40 replies to this topic

[1987_ParkLane]

Hi all,

Bit of a bad day for me today, just been hit in the side, and its not looking good. Was on the was to my girlfriends and the car in front looked like it was pulling onto a drive on the right as it went onto the kerb, so I thought I would go around the back of it, but as I did I saw the reverse lights come on. Then thats when it happened, total damage to the drivers side door, needs a new one, and some slight damage to the rear quarter, but that might just need pushing back out as its not that damaged. The bad thing is I only had the body work done, along with that driverside door skink about 2/3 months ago. We swapped insurance details and ust waiting for my dad to come home to talk it over. Just a little worried as I've only been driving since December, and my insurance it going to go sky high, and I have some alloys and an exhaust on, but not on the insurance. But what ever happens it looks like I'm out of the mini scene for a while.

Pics to follow.

[Adcuz]

Un-declared modifications will invalidate your insurance.

Edited by Adcuz, 04 October 2008 - 03:31 PM.

[1987_ParkLane]

Un-declared modifications will invalidate your insurance.

Yes I know that, thats why I'm worried.

[minimaff]

change the wheels, exhaust should not make that much difference, mainly engine mods,

[1987_ParkLane]

change the wheels, exhaust should not make that much difference, mainly engine mods,

I don't have any wheels or exhaust, I bought it like that, no engine mods.

[JamesRance]

change the wheels, exhaust should not make that much difference, mainly engine mods,

I don't have any wheels or exhaust, I bought it like that, no engine mods.

Nothin to worry about then

[Ethel]

You might get away with wheels and an exhaust, but if the other driver is to blame, sound like they are, it's irrelevent: you should be claiming off their insurance, not your own.

[Deathrow]

I think your numberplate is quite fitting since you didn't declare your modifications!

Thing you should take away from this, is never assume on the road, always treat everyone else like a complete spanner, because 99.999% of them are and WILL do the most stupid thing you can think of.

[1987_ParkLane]

So whos insurance company do I ring? And will someone come to see the damage from either company? The was know damage to his car, and a little scuff on the corner of the bumper because his tow-ball thing took the brunt of it.

[dave21478]

did they admit liability? are they likely to admit liablity? were there any independant witnesses? Are you insured tpft or fully comp?

If they did admit fault, then contact his insurers and claim directly yourself, or go through a company like HelpHire.

If they are likely to dispute liability, I would seriously consider letting it drop.
Some carefull wording on his part when he makes his statement will mean the claim is likely to go 50:50 at best, and if he is a real , it could even go against you entirely.
Either way, you have to pay your excess, will loose NCB, and have a claim against you very early in your driving career. I would imagine your next premium would be completely mental if that happens.


The cost of repairs just now will be a hassle, but better that than unaffordable insurance fo the next 5 years.

[1987_ParkLane]

did they admit liability? are they likely to admit liablity? were there any independant witnesses? Are you insured tpft or fully comp?

If they did admit fault, then contact his insurers and claim directly yourself, or go through a company like HelpHire.

If they are likely to dispute liability, I would seriously consider letting it drop.
Some carefull wording on his part when he makes his statement will mean the claim is likely to go 50:50 at best, and if he is a real , it could even go against you entirely.
Either way, you have to pay your excess, will loose NCB, and have a claim against you very early in your driving career. I would imagine your next premium would be completely mental if that happens.


The cost of repairs just now will be a hassle, but better that than unaffordable insurance fo the next 5 years.

I had 2 othe people in my car at the point it happened, so they can act as witnesses, I asked who is taking liability for it, and I said does he want me to, and all he said was tell the insurance company what happened and they will sort it. My cover is tpft.

[Ty4815162342]

This happened to me less than a month ago. I don't know who was at fault in your case but if it was the other person you should be alright on the mod side of things. However if it was your fault then i don't know.
You should ring your insurance and give them a report of what happened and then wait for a ring back. Your insurance will sort everything out, and they will allocate you a repair garage and depending on how long the repairing will take, you will probably get a courtesy car (not a mini > ) if you need one. However if the cost to repair the damage on your mini exceeds the value of your mini excessively, then they might right your car off.
If it was your fault though then your insurance will certainly increase and things may be different. Anyway i was worried to hell when this happened to me but it turned out alright, and i hope things will be similar in your situation.

[1987_ParkLane]

This happened to me less than a month ago. I don't know who was at fault in your case but if it was the other person you should be alright on the mod side of things. However if it was your fault then i don't know.
You should ring your insurance and give them a report of what happened and then wait for a ring back. Your insurance will sort everything out, and they will allocate you a repair garage and depending on how long the repairing will take, you will probably get a courtesy car (not a mini > ) if you need one. However if the cost to repair the damage on your mini exceeds the value of your mini excessively, then they might right your car off.
If it was your fault though then your insurance will certainly increase and things may be different. Anyway i was worried to hell when this happened to me but it turned out alright, and i hope things will be similar in your situation.

Thanks, that restores some confidence.

[koomey]

did they admit liability? are they likely to admit liablity? were there any independant witnesses? Are you insured tpft or fully comp?

If they did admit fault, then contact his insurers and claim directly yourself, or go through a company like HelpHire.

If they are likely to dispute liability, I would seriously consider letting it drop.
Some carefull wording on his part when he makes his statement will mean the claim is likely to go 50:50 at best, and if he is a real , it could even go against you entirely.
Either way, you have to pay your excess, will loose NCB, and have a claim against you very early in your driving career. I would imagine your next premium would be completely mental if that happens.


The cost of repairs just now will be a hassle, but better that than unaffordable insurance fo the next 5 years.

I had 2 othe people in my car at the point it happened, so they can act as witnesses, I asked who is taking liability for it, and I said does he want me to, and all he said was tell the insurance company what happened and they will sort it. My cover is tpft.

never take liability

[minili]

Sounds like his fault from your description. In fact afaik in general a person reversing is ALWAYS at fault in an accident (this is what I was told when I made a similar claim).

If it is his fault - and is settled as such - you will not pay an excess or lose your accruing NCB, he will. However somebody from one of the insurance companies would have to assess the damage to your car before it was fixed, so I'm not sure how undeclared modifications go down in that respect. The level of your insurance (FC or TP) is irrelevant if it's not your fault as it's not your insurance that pays for the repairs.

NEVER admit liability unless it is definitely your fault... Here it isn't. Whatever you do, do not let the insurance company know of any doubt in your mind. As far as you are concerned, it was his fault.

If your passengers are under 18 they cannot act as witnesses, or at least this was the case when I was a passenger in an accident when I was 17. Even though I was there and knew exactly what happened, I was not a "reliable" witness because I was under 18