Insurance Excess non fault. who pays?

[AGFalco]

Looking for advise on what to do please. 🙂

 

Not had a claim since the early 90's so a little out of touch.

 

My car was parked in a car park and while I was shopping, it was hit by another car, so I am NOT at fault.

The third party had 'forgot' to put their car in gear/put the handbrake on and it rolled back in to mine also with no one in that car as well.

This was at 3 weeks old from new with less than 500 miles on the clock. 🤬

 

If I claim through MY insurance then I will have to pay my excess.

 

But is it true that if I claim direct with the THIRD PARTY's I won't have to pay the excess?

 

Are there any downsides with this?

 

Thanks in advance. AG Falco

[petrolcan]

I'm assuming you have the other (non) driver's details? If so, phone your insurance and hand it over to them, that's what you pay them for.

 

And no, assuming the other's InsCo accept liability you'll have nothing to pay.

[Millstone]

The important thing is to get your excess back from the third party. Either directly from them (you may have to claim in the county court) or better still from their insurance company. However you must inform your insurance company, even if the TP’s company is picking up the bill. Once you have got your excess paid by the TP then advise your company. Then, and only then will they record it as a no fault accident/claim

[AGFalco]

9 hours ago, petrolcan said:

I'm assuming you have the other (non) driver's details? If so, phone your insurance and hand it over to them, that's what you pay them for.

 

Yes, details and on CCTV.

 

 

7 hours ago, Millstone said:

Once you have got your excess paid by the TP then advise your company. Then, and only then will they record it as a no fault accident/claim

So if I ask the third party to get their insurance company to contact me directly?

 

Thanks in advance again.  AG Falco

[J.R.]

Many companies proactively contact (harass) TP claimants to use their own accident management services in order to reduce their costs, they will try to seduce you with offers of a courtesy car, quick turn around repairs etc, just remember they are acting in their interests not yours.

 

Your own insurers if they know the TP has admitted liability will do the same and be encouraging you to consider medical injuries advising you to use their expert doctors for a check up "just in case", that should be fun considering both vehicles were unoccupied, once again they are acting in their interests and not yours.

 

IF there is even the slightest possibility that your vehicle might be written off do not let anyone acting for either insurer take it away, the more they pressurise you to do so the more you must resist.

 

I would sit back for a little while and see if the other insurer contacts you and what they propose before informing yours.

Edited 23 January by J.R.

[petrolcan]

5 hours ago, AGFalco said:

Yes, details and on CCTV.

Have you got a copy of the CCTV because if not, that statement is useless.

 

Contact your insurance so they know what's happening. As your car is as good as brand new it might be worth asking about a new car as I know some insurers do that.

[AGFalco]

 

So if I claim on my insurance the third party will be expected to pay this as well as their excess?

 

 

7 hours ago, J.R. said:

I would sit back for a little while and see if the other insurer contacts you and what they propose before informing yours.

Don't think that the third party has contacted their insurance yet.

 

5 hours ago, petrolcan said:

Have you got a copy of the CCTV because if not, that statement is useless.

 

A copy has been stored for any insurance company to see.

 

7 hours ago, J.R. said:

IF there is even the slightest possibility that your vehicle might be written off

Damage is just to N-S-F wing so easily repairable.

 

 

7 hours ago, J.R. said:

Many companies proactively contact (harass) TP claimants to use their own accident management services in order to reduce their costs, they will try to seduce you with offers of a courtesy car, quick turn around repairs etc, just remember they are acting in their interests not yours.

 

Yes exactly, that is why I am trying to pick the right path.

I have 4 cars so don't need a loan car.

 

22 hours ago, AGFalco said:

If I claim through MY insurance then I will have to pay my excess.

The money is not my issue.

 

19 hours ago, Millstone said:

Then, and only then will they record it as a no fault accident/claim

One thing I am trying to avoid if possible is a claim on my insurance.

 

6 hours ago, petrolcan said:

As your car is as good as brand new it might be worth asking about a new car as I know some insurers do that.

The policy is replace with new for the first two years if that badly damaged. ( it is not )

Don't know how they can do this as the car is no longer sold as production has now been stopped.

 

 

Thanks in advance again.  AG Falco

 

 

 

 

[J.R.]

3 hours ago, AGFalco said:

One thing I am trying to avoid if possible is a claim on my insurance.

 

You cant avoid it unless the TP pays you cash because he also wants to avoid making a claim, even if you dont tell them they will know from the shared information, your NCB will decrease because there is a "claim pending", you should get it reinstated once you or they have made full recovery but what they do in practice is just to ramp up your base premium anyway as many others have found.

 

I have walked away from minor damage caused by others if they have also been so minded, it really is not worth the hit to the premium in future years, when you start thinking like that then its just not worth having fully comp insurance which I have not had now for over 15 years.

