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[ronnyd]

Some numpty stopped outside the house just up the road, got out, left his handbrake off, you can guess the rest.
Have two dents in boot, bumper has sprung off both sides and the cross member that is under the plastic cover just
inside the boot is deformed so i can,t shut the boot. Any thoughts and comments you have could be helpful bearing in
mind the age of the car etc. I would like to keep the car if at all possible but i suppose it depends on the insurers.

[Broomies Mate]

Nothing to do with the Insurers.  As it is quite clearly not your fault, the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident. 

Very importantly, never let the insurance company take the car ANYWHERE.  Allow the assessor to come to you and have it assessed at your premises. 

[Webby the Bear]

Nothing to do with the Insurers.  As it is quite clearly not your fault, the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident. 

Very importantly, never let the insurance company take the car ANYWHERE.  Allow the assessor to come to you and have it assessed at your premises. 

+1 mate 

[Magwheels]

That'll be a t/loss. Insist on a cash in lue (of repairs) if you want to keep the car.

Make sure the offer is fair though if you are going down the CIl route.

That way you can keep the car and sort the repairs yourself and it won't be on the register either.

[Entwood]

Nothing to do with the Insurers.  As it is quite clearly not your fault, the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident. 

Very importantly, never let the insurance company take the car ANYWHERE.  Allow the assessor to come to you and have it assessed at your premises. 

Unfortunately not true, having had Mrs E's clit written off after she was T-boned and the other Insurers admitted liability but still wrote the car off as "un-economical to repair"   .. for a door and a plastic wing ... total cost of actual repair £900 ... took this all the way to the Insurance Ombudsman and lost ... .. the ruling was deemed as "fair" as the payout given - £1095 - was deemed to be a "correct" assessment of the value of the car, and the repair costs were more than 60% of the cars value. The idea that you must be put back to exactly where you were .. regardless of cost was kicked out by the Appeal Court some years back it seems ...

[Broomies Mate]

Nothing to do with the Insurers.  As it is quite clearly not your fault, the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident. 

Very importantly, never let the insurance company take the car ANYWHERE.  Allow the assessor to come to you and have it assessed at your premises. 

Unfortunately not true, having had Mrs E's clit written off after she was T-boned and the other Insurers admitted liability but still wrote the car off as "un-economical to repair"   .. for a door and a plastic wing ... total cost of actual repair £900 ... took this all the way to the Insurance Ombudsman and lost ... .. the ruling was deemed as "fair" as the payout given - £1095 - was deemed to be a "correct" assessment of the value of the car, and the repair costs were more than 60% of the cars value. The idea that you must be put back to exactly where you were .. regardless of cost was kicked out by the Appeal Court some years back it seems ...

In this instance, you would be able to receive a cash settlement of £1,095 and then purchase the car from the Insurance Company for approx 10% of the vehicle value (£110).  This may be impossible IF the Insurance Company has already taken the car away, as it has more than likely been scrapped.  Assuming the Write-Off is CAT D/C, very simple to get your own reapairs done at a fraction of the cost and retain the car, and a sizeable sum of cash.

That's what I did with SWMBO's 106 when it was 'tapped' in the side by a Pizza Delivery Guy.

Never let the car leave you.
Never accept 1st or 2nd offer of settlement (unless you deem them more than reasonable).

Remember, until you formally agree to a settlement, the car is the sole property of YOU (unless there is finance involved).

[Entwood]

Nothing to do with the Insurers.  As it is quite clearly not your fault, the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident. 

Very importantly, never let the insurance company take the car ANYWHERE.  Allow the assessor to come to you and have it assessed at your premises. 

Unfortunately not true, having had Mrs E's clit written off after she was T-boned and the other Insurers admitted liability but still wrote the car off as "un-economical to repair"   .. for a door and a plastic wing ... total cost of actual repair £900 ... took this all the way to the Insurance Ombudsman and lost ... .. the ruling was deemed as "fair" as the payout given - £1095 - was deemed to be a "correct" assessment of the value of the car, and the repair costs were more than 60% of the cars value. The idea that you must be put back to exactly where you were .. regardless of cost was kicked out by the Appeal Court some years back it seems ...

In this instance, you would be able to receive a cash settlement of £1,095 and then purchase the car from the Insurance Company for approx 10% of the vehicle value (£110).  This may be impossible IF the Insurance Company has already taken the car away, as it has more than likely been scrapped.  Assuming the Write-Off is CAT D/C, very simple to get your own reapairs done at a fraction of the cost and retain the car, and a sizeable sum of cash.

That's what I did with SWMBO's 106 when it was 'tapped' in the side by a Pizza Delivery Guy.

Never let the car leave you.
Never accept 1st or 2nd offer of settlement (unless you deem them more than reasonable).

