim on my own car insurance for small things (which I have so far successfully managed over my 33 years of driving).

By the time you have paid the excess, and re-accumulated the years to build up your NCD (if not protected) and then the inevitable rise in your underlying baseline premium due to the accident it could easliy equal or exceed the payout. 

I have a high excess for this reason (about £500 IIRC) and my insurance is there in case I crash into a bus stop full of lawyers or completely write off an expensive car!

If I had any damage under £1000 I would pay it myself without question. Anything over £1500 and I would probably still think long and hard about it. 

On the rare occasions where I have been in a small accident (once I skidded on black ice and slightly dented my neighbours car door which was parked on the road opposite my driveway, I paid them myself. 

A friend of mine once had his stereo stolen and claimed (against my advice). 
The stereo was £400, and his excess was £250. 
In return for his £150 cheque, they put his policy up from £350 to £650 for 3 years, total cost to him, over £900.
The insurance companies always win in the end for small claims.

I use the same "self insure" philosophy for amy home insurance where I keep my excesses high and don't take out accidental damage or  insurance, I also refuse all extended warranties, boiler cover, "gadget cover" etc. and keep the significant resultant savings aside to pay for these things myself if required. 
I would say that I am thousands, if not tens of thousands, of pounds ahead due to this philosopy over the last 30 years. 

If course this doesn't absolve him from being required to answer "yes" to the "Have you been involved in an accident in the last "x" years" question on future policies, but if it is repaired by a friendly back street garage for cash, or the car scrapped, how would anyone realistically know with no third party (other than your own wall) involved? 

underachiever_2

Car is worth at most £2K (pre dents) 

vacheron

underachiever_2 said:

Car is worth at most £2K (pre dents) 

Another thing you could do is run a quote through a comparison website using a false name with a different address (but on your same street) with the claim declared, and see what the prices returned look like.

cw8825

If it’s the first year of driving
he has no ncd to lose
realistically the policy won’t get much worse. The extra year experience counters the no ncb
Insurers will total loss the car. 

Claim and take it as a life lesson - it’s what he paid the policy for 

Veteransaver

I'd ignore the mad advice above to be honest

He has got next year's no claims bonus to lose. And that 1st year claim free is very valuable.

On a 2 grand car for a new driver I wouldn't even recommend getting it fixed, let alone claiming.
Or getting the door dent pulled out as best you can if it's really obvious.

cw8825

your advice is based on false information  and pushing the agenda of insurance companies being out for all they can get. others will give exact numbers but insurers make a loss on motor claims

as said the insurance will not repair the car. 
if OP is considering scrapping they will be better off claiming

they will either have the car value to go an replace
or the car value - salvage if they keep it, & can then scrap themselves, leave as is and run into the ground  or go and repair at a backstreet garage with money left over

yes they will need to declare a claim but every year after claim free is in their favour, the claim is longer ago so has less impact.

DullGreyGuy

underachiever_2 said:

My son in his first year of driving crashed his car into our drive wall whilst parking, no injuries just pride.

Damage to the car looks like at least a new door and maybe the sill, question is should he claim for it bearing in mind his excess is quite high (maybe £500 but need to double check) and will mess up his NCD and no doubt increase his policy costs for Year 2.

Should he just look to take the hit and pay for the repairs out of his pocket or scrap the car as the cost will be erode any value and take it as a costly life lesson?

That sounds like the basic excess... there will be a young/inexperienced driver excess you have to pay on top

underachiever_2 said:

Car is worth at most £2K (pre dents) 

Itll be a write off then so almost £2k minus the double excess