[AGFalco]

No problem informing the insurance company.

 

Just hoping to inform them that the repairs have all been paid for by the third party's insurance, and so this is just a notification to my insurance company.

 

Doesn't help that I have 4 cars and 4 Insurance policies with three different company's.

 

Thanks again. AG Falco

[Routemaster1461]

18 hours ago, AGFalco said:

No problem informing the insurance company.

 

Just hoping to inform them that the repairs have all been paid for by the third party's insurance, and so this is just a notification to my insurance company.

 

Doesn't help that I have 4 cars and 4 Insurance policies with three different company's.

 

Thanks again. AG Falco

 

If you have a claim on one of the policies you should also inform the other companies. If you have two policies with the same company you need to ensure they know about your second policy. I had an issue when my  neighbour's fence fell in a gale and damaged our car. I had previously had a no-fault write-off in 2018. When I got in touch about the new damage, it turned out that the company software didn't 'inform' one of the policies about the total loss. My policy was loaded in 2018, but the second policy wasn't but should have been. They couldn't charge extra for the years they had missed, but did make a small charge for the last year unntil the accident went off the record.

 

In the end I didn't get the new damage done through insurance as the excess was as much as it cost me to get it fixed. However, if I had done it through insurance my two policies would most likely have been loaded, and as I am a named driver on my two daughter's policies with the same company, I wouldn't have been surprised if they got loaded as well.

 

In my view, I think it is appaling that you can have a no-fault paid by the third party, then have all of your policies loaded as well.

[AGFalco]

4 hours ago, Routemaster1461 said:

If you have a claim on one of the policies you should also inform the other companies.

Exactly.

4 hours ago, Routemaster1461 said:

In my view, I think it is appalling that you can have a no-fault paid by the third party, then have all of your policies loaded as well.

Exactly my thoughts as well.

 

Have you got a bus in your front garden?

 

Thanks. AG Falco

[J.R.]

7 hours ago, Routemaster1461 said:

If you have a claim on one of the policies you should also inform the other companies

 

7 hours ago, Routemaster1461 said:

In my view, I think it is appaling that you can have a no-fault paid by the third party, then have all of your policies loaded as well.

 

In France it is the vehicle that is insured not the driver, many people keep their old vehicle for trips to the dump etc and as a family spare car when they buy a new one, the fixed costs, insurance, road tax (already paid when registered) and MOT are very cheap so it does not cost a lot but there is also another very big advantage, the Bonus (NCB).

 

It is earned on each vehicle insured, you buy a newish Passat and get your maximum NCB earned on the old Fiesta which also retains it, if you have a fault accident in the Passat then the NCB will drop on that policy but not on the other, say you later want to buy something even more exotic with a higher insurance group, easy, sell the Fiesta and reinsure the new vehicle with your maximum NCB and keep the Passat as the spare.

 

You could also sell or scrap the Passat, keep the Fiesta and use the relève d'informations (NCB statement) from that to insure the new vehicle with full NCB.

Edited 25 January by J.R.

[kodiaqsportline]

In theory you should always go thru your insurance where you pay the excess for the claim to proceed. If the claim turns out to be non-fault then your insurance should refund that money. ( they then claim it off the 3rd party blah, blah blah - but that's not your concern ).

 

I've been in a few situations where the 3rd party have offered to repair the damage without involving the insurance. That of course could void your insurance and in theory, it's illegal, but the reality is it's sometimesit's the best solution for everyone. It only applies to very minor damage tho ( you forfeit any guarantee ).   In my experience, if the repair is below the excess then it's benefitial not to go thru insurance because even if it's a non-fault claim, there are pitfalls.

 

When searching for insurance, you normally have to disclose any claim, fault or not, up to 5yr after the accident.  I've played around with the systems over the years and obtained two quotes - one declaring the non-fault claim, and one ignoring it. ( obviously always declared it when acually taking out insurance ).  I have never seen a rise in the policy cost because of a non-fault claim, but what I have seen is some insurers excluding you from obtaining a quote.  Not sure if it's still the case, but Esure used to be one of those who'd say 'sorry, cannot obtain a quote' even if it was only a non-fault claim. So potantially you could be loosing out on a cheaper quote in the following 5 years from the date of the accident by declaring a non-fault accident.

 

I agree, it's wrong, but there are so many other things wrong with insurance in general.

 

Hope that helps. 

[AGFalco]

This is my plan. They can only say no.

If I go through their insurance then I don't have to claim my excess off the third party and / or their insurance company afterwards.

 

If I go through my insurance they will look at the claim as a nice cash cow towards the third party's insurance company.

So it is in the third party's insurance company's benefit for them to deal direct with me?

 

 

1 hour ago, kodiaqsportline said:

I've been in a few situations where the 3rd party have offered to repair the damage without involving the insurance.

It is going through insurance.

The repair is more than the excess.

