Replacement/courtesy car

totin

I was involved in an 'no-fault' accident (a car pulled out of a minor road and smashed into the side of my vehicle) on 16th April last year. The insurance company organised a courtesy car, which due to the extensive repair required I had for 53 days. The charges for this vehicle unbeknown to me at the time were £86.20/day +vat = £5,4823.32.

The hire company have since contacted me stating that they were unable to recover these costs from the third party's insurance company and insisting that I provide bank statements of current accounts, joint accounts and savings acccounts.

Am I now liable this payment or should I contest it? Thank you.

TadleyBaggie

I suspect you signed a credit hire agreement along the way. I also suspect you weren't dealing with your insurance company at all regarding the courtesy car, but had been passed to an assistance company. Do you have a agreement you signed?

This happened to my son and it took about 12 months before the hire car cost was written off.

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6653817/replacement-courtesy-car

Thats not a courtesy car, such a vehicle provided under your policy is provided by the garage doing the repairs at their own expense and isnt guaranteed. Some insurers do offer an upgraded "guaranteed courtesy car" (or something similar) which is a hire car but its for a maximum period typically much shorter than 53 days.

Get your paperwork out but from what you say you were sold passed to a credit hire company. They provide you a car on credit outside the terms of your policy and then attempt to recover the cost directly from the third party or their insurer. As this is a "service" and they are taking on the financial risk they charge substantially more than what they would charge an insurer to provide a guaranteed courtesy car.

Normally, though you have to read the terms you agreed to, you will not be liable for any shortfall in payment as long as you fully support them in recovery activities. Asking for bank statements is a common part of the process as they will want to show you needed to rely on their type of service and couldn't have afforded to simply pay for an open ended hire at day rate without their credit facilities.

If you start being silly and refuse to give them documents or refuse to go to court etc then you become liable for the shortfall.

totin

Many thanks for your very helpful reply. The problem I now have is that I could have afforded an open ended hire, but would never have done so, as we already have another car. The only reason that we received the hired car, was because it was included in the comprehensive insurance policy.

TadleyBaggie

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81870156#Comment_81870156

You haven't answered my question, did you sign a credit hire agreement with a 3rd party?

If car hire is included in a insurance policy (usually as a paid add on), there is no way you should be expected to to sign an agreement making you financially responsible for it.

totin

Answer: Definately not.

Below is part of the message I received from Vision Network and in turn Enterprise rent-a-car, the day after the accident. The car appeared two days after making the claim.

'We are currently dealing with the repairs to your vehicle on behalf of your insurer Aviva and are looking to provide you with a similar replacement vehicle, if possible, for the duration of your repair at no cost to yourself'.  

'Your details have been passed from Vizion Network Ltd, who have asked us to arrange your replacement vehicle'.

TadleyBaggie

Vizion is a repair network, not your insurance company. How did they get involved?

totin

Aviva must have contacted them and below is part of the message Aviva sent to me: -

'Your vehicle has been booked into the garage, and they shall be in touch about repairs. Your courtesy car has been requested from Enterprise, this will be discussed directly between yourselves and Enterprise. 

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81870352#Comment_81870352

Do you still have the paperwork?

You will have signed a credit agreement, they have no right of recovery from the third party without certain clauses. I know some who have signed documents assuming it was just the normal handover documents without reading them.

Aviva offer two level of optional courtesy car, standard is a small 3 door car, enhanced is a small 5 door car. Maybe Aviva asked Enterprise to provide whichever level of car you were entitled to but the Accident Repair Centre took it upon itself to sell pass you to Enterprise Credit Hire which would provide a like for like replacement. Certainly in my day that would have been against our terms with the ARC unless the customer had explicitly said that the Ford Ka wasnt suitable to the garage.

totin

I honestly cannot remember seeing or signing any paperwork when the car was delivered, A foreign gentleman gave me only the key in a envelope which I still have. I asked him how do I start this car? He said Push button, Push button.

My car is a 4x4 double cab pick-up, they sent a 4x2 Ford Kuga, absolutely useless as you cannot get back up the croft with two wheel drive when wet (it's almost always wet here) and we already have another car.

Do you still stand by your original advice that is, to forward the bank statements and see what their response is.

MyRealNameToo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81871235#Comment_81871235

Ultimately if you dont want to have to pay for it yourself thats the easiest route.

You could in parallel register a complaint with Aviva who may dig into what happened. Would a Ford Ka or similar been an appropriate replacement? Did you possibly have a conversation with the garage about needing a pickup truck?