OK folks looking for some advice here. My 18 year old son parked up my Y reg Fabia while visiting his girlfirend and some dozy bint reversed her car into the rear passenger door, leaving a nice scratch and hefty dent. She realised what she had done but drove off without leaving her details (my son wasn't there but we have a witness who took down her reg. no.).

The door needs a new skin (not available) so will need fairly extensive work and filling + spraying. I have been advised by one bodyshop that the cost is going to be about £800. An alternative might be a second hand door fitted and sprayed up (£350+vat). The cost of repairs may well outstrip the value of the car.

My son reported the incident to the police but they don't seem particularly interested and have advised reporting it to my insurance company (not reported yet).

I don't particularly want to go through my insurance company as I have a feeling I will be hammered for no-fault accident and can't really afford to as there is a £350 excess on the policy and don't want to lose my no claims. The likelihood is it will be scrapped if I do claim. It might be an old car but that shouldn't matter.

I think that the third party are going to deny responsibility and duck and dive like hell to avoid any payment.

Any ideas or suggestions as to where to go from here?

Edited 19 July, 201114 yr by bob19

Police should deal with this, I'm not up on my law but surly that's leaving the seen of an accident isn't it? Or criminal damage, I would keep Pushing with police, but what I do know is be very careful about taking it to court, it would go to a small claims court and it takes months to sort out and the cost of the case tends to out weigh what you get back.

Have you actually approached the person responsible for the damamged caused to your car first and spoke to them regarding it?

Have you actually approached the person responsible for the damamged caused to your car first and spoke to them regarding it?

Not been able to yet as the culprits were visiting the address when it happened. The home owner (a relative I believe) was very unhelpful and denied outright any responsibility to my son but has advised that the owner of the car will be at the address tomorrow. I will attempt to get details then.

1. Get in touch with police and demand they look into it.

Get a police record number.

2. Go to the culprit tell them you have witnesses and have gone to the police.

Or do the 2nd point first and tell them yo have witnesses and are going to the police as they fled the scene of an accident.

You have proof that it's not your fault so leave it up to the insurance company to claim off the dozy bint.

You do pay the extra for legal services don't you.........

If you go through insurance the car will be written off, thats for sure, if you go this route be prepared to potentially lose no claims and the policy excess. So you would lose NCB, loose the excess and and get about £300 for the car and from that you'll have to buy another one. If the car is a good one, you may get lucky and get a door the right colour from a scrapyard. Unless the witness has a photo then you only have their word that the reg number is correct, so it could go against you, because they could have given you the reg number of someone they have a grudge against and not the actual car that hit you.

As your son is only 18, if the car is insured in his name, going through insurance even for a non fault claim is going to hammer the premium for the next 5 years because it will need to be declared at renewal, even for a non fault claim.

Sorry bob where abouts are you from?

through no fault of my own but i been involved with a few accidents.

Sorry if belows been covered but i just read the 1st post.

1. Its not your son's fault, so he shouldnt have to pay anything.

2. If there is a whitness, get details including car description and reg off them get plus pictures etc.

3. If they have left the scene then the police can be called - i think its by law you have to leave your details and its an offence to drive off

but let your insurance know so they have a record of it - will not effect NCB as your be claiming off them.

Someone reversed into your sons parked car and drove off and you have witness too - you cant loose.

just my opinion

tar

phil

Whilst it may not affect NCB, you will get hammered for the next 5 years of premiums as you MUST declare even a non fault accident. The reason being is that you are now an increased risk in their eyes, as you have already had to claim for accident repairs even off of another insurer. The text usuall reads "Have you ever been involved in any Accident during the last 5 years", to which the answer is Yes as you have been and claimed from another insurer. Result will be something like a 25% increase in premium, even though you have retained NCB. How do I know, been there done that in the past.

The person who hit the car, only needs to deny it and have no damage to their car. At that point the witness statement is worthless even if it was them that hit as there is no evidence. At that point the OP insurers will have to pay out as a claim on them affecting NCB resulting in an even higher premium.

A passing car once knocked my door mirror and the no fault claim didn't affect my premiums.

By driving off without leaving their details, unless they then reported it to the police in person inside 24 hours, the other driver committed the offence of failing to stop at the scene of an accident (minimum 5 points, maximum disqualification / 6 months / £5000) - this should be reported to the police, giving them details of the witness, and you should obtain a crime number. If you know where the other driver lives, it might be worth a wander around to their house when you think they're in, and see if you can get a snap of any damage or paint transfer on their car (as long as you're on public land - such as a pavement - there's nothing they can say about this).

