Council wants £397 for hitting a bollard

loofer

student100 wrote: »

Do you honestly have no documentation showing who your insurer was at the time? Bank/card statements with the insurance premium detailed or something?

Failing that, is there a possibility of getting a copy of the police report they have, which would surely state your insurer (could use a DPA subject access request, which would cost £10, assuming the police still have these records).

Your best bet, no matter how tiring or difficult, is to find out who your insurer was. Even if you knew 10 insurance companies that you have had a policy with in the last 20 years, contact all of them.

Any RTA that happens whilst the policy was in force, they should cover the costs for third parties. However, because it's been so long, they may find a loophole where the council can't claim costs- let them do the hardwork and give the bad news.

Find out your insurer and pass the details on.

Think of it like personal injury claims, people claiming from the council after x years because of slip/trip/fall on uneven paving that happened ages ago. Council's insurers deal with it.

zzzLazyDaisy

OP, what claim was made on the insurance at the time? Damage to your car? Another car? Was someone hurt leading to a personal injury claim? Which garage did the assessment on your car before repair or being written off? Were solicitors involved? All these organisations would have had some contact with your insurer.

I have to say that I have absolutely no idea which insurer I was with in 2002. But if I'd had a really bad accident like that, the chances are I would remember. You must have had to have dealings with the insurer at the time?

Another way to find out who your insurer was is to work back - if you had protected NCD, you would have had to pass proof from your old insurer to your new one. By phoning each one in turn, you will get back to 2002. Of course if you lost your NCD due to the accident, that won't help you.

kitchpoo

student100 wrote: »

Do you honestly have no documentation showing who your insurer was at the time? Bank/card statements with the insurance premium detailed or something?

Failing that, is there a possibility of getting a copy of the police report they have, which would surely state your insurer (could use a DPA subject access request, which would cost £10, assuming the police still have these records).

Why didnt the council persue the insurer through the same route for reimbursement?

I dont think it will have implications with your onward premiums and NCB as, if the accident was as bad as appears, the car was probably a total loss at the time.

You must have made an insurance claim after the accident, I would remember receiving a cheque for the car if it was written off.... Maybe if they paid out for any injuries? Did these payments go in your bank - My online banking goes back a long way - you may be able to find these payments.

loofer

Supposing the council finally get's in contact with the insurer...

The OP has no memory of damaging the bollard. A damaged bollard may not be recorded in witness statements or police reports. So you've got conflicting evidence.

So the council is alleging that a bollard was damaged as a result of an RTA whereby the an insured driver was found at fault (for causing the accident)

Does the burden of proof lie with the council to proove that it was damaged by OP or for the insurer to prove that it did not happen?

Every third party has the right to make a claim but surely insurer will investigate.

Insurer may refuse o pay

jimmyjim_uk

Thanks guys for your replies.

Luckily I wasn't hurt at all from the crash and no other cars were involved. The car was a mess though. I lost my no claims for that year because of the crash.

No solicitors were involved. I haven't got any paperwork much older than 12 months. I shred the lot.

If the council would have written to me before I moved house I could of got my insurer to pay. Feel a bit hard done by as the council took so long to write to me.

The only route back to my old insurer might be via the police as they did a report and took all my details.

I've got until 28th May to contact the council with either my insurance details or how I'm going to pay.

jimmyjim_uk

kitchpoo - the bank account I had a the time of crash/insurance payout I closed about 2 years ago.

zzzLazyDaisy

If the car was damaged in the crash and you lost your NCD that must have been because you made a claim.

The garage concerned would have liaised with the insurer and will be able to tell you who that was from their paperwork.

You must be able to remember which garage fixed the car? Or where it was when the assessor decided to write it off?

jimmyjim_uk

Just to put things into perspective the car I crashed was a £600 ford escort.

I'm going to ring the council today as they said they have a police report. Surely they can tell me which insurance company was on the report.

That makes me wonder why they didn't contact the insurers directly, if they had the report.

MrsE_2

Keith wrote: »

It could be to put one of those emergency bollards over a broken light thing so children don't touch the wires

I doubt you can avoid any of these charges after all you did damage the street furniture, to be fair, why should you as we all contribute to the cost of installing it.

I would have thought there must be a way to find out you were insured with.

After all they paid out for the car, so its not like you loose any more no claims.

Its all part of the same accident.

jimmyjim_uk

Spoke to the council. There is no inurance company on the report hence why they are chasing me, so I'm told.