Can't get my excess back

andreibat

I was involved in a road accident last December. Although I colided with a stationery vehicle (stopped on my side of an A road at night) the Insurace company decided that it was my fault. Since my car was a write-off, I was paid the value minus £200, the excess on my policy.

Since then, the Public Prosecutor wrote to me, as a 'Victim' acknowledging this in writing.

Despite two letters (including copies of the communication from the DPP) several phone calls, emails, the insurance company would just not bother to even answer me, let alone return my money they erroneously retained as excess.

What is that I can do to get my money back?

I appreciate any suggestions, as I am rapidely reaching dispair on this.

Thanks,

Andrei

PasturesNew

Victim of what?

You lost me.

Did the person parked break Highway Code Rules 248 , 249, 250? Or others?
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Highwaycode/DG_069860

raskazz

How have they 'erroneously' retained the excess? Your policy terms state that you pay the excess as the first part of any claim (or it is deducted from a settlement if the vehicle is a total loss), regardless of who was at fault.

If you want to reclaim your excess you can only do it from a party who caused the accident.

However, no matter what the letter says, if you hit a stationary object then 99% of the time you are at fault.

andreibat

PasturenNew / raskazz

Thanks for your answers. Here are clarifications:

The DPP has decided, based on the Police's report on the incident that the Stationery vehicle was 'parked in a manner to cause danger to other road users', hence the prosecutor's decision was that the driver of the stationery vehicle (who by the way was at the wheel inside it at the time of the collision) was the 'perpetrator' on an offence, and I was the 'victim'.

As such my insurance company should have recovered the excess from his insurers.

I agree that hitting someone stationery would be 99% of the time the fault of the moving vehicle, unless of course the stationery vehicle was parked in such a way as to cause danger to other road users; like in this case, being night time, 30 yards from the exit of a 90 degree bend on a national road, one lane each way, with no hazards light or the 'Warning Triangle' positioned as specified in the Highway Code.

raskazz

andreibat wrote: »

The DPP has decided, based on the Police's report on the incident that the Stationery vehicle was 'parked in a manner to cause danger to other road users', hence the prosecutor's decision was that the driver of the stationery vehicle (who by the way was at the wheel inside it at the time of the collision) was the 'perpetrator' on an offence, and I was the 'victim'.

OK, if the third party was 'parked in a manner to cause danger to other road users' then some of the liability rests with them. But equally, perhaps, some of the liability will rest with yourself because you still crashed into a stationary object (I assume several other drivers drove past without colliding with the vehicle).

Just because the DPP uses 'victim' in correspondence (no doubt a standardised letter) doesn't mean that in law the other party was wholly at fault and you were blameless.

andreibat wrote: »

As such my insurance company should have recovered the excess from his insurers.

This isn't right. They can only recover what they settled your claim for - they settled your claim for the pre-accident value of the car minus the £200 excess. If you want to recover an excess this is a matter for a legal expenses cover to deal with (assuming you have it - if not you have to deal with the recovery of the excess yourself).