 

 

If I go through my insurance ( for all 4 cars / policies ) then I could / would have 4 potential at fault claims to contend with until it is resolved.

The CCTV easily answers the question as to who is to blame.

My car was parked / stationery at the time of impact.

 

 

1 hour ago, kodiaqsportline said:

you forfeit any guarantee

I keep my cars long term and with the age of my car, ( three weeks old  ) I want it repaired so that I keep it covered by the manufactures guarantee.

This will mean getting it repaired at an approved repairer. I have already got three quotes from approved repair company's.

 

 

 

Thanks. AG Falco

[kodiaqsportline]

On 27/01/2024 at 14:24, AGFalco said:

This is my plan. They can only say no.

If I go through their insurance then I don't have to claim my excess off the third party and / or their insurance company afterwards.

 

Well it's a plan...  

 

1: All insurers use a common database so it'll be on record.

2: When you next obtain a quote, are you going to declare you've been involved in an insurance claim or are you going to lie?

3. What happens if the 3rd party's insurer turns out to be the same underwriter as you?   ( There are actually very few insurers, many trade under different names. There are even less underwriters! )

 

Although it could invalidate an insurance policy, if you keep quiet and have the 3rd party pay for the repair out of their own pocket, that could work. However telling the insurance industry you've been involved in an accident but not declaring that accident to your own insurer. 😲    You're playing with fire.

 

It's a non-fault claim yet you could end up in a right mess if you go ahead with that plan. Why risk it?

Edited 29 January by kodiaqsportline

[AGFalco]

4 hours ago, kodiaqsportline said:

Well it's a plan...  

1. Know that, thanks.

2. Yes, will declare to all 4 car insurance policies.

3. Churchill and Direct line are the two involved in this.

 

4. Have no plans to keep anything quite and the repair is NOT being paid for by the third party.

 

Thanks. AG Falco

 

[Millstone]

Churchill and Direct Line are both part of the same(Direct Line) group, all their policies are underwritten by UK Insurance Ltd (same group)

[AGFalco]

OK, so both policies are underwritten by UK Insurance Ltd (same group).

 

Thanks. AG Falco

[kodiaqsportline]

On 29/01/2024 at 20:22, AGFalco said:

Have no plans to keep anything quite...

 

 

I'm confused as hell

 

On 27/01/2024 at 14:24, AGFalco said:

This is my plan. They can only say no.

If I go through their insurance then I don't have to claim my excess off the third party and / or their insurance company afterwards.

 

If I go through my insurance they will look at the claim as a nice cash cow towards the third party's insurance company.

So it is in the third party's insurance company's benefit for them to deal direct with me?

 

 The above clearly implies to me that your intention was contacting the other insurer rather than your own insurer.

 

Obviously i was wrong. What is your plan?

 

 

Edited 30 January by kodiaqsportline

[J.R.]

26 minutes ago, kodiaqsportline said:

What is your plan?

 

Blown out of the water now that he realises that its the same insurer for both parties.

 

It used to be called knock for knock, nowadays its known as both parties getting screwed!

[AGFalco]

21 hours ago, kodiaqsportline said:

The above clearly implies to me that your intention was contacting the other insurer rather than your own insurer.

It was to contact their Insurance first........

 

On 24/01/2024 at 19:50, AGFalco said:

No problem informing the insurance company.

 

Just hoping to inform them that the repairs have all been paid for by the third party's insurance, and so this is just a notification to my insurance company.

 

And then contact my insurance company when it has all been sorted.

 

 

On 23/01/2024 at 11:15, J.R. said:

Many companies proactively contact (harass) TP claimants to use their own accident management services in order to reduce their costs, they will try to seduce you with offers of a courtesy car, quick turn around repairs etc, just remember they are acting in their interests not yours.

 

Your own insurers if they know the TP has admitted liability will do the same and be encouraging you to consider medical injuries advising you to use their expert doctors for a check up "just in case", that should be fun considering both vehicles were unoccupied, once again they are acting in their interests and not yours.

 

This might stop my insurance company accidently charging the wrong amount.

Which in turn means everybody's insurance goes up.

 

Thanks. AG Falco

[J.R.]

Oh yours is going to go up I'm sad to say

[Millstone]

Talk to your insurance company, they will understand. As long as the third party has admitted full liability (to their insurance ) their ‘side’ will settle your excess. If this done you should retain your NCB and not be penalised.

Because they are a very large group trading under different names they will get this problem a lot, and know how to sort it. BUT get it confirmed in writing when it’s all settled!

[AGFalco]

8 hours ago, Millstone said:

As long as the third party has admitted full liability (to their insurance )

Don't think they have yet!

 

8 hours ago, Millstone said:

If this done you should retain your NCB and not be penalised.

It's only 19 years NCB in this policy.

 

Thanks. AG Falco