Aaquil

Okay here is the score...I was behind a 'M' reg Corsa today. He was turning left out of a junctionand started moving off. I being STUPID thought he had gone so moved forward looking to the right and bumped his bumper.

No visible damage even though the driver says that the boot hatch was not opening properly and was at first very angry because his little daughter was in the front seat. She must have been 3 years old without any form of child seat!!! He was worried about her which I could understand but she seemed fine.

Anway I apologised many, many times and said that IF there was ANY damage I would rather pay than go through the Insurance as the cost of Insurance etc. He had calmed down by that stage and said he would call me later.

Where do I stand and what is the score...please help!!!

zoton

Sorry to hear this mate. I think most of us have been there before.

Useless advice now but is never admit liability but I have never heard a rear shunt being anything other than the rear cars fault. That isn't to say that you can't be sorry for the situation you both find yourselves in!

My advice would be sit tight and be polite. I would make sure that you think through your options. You might find that the guy doesn't want to proceed to repairs. If he does then ask for a couple of quotes before you part with any money.

The only thing that is worth mentioning is that you probably have insurance cover against claims made against you.Unlikely I know but I would let my insurance company know just in case his daughter gets neck ache next week. Cover yourself it won't cost you to mention it.

Good luck

Zoton

Aaquil

Thanks mate...heres the update. He has just called me and is mentioning that he has had a look at the car and noticed the following:

1. Bumper pushed out on Right side.
2. Light pushed out on driver side (?).
3. Cannot open boot floor )To get to spare wheel).
4. Feels that car will need to be Jigged (?).

What do you reckon I should do now? Should I let the Insurance know anyway? I was just on the verge of getting another years no claim bonus as well!!!

AndyC_772

iTrader: (2)

I know it's hard, but it's best to let them know yourself rather than risking that they'll find out by some other route. In my experience, what insurance companies are interested in is any loss to the insurance industry (ie. regardless of whose policy pays out). If you settle privately, there's a good chance that it won't even go on record.

ScoobyDoo555

you need to contact your insurance ASAP - even to tell them you're not claiming. The reprocussions of an "injury claim" from CorsaMan are very serious. Especially if the insurance company know nothing about it.....

Insurance could be voided. Nobody else will insure somebody who apparently doesn't report accidents......

The list is endless.

Let them know anyway

Dan

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

Damn how fast did you hit this car?!
It takes quite a bump to push the floor pan in the boot, personally id let the insurance co's deal with it as you still have to declare that you have had an accident, even if you pay for it yourself out of your own pocket.
You pay for your insurance so use it, it looks otherwise like your buying this guy a new car as it will be beyond economical repair (and it sounds a bit suspicious if its only a low speed impact!)

Tony

Cider boy

If this was a light bump as it seems from your description then there is no way it will have crumpled the boot floor, and to say the car needs jigging

How exactly does he know this just by looking at it??

If you do want to pay for it without involving the insurance company, then I'd be getting him to take to a reptuable body shop who can provide you with a written estimate. What he is talking about is proper ££££.

Matt

talizman

iTrader: (1)

I think its fair to say that since he appears to be "milking" the extent of the damage, going by your version of events, that his insurers solicitors will be writing to you very soon with the details of his (and his daughters) personal injury claims.

Unfortunately, when folk are not at fault these days, they more often than not start seeing pound signs in their eyes so tel you insurers immediately cos you won't want to settle this out of your pocket by the time the claim is concluded.....
Damage repairs, courtesy car, loss of earnings, personal injury etc etc.

talizman

iTrader: (1)

I think you'll find that the parts and labour in replacing boot floors and associated jigging work will amount to much more than the M reg Corsa is worth.

Sounds like a write off to me.

Aaquil

Cheer for all the advice guys I think I will contact my insurance company asap. Does anyone have the claims line for Liverpool Victoria?

By the way thanks a million for all the help guys...really rapid responses as well, I think the Legacy is going to have to go. I can't carry on like this. Just the Insurance is killing me!!!

Aaquil

CAN ANYONE GIVE ME LIVERPOOL AND VICTORIA'S CLAIM LINE?

sherlock

iTrader: (1)

Try this 0870 243 5886

Sherlock

Aaquil

Thanks a lot mate...I have contacted them. They have got the information and will go through with a claim if I tell them to.

Thanks for the advice to everyone. I'm gonna speak to a guy who was interested in my Legacy today. I think I'm gonna cry!!!

_Meridian_

iTrader: (1)

Sounds more like a con to me. It strikes me that you'd have to hit the car at a minimum of about 15mph to do that sort of damage, and you surely can't have been doing more than five? Once you said "I'll pay" then I can't help thinking that what he plans is for you to put up cash to pay for "expensive repairs" which won't actually get done and he can pocket the money. Leaving it with the insurers is probably good advice - just make sure they understand how heavy the impact was or was not.

And yea - been there, done that. No damage to the car even with me in a van.


