Is this how it works? I think it sounds dodgy!

Laneyboo

On dec 17 my neighbour reversed into my drivers door and refused to admit liability when it was clearly his fault. I got all details i required from him and contacted my insurance company (ecarinsurance) immediately. They took details and i sat back and waited, i first received calls from Angel Assistance who seem to be deal with ecars legal stuff and this was initially for my personal injury claim and i've had no problems on that front so far...

Yesterday i recieved a call from Angel Assistance regarding the repair of my vehicle (the first call that anyone has mentioned my car actually getting repaired). They gave me three options:
1) go directly through my insurer and face a claim on my no claims history plus have to pay the excess
2) try and recoup the expenses from the other parties insurance, they will usually drag their feet on this supposedly
or 3) go with angel assistance, they set up repair of my vehicle and a hire car and recoup the expenses from the third party.

I opted for number 3 and since then have recieved paperwork from Helphire of which i'm very sceptical. It asks me to sign a Combined Credit Agreement which details how i will be liable for the "deferred costs" if after 52 weeks the third party's insurance has not paid out. Also says that im covered by an insurance policy if it takes longer than 52 weeks to settle that will make sure i still have nothing to pay. As for the hire car costs they seem excessive to me, my car is a Citroen C1 and the price per day for hire costs detailed on the form here is £59.63. I checked an ABI link out and found this:

GTA agreed maximum settlement rates (excluding vat) for all car hire claims on or after 01.04.06

Groups

Rate (£s)

Sample Vehicles

excl VAT

Standard


S1

27.07

Vauxhall Agila (1.0) / Citroen C1 (1.0) / Peugeot 107 (1.0) / Nissan Micra (1.0) / Toyota Yaris (1.0), Fiat Sceicento (889cc), Microcar Virgo 1.0,



If this is the maximum agreed rate above then surely the £59.63 is excessive and wont be recouped leaving me liable to pay for this!

So far they have booked my car into the bodyshop for next thursday where i am meant to pick up my hire car also but i am very dubious about signing these documents. I am fully comp insurance and have no clue if this is how things work as i've never had an accident before but i did not expect this to be how things go. No clue if the other partys insurance have accepted liability yet either and i cant get in touch with my insurance company until monday. HELP!

Mr_Bear_2

i am biased but i would keep away from them

you have paid for comp insurance why not use it?

whilst you will have to pay the excess you can recocer it from other party - once your insurers have recovered their loss your NCB will be reinstated

the "insurance policy" with angel i not accepted by all insurers - in effect if hire charges are outstanding after a year and you havent paid them then the other sides insurers will say that they are unrecoverable and angel may still try to persuade you!!

Its up to you how you want to proceed however ....

dunstonh

What they are asking for is fair enough as you have gone for a hire car and they need to make sure they have the ability to reclaim the costs from you should your claim be unsuccessful.

I'm not sure why you are going for a hire car though. Does your policy not provide provision for a courtesy car from the garage whilst yours is under repair? That is the ideal solution as you make no payments for that and you dont have to hire a car.

advantix

Used Helphire when my car was reversed into by a royal mail van a couple of years ago. My insurance company (through Swinton) asked Helphire to hire me the car and organise the repairs. My car was a Mercedes A Class, Y reg, and i got an Audi A3 with 5 miles on the clock as the hire car. Kept it for 2 weeks whilst my car was repaired (crack to bumper and light cluster cracked). I had to sign an agreement like you mention. It is a standard agreement. I had no problems and all was ok. I have nothing but praise for Helphire. Best company i have dealt with.

Laneyboo

advantix its nice to hear a good word about the company as it does put my mind at ease although i think i will be calling my insurance company tomorrow to find out what they can do for me as i pay for fully comp and should get a courtesy car etc from them. Ive never had an accident before and so had/have no clue what the procedure is for getting your vehicle repaired.. can only hope it all works out alright! Thanks for everyones input :j

Hey_Dude

It is a sad fact that when you are involved in a non-fault accident and there is a Third Party to claim from the likes of Helphire and Angel are knocking at your door.

They mostly want to stick you into a Hire car for as long as possible so that they can claim the costs from the Third Party Insurer - the credir agreement is aloophole they can use if the claim unexpectedly goes pear shaped.

At the end of the day you should be making an informed choice and not letting the monkeys at Helphire and Angel persuade you that their redit repair and hire is the best solution.

After all, you have paid for your insurance so you should at least consider the option of talking to your insurers.

Duder

Mr_Bear_2

agreed duder

Laneyboo

well i tried calling my insurance today and said i should be entitled to pay my excess and get the car repaired plus a courtesy car as part of my policy and it went on deaf ears, they basically told me that i will not have to pay anything with helphire anyway as the credit agreement is simply so they can recoup the charges from the third party. I questioned why the hire charge is excessive at £59 per day as my car is only a little c1 and they said the smaller vehicle probably wasnt available so they've upgraded me (how convenient). Tried calling Helphire to ask why the charges are excessive and said i know already that the most the other party has to settle for legally is £30 and they said they charge more per day because its on credit and they need to recoup there losses somehow but not to worry the credit agreement indemnifies me from paying anything at all. I have no clue what to do now, my insurance wont budge from Angel Assistance/Helphire who happen to be part of their company and Helphire have an answer for everything and just say sign and return the documents. I just want my car fixed without having to be liable for a single penny except my excess!

Hey_Dude

Laneyboo wrote: »

well i tried calling my insurance today and said i should be entitled to pay my excess and get the car repaired plus a courtesy car as part of my policy and it went on deaf ears, they basically told me that i will not have to pay anything with helphire anyway as the credit agreement is simply so they can recoup the charges from the third party. I questioned why the hire charge is excessive at £59 per day as my car is only a little c1 and they said the smaller vehicle probably wasnt available so they've upgraded me (how convenient). Tried calling Helphire to ask why the charges are excessive and said i know already that the most the other party has to settle for legally is £30 and they said they charge more per day because its on credit and they need to recoup there losses somehow but not to worry the credit agreement indemnifies me from paying anything at all. I have no clue what to do now, my insurance wont budge from Angel Assistance/Helphire who happen to be part of their company and Helphire have an answer for everything and just say sign and return the documents. I just want my car fixed without having to be liable for a single penny except my excess!

Who is your Insurer?

Dude

Keith

He reversed into your door, ask how long it will be in the bodyshop maybe 3/4 days, and hire a car privately and have it added to your claim.

As he is your neighbour have you asked if he will pay for the repairs privately and save his own NCB?

Laneyboo

Dude my insurer is Ecarinsurance (www.ecarinsurance.co.uk) since found out they are trading in partnership with Helphire and Angel Assistance.

My neighbour immediately refused liability and said he's happy to let the insurance deal with it so any resolution without insurers involved looks extremely unlikely. Helphire have been on the phone again today saying they want the documents back ASAP signed and if not i can fax them through the bodyshop when i pick the car up.

It clearly says on the forms i'm signing:

"I have had credit hire and the cover provided by my own policy explained to me. I understand that if i choose to hire on credit i am personally liable for paying for the hire costs which i would not have incurred had i been offered and accepted a suitable courtesy vehicle from my own motor insurer or legal expenses insurer"

i mean !!!!!! i'm signing things that say im liable for all these costs yet stapled to these same bits of paper is little notes saying that i'll never be liable as the indemnity policy would kick in if the TP refused to pay.

aghh im clueless!