You can identify the other party's insurer via MID, I believe, and claim directly against them (insurance company) for the cost of the new door.

Sorry bob where abouts are you from?

Liverpool.

The police will send the registered owner of the vehicle asking for contact details to be sent to you. This happened to me, i hit the arse end of a l200 and gave him my mobile number unknowingly it was my old number lo.. he had my reg plate, so he got the police involved and they sent me a letter 5 days after the incident asking for contact details so they could forward it to the bloke i hit.

By driving off without leaving their details, unless they then reported it to the police in person inside 24 hours, the other driver committed the offence of failing to stop at the scene of an accident (minimum 5 points, maximum disqualification / 6 months / £5000) - this should be reported to the police, giving them details of the witness, and you should obtain a crime number. If you know where the other driver lives, it might be worth a wander around to their house when you think they're in, and see if you can get a snap of any damage or paint transfer on their car (as long as you're on public land - such as a pavement - there's nothing they can say about this).

You can identify the other party's insurer via MID, I believe, and claim directly against them (insurance company) for the cost of the new door.

It has been reported to the police and I do have a crime reference number. My son says that there is no damage to the other car bar for a scrape - my car panel pushed in and scratched. At the moment I don't have any of the other drivers details - save for the fact that I know car reg. and where they visit.

It would seem that I'm between a rock and a hard place. Declare to insurance and risk losing my NCB for a bump that whilst annoying and ugly doesn't greatly affect the value or operation of the car; forget it and simmer or try and squeeze some money out of the third party privately in the hope that I can get a s/h door.

It has been reported to the police and I do have a crime reference number. My son says that there is no damage to the other car bar for a scrape - my car panel pushed in and scratched. At the moment I don't have any of the other drivers details - save for the fact that I know car reg. and where they visit.

It would seem that I'm between a rock and a hard place. Declare to insurance and risk losing my NCB for a bump that whilst annoying and ugly doesn't greatly affect the value or operation of the car; forget it and simmer or try and squeeze some money out of the third party privately in the hope that I can get a s/h door.

pressure is a good thing - if they have a letter from the police could get them to give you cash save going through the insurance?

Sorry to hear the news, been there also :(

But.. firstly, it should be your son who should be doing the leg work! As right and correct as you maybe, my question is is it worth that £350 +vat for all this hassle and misery?

If it is, follow up with police then insurance.

Yes, there is that thing of doing the right thing and not letting people get away with justice, but it could be at the expense of increased premiums for your son and you (if he was under your name).

Else, bite the bullet and say the world isn't full of nice people and perhaps think to park in a more defensive position next time.

Oh yes, if the car isn't worth 350 plus vat and you need a car, if the car is good, just stick a door, any door in and be with it! All you need it for is A-b, functionailty! Not style/class, that's all your paying for. Your son can get a rattle can and go crazy if he so wishes. It's not really going to effect the cars value now is it.

Yes, there is that thing of doing the right thing and not letting people get away with justice, but it could be at the expense of increased premiums for your son and you (if he was under your name).

If that's the issue, then they can just pursue the 'leaving the scene of an accident' route with the police, but not put a claim in with the insurance co.

It would seem that I'm between a rock and a hard place. Declare to insurance and risk losing my NCB for a bump

Might be worth having a close read of your insurance document - mine states that I lose my NCD if I make a fault claim, but fails to mention a non-fault claim ("If a fault claim is made and your no claim discount entitlement is not protected or guaranteed, it will be reduced in line with our no claim discount scale. Your no claim discount will not be affected if we only pay emergency treatment charges under the Road Traffic Acts.").

Also note that you can pursue the claim directly through the other party's insurers (once you get that information), rather than going through yours, so there'd be no issue of an excess.

Dunno if that's any help ...

If that's the issue, then they can just pursue the 'leaving the scene of an accident' route with the police, but not put a claim in with the insurance co.

I have to deal with this everyday so have this one on me.

1. Notwithstanding all that has been said the Police's resources are now spread so thin they will take no interest in this as no one has been injured, yes they should but they won't - that is real life for you.

2. It is not worth claiming on your own policy, the repair costs only have to exceed roughly 60% of the cars value and it'll get written off and after deducting your excess you will get very little although if you pursue your case you may well recover the excess from the offending driver's Insurers but it may be a long job and I'm sure the car is worth more to you than it's pure monetary value.

