Vehicle write off - ins co not willing to pay

suzialwaysbroke

:mad:
Just wondered if anyone could advise me?
My horsebox has been written off, a neighbour's tree fell on the roof & caused some damage. I had a quote for repair, but when the engineer came to do the work, he found the sides of the vehicle wouldn't take the rivets as they were not sound enough. The ins co only want to offer the repair money, less the excess - £300, the lorry is ins for £5k. I want the £4900, they say no - any suggestions as to the best way to tackle this problem would be much appreciated.

Cheers,

Suzi xx

*MF*

Starting point:

You need to read the insurance policy to see what it says - it may be something like this:

We will pay the cost of replacing or repairing the property or we may replace the property or arrange for the repairs to be carried out

We will pay the market value of the Horse Trailer if it is lost or it would not be economical to repair the damage

However if the loss or damage occurs within 12 months of your buying the Horse Trailer as new we will pay the cost of replacing it as new or we may replace it as new

If it follows that pattern - it is the market value of the box that will be your target sum, not the £5,000 - unless that turns out to be the market value - or as above if it was less than 12 months old and your policy has that provision.

The bit i think you will have problems on is the condition of the box - because whatever its "market value" the Insurers will pay close attention to its condition - and the fact that it can't be repaired for the reason you have given - says to me the condition is not the best - thus reducing its market value.

Not sure this is good news in any way - but if the box is beyond economic repair - normally it is the market value that is the starting point for any settlement - but, word of warnng - that is never an easy one to establish. Hope this helps in some way.

mattymoo

So the repair money offer is based on a repair that cannot be done?
Have you been back to the engineer to see what other solutions there are? If that increases the costs, the insurers should cover that.
However, if the repair involves replacing panels that were not damaged by the tree, just to give a sound foundation for the work, the insurers will want a contribution for betterment.

Insurers are not going to give you £4,900 for a repair that costs £300 (both net figures). It is far from being a write off.

TBH the engineer sounds a bit lame if his view is "oh my rivets won't take, I give up". It should be possible to add internal reinforcements or brackets from a sound point to give the rivets a purchase.