M

andypugh2000

Every single time i have ever had a little knock i immediately say "let the insurance sort it out", as soon as you say that they become less interested as they know they aint gonna jack **** for a fraudulent estimate

ffracer

I have a friend in the USA who was a victim of the "nearly pull away at junction, stop unexpectedly, oops you've rear-ended me scam" The lady she hit turned out to have a record of making exactly the same sort of claim on several previous occasions.

It doesn't sound as though you've met one of these - quite - but you never know...

Aaquil

Thanks a lot for all the replies you guys have been ever so helpful. I am waiting for his call on Monday and see what he says. I will also get advice from the Liverpool and Victoria claims people

Comper100

Ohh no don't sell the Leggy, seams like i'm the only one on here with one let alone another Leggy going!

Is your insurance really bad? have u tried lots of places?

Comper100

Aaquil

Who should I try then...I had 4 years NCB then I bumped someone so lightly it was unbelievable and I lost it all 2 Asian adults and three children all got whiplash!!! The Insurance went sky high. I was just getting onto 2 years at the end of August and guess what again what happened today. I have tax to pay from being self employed and am now employed...money is a lot worse but the work is much better in terms of stress levels. So I have to dig very deep to pay up.

Hence I think the Legacy will have to go. BIG BIG BUMMER!!!

What kills me is that both incidents were at about 5MPH max!!!

Chris L

"It takes quite a bump to push the floor pan in the boot"

No it doesn't - my Scoob was hit last year while turning out of a petrol station. I was stationary and the guy hit me at no more than 10 mph. It pushed the floor pan in sufficiently that you couldn't close the boot.

Chris

Aaquil

That makes me feel a lot better...NOT. Thanks for the input mate. Thanks for the input from everyone your all stars!!!

Aaquil

I mean 'you're' not 'your'...

WR1 Wannabe

Same thing happened to someone I work with a few weeks ago - she bumped the back of a Range Rover pulling out of a junction. The jeep had a tow bar on the back and suffered no real damage, but repairs to the front of her VX-220 are costing over £3500.

Comper100

Pants!

People are stupid with accidents, any excuse to blame people and get some money out of them. As you say the speed was that slow that there shouldn't have been anything more that a few notes exchanged and thats it!

Oh well, i feel gutted that you have to sell her because of it, lets just hope she goes to a good buyer.


Comper100

Chris L

Aaquil - you really should bite the bullet and involve your insurance company - hence the reason for my post and to illustrate the point. The damage was more obvious on my car because the plastic bumper had deformed. The guy who hit me had a £2000 bill for his insurance company. You could easily get shafted here and no one wants that.

Chris

JoeyDeacon

I am between cars at the moment but having had 3 people drive into the back of my car while stationary (2 in traffic, one slid on ice into my car in a car park) the first thing I am going to do is fit the biggest, strongest tow bar I can find.

I have nothing to tow but hopefully I too can cause some decent damage next time somebody decides talking to a friend on their mobile is more important than concentrating on driving.

talizman

iTrader: (1)

LOL

Scoobydb

Unfortunately the current climate is such that people are encouraged to claim for injuries. You only have to see the crop of adverts on the telly.

This bloke will in my opinion probably try to claim for some injury. The insurance companies just accept this and pay out even though they know they are taking the Pi55!

WRBlu

+ Ive got a towbar
- Its removable - doh!
Just dont do what i did when i had a fixed bar and i reversed into someone when i went to pull over i was towing them!

Seriously it really p****s me off the litigation culture developing here, I have heard countless stories of this type of milking damage claims (to the cost of us all) including the extreme case of someone who had a rear end shunt claim against them when they didnt even hit them, were just following, stopped in traffic and the guy jumps out remonstrating about an accident that hadnt happened and u no what he succeded in his claim - why because the insurance co dont want to know, they dont want to fight and investigate claims - its cheaper for them not to argue and pay out at the expense of your NCD. So my advice stay close to this guy, make sure you get those independant quotes for repairs, make sure he dosent milk this one, if hes being awkward find some leverage, on an old nova theres a good chance somethings not right - dogy tyres/brakes/mot old bill may be interested. re injury claims whiplash is a much abused claim mild whiplash for a low speed bump gives you a sore neck for 24hr. This guy had a 3 yr old child in the front? seatbelt? should have been in the back in a baby chair, not sure of the law on this but would be important if they do try the injury claim. Bottom line IMO - Your insurer is in business to make money - not help you.

Aaquil

Listen...thanks for all of your replies. He called me tonight and said "A friend of a friend work in a body shop (?!!!). He is going to do the job as a 'foreigner' (or whatever) and including everything it will come to £311. He says that he wants to help me out but I and my wife (Okay my wife came up with the idea) that he is not Insured and he just wants some cash. The car is a battered 'M' Reg so I reckon he'll sack the repairs and keep the money. If I pay up I can see a Injury claim coming up in 6 months time.

If he is not Insured he won't get anywhere with the claim will he? My friend said that I should tell him I am going through the Insurance and see what he says (I do intend to go through the Insurance anyway I think its the best bet as some of you guys have already mentioned).

So if he is uninsured he should not have been on the road...If he was not on the road I would not have hit him...so he has no claim, right?