Remember, until you formally agree to a settlement, the car is the sole property of YOU (unless there is finance involved).

Essentially that's what happened .. but the point I was making is that the statement " the Insurance company have to leave you in a position you were in before the incident." ,which some folk think is that you can insist the car is repaired, is simply not true.... you have no different rights if it is the third parties insurers or your own... 

[Keith ABS]

  If you know a bodyshop well, they can do  a contract repair. that is where they state that no matter what, the amount agreed with the insurance company will be the total amount received. With a contract repair, the money is saved by the repaier/you by using secondhand parts.
Keith B

[woolley11]

Totally agree with Broomies Mate!

If you want to keep the car ...  Don't let the car out your sight!!!!!!

Keep the keys in your pocket and V5 under the mattress

The assessor will come to where the car is. If it goes to a recovery company or off your drive you've lost control and can more or less say bye bye to it with a pathetic settlement.

Say to assessor you want to keep the salvage - happened to me a few years ago when someone rear ended my a Dolomite Sprint - I kept  the car, and got £750 towards repairs which cost me abut that actually  - but at least I kept the car 

[Magwheels]

The insurance company cannot scrap the car until a value has been agreed. The FOS site clearly states how the FOS would value a car and it would be using motor trade guides. If you want to keep the car get a home inspection, insist on a CIL and base it on either his report or an independent estimate (or both) to make sure the CIL offer is fair. A CIL means the car is not registered as a total loss and you keep the car.

Its what I do!!!

[Broomies Mate]

The insurance company cannot scrap the car until a value has been agreed. The FOS site clearly states how the FOS would value a car and it would be using motor trade guides. If you want to keep the car get a home inspection, insist on a CIL and base it on either his report or an independent estimate (or both) to make sure the CIL offer is fair. A CIL means the car is not registered as a total loss and you keep the car.

Its what I do!!!

Unfortunately, what tends to happen is these cars get transported to a lock-up somewhere, where they are moved around by a forklift - causing damage to sills, exhausts and floor pan.  They tend to drain the fuel from the tanks (perks of the job) and generally treat the cars like shite.

Not scrapped, as such, but scrapped, none the less. 

[Nick W]

Pretty much any insurance claim on an Omega will write it off. They're simply not worth enough for an insurance company to pay for repairs, even at the laughably low rates they pay. If you don't like that, then get rid of it, and replace it with something worth at least £5k.

[zirk]

If the other party is definitly Insursured and the Insurance Co has admitted liabilty, get an Independant Insurance Assesor to work on your behalf, by the time He has finished with them, your be more than happy to write the car off and probably keep the car for scrap value.  (Loss of earnings, replacement Hire Car costs, inconveniance money etc.)

[Elmstoneboy]

Dented my bumper and nearside rear corner and decided to get it all done myself. Just didn't want to involve the insurance
company. Like you I knew they would write it off. My wife had somebody wipe the side of their car across her front wing, not a lot of damage to the Discovery 1, just needed unbolting and the new panel bolted back on and a bit of paint. The other cars insurers tried to write the disco off until I told them politely?? on the phone that it's BL**** stupid to write of a Land Rover as plenty of parts available.
Another point, If the insurance company get involved, they have to report the incident, no matter how small, to some central system and this usually means that your next insurance will be higher as you are now listed as a higher risk even thou it's wasn't your fault. Have you asked the other driver if they would pay towards it, it will put his insurance up as well.
If you sort it yourself and they do hear about it, say the repair is just cosmetic.

A before and after of my car.(it was done in a local bodyshop not by me) I got the lights of Ebay and the bumper of
a Forum member for £70

https://www.dropbox.com/s/al586r212uraxa7/2014-06-24%2017.06.04.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/y7jm049gneh7uz9/2014-10-20%2015.22.24-1.jpg?dl=0

My sons truck behind was what I hit, It's not usually in the yard, was that day!!! who's a silly twit.


The real value of your car is what it is worth to you.

[chrisgixer]

Prety much as the guys say, it will almost certainly be a write off. But that doesn't mean the end for the car. Mine is a cat c sadly. Door/wing/bent wishbone/two scuffed front wheels and a tyre. More than the value of 3k to repair.

Kept the car, £2600 pay out. Repaired myself for £500.


But as said, do keep the car on your premises if you want to keep it. Mine was towed away to an approved repairer. Driver was told it WILL be repaired, so be careful with it. On return to my house a weak later, he'd wound the Car too far up the ramp and smashed the bumper into the winch. £250 check recieved from the approved repairer for the damage. Irmscher bumper was ready to go on anyway, job jobbed.

Approved repairer was a right w***** though. "I'm not repairing the whole bumper if that's what you want. £50 blow in round the number plate and that's your lot"...

"....we'll just see about that then shall we" I said. I'd of been happy with £150 but no he wanted to be an arse about it.