3. You have the registration number of the offending car. Therefore you can try and ask the Police for details of the Insurers, if its Insured it will be on the Motor Insurance Database which is accessible by the Police and Insurance companies. They may refuse to give it you but its worth a go. If you can get details of her Insurers you can simply ring them up and tell them your tale and emphasise you have a witness, they will take you seriously and will then try to contact her. Even if she denies knowledge to her Insurers they should tell her "sorry, but he (you) has an independent witness so we'll have to settle" so your witness is priceless, do not loose their details.

4. Failing that if you have legal expenses (often called Uninsured Loss Recovery) cover on your own Insurance policy then get them involved and tell them you want to pursue the cost of damages in full as an uninsured loss claim rather than just your policy excess (which is normally all they do). However, you may have to notify your own insurers of the incident (note I say incident here not claim) in order to get them to activate the legal cover. Patiently explain to your own insurers that your car was parked unattended and you do NOT wish to claim for your own damage on your own policy, they SHOULD set up the case, activate the legal referral and close their file straightaway but some can be a bit funny about it. It won't then affect your NCB but as has been posted you will have an accident noted although non-fault claims should not affect the rating of your premium and in any event strictly speaking whether you claim or not you SHOULD disclose the incident at your next renewal anyway (but in reality most people don't bother as if its not gone "through the books" then who's to know). If you took your Insurance out through a decent broker have you spoken to them about your options (the fact you've posted on a forum makes me think you went the direct option and are a bit lost where to go for advice)?

5. Go to a decent bodyshop for a quote and most of them have referral schemes to accident management companies who are frankly vultures but in your circumstance they have their place. A decent one will do a risk assessment to check the chances of making a recovery and won't take you on if they think its a no-hoper. If they do they'll either do a credit repair on the car or write it off and stick you in a hire car at no cost to you BUT read the small print as some of the less scrupulous ones will take you on regardless then if it turns to poo they'll ask you for all the money they've "paid" out to do your repairs and the cost of hiring you a car. This option is not to be undertaken lightly.

5. Final option and the toughest one, just chalk it up to a life experience, drive round with a dented car and move on. I appreciate this is not the most palatable choice but sometimes it just ain't worth it.

Edited 20 July, 201114 yr by cooliospoolio

as stated above, the police will not want to deal with this situation. yes it is an offence to leave the scene, but there is no personal injury and they were not called at the time.

no-one has mentioned the witness!!

this is the MOST crucial thing in this situation....their statement should force the other insurance company/third party to deal. i would contact them and get a full description of the offending car and description of driver if at all possible, picking out defining features of someone is a winner, also time of accident

your insurance premiums WILL NOT GO UP IF YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY RECOVER THEIR COSTS IN FULL, but will until liability has been established and full recovery of costs have happened.

good luck!

your insurance premiums WILL NOT GO UP IF YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY RECOVER THEIR COSTS IN FULL, good luck!

Unfortunately, that's not true.

Insurance companies put up premiums for drivers who've had non-fault accidents, even where a full recovery has been made. Apparently because people who have made one claim are statistically more likely to make another than someone who hasn't made any claims!! Nuts, but there you have it!

Unfortunately, that's not true.

Insurance companies put up premiums for drivers who've had non-fault accidents, even where a full recovery has been made. Apparently because people who have made one claim are statistically more likely to make another than someone who hasn't made any claims!! Nuts, but there you have it!

Makes sense, never thought of it that way..! Learn something new everyday

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk

I work as an insurance broker, and have been in the car insurance industry for 5yrs and specialize in young/convicted drviers

I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT 90% OF INSURERS WILL INCREASE PREMIUMS IF A YOUNG/CONVICTED DRIVER HAS A NON-FAULT CLAIM

for you older people(over 30's)it is much less likely you will see an increase in your premium and if you do you probably won't notice it.

but for under 25yr olds a non-fault claim will more than lightly impact there insurance premiums and for an 18yr old i would put a small fortune betting that it would put at least a 10% loading onto his insurance.

My advice is too not even let the insurance company know that it's happened, once you make that call to claims weather you claim or just call for advice THEY ARE REQUIRED to record it as a claim to remain compliant within their role as a claims agent.

My advice is try and get the persons address, knock on their door with you and your son with two quotes in hand and push and squeeze until you get at least half of the repair cost. for a car like yours though i would expect you to use second hand parts and just pay for spraying and fitting.

Good Luck and don't call your insurance company about it

Edited 20 July, 201114 yr by Sonner

Depending on the type of person you are and the type of person that hit you and drove off.(say the weren't a young driver and they looked like they had a good standard of living)you could If they refuse to give you the money always 'do unto them what was done to you! obviously in the dead of night though and make sure you don't get caught

hehe. :p