car insurance problems

[bobbyhibs1983]

Afternoon folks,

Im looking for some advice on car insurance probems im having at the minute.Im insured by elephant ,3rd party fire and theft.

On tuesday a guys car rolled down the hill and hit my car, he wasn't in it,must have been the handrake was off or somethign happend and it just stopped working

It has caused damange,mostly dents and stracthes(sp) and the seal is messed up, but the car is still drivable.

Now i phoned and informened my isurance of what has happened and well it seems cause IM only insured 3rd party fire and theft that they cant do much,

they has sorta passed me back and forth between elephant and the legal department whom are looking into it.

I have a police report and refrence number and what not.

I have been given 2 qoutes from 2 different companies and there like 1600 and 1800.

my cars a vauxhall corsa 1.2 x reg and is worth like £500-£700

can anyone give me any advice?
i feel im gettign messed about by my insurance company and i want this to be sorted out quickly.Is my campnay in the wrong here? As i ve hopefully made clear here is the other guys car has hit my car.Do i have many options?many thanks in advance

[AFKA5814_Hibs]

My understanding is that 3rd party fire and theft covers you for fire and theft only. In case of an accident your not insured for damages even if it's not your fault, you'd need comprehensive insurance for that.

[bobbyhibs1983]

My understanding is that 3rd party fire and theft covers you for fire and theft only. In case of an accident your not insured for damages even if it's not your fault, you'd need comprehensive insurance for that.


thank you for your response but i feel its unfair if a driver can damage your car(even if it was an accident) and well you(i mean in genral) will pretty much have your car written off for somethign someone else has done.
But thanx for the response

[easty]

thank you for your response but i feel its unfair if a driver can damage your car(even if it was an accident) and well you(i mean in genral) will pretty much have your car written off for somethign someone else has done.
But thanx for the response

Go see the guy whose car smashed into yours...it should be him/her out of pocket not you.

Small claims court, perhaps?

[bobbyhibs1983]

Go see the guy whose car smashed into yours...it should be him/her out of pocket not you.

Small claims court, perhaps?


thanx easty but i feel its best to try sort it via the insurance 1st, Just alot of hassle for something realitively simple i d think anyhow,All i think My insurance company has to do is get in contact with the other guys company, yak yak, they coem back to me, get some quotes and bingo ,we can easily go from there,My insurance company wont be out of pocket

[AFKA5814_Hibs]

thank you for your response but i feel its unfair if a driver can damage your car(even if it was an accident) and well you(i mean in genral) will pretty much have your car written off for somethign someone else has done.
But thanx for the response

Good luck m8 and I hope you get things sorted out but I know insurance companies can be right bassas and will dig their heels in if they can get out of not paying out.

[Killiehibbie]

Get onto the other persons insurance company as your claim is against them not your company.

[Jack]

Not sure for TPF&T but I thought you had to make a claim against the other guy[s insurance company].

You claim against them, they ask the other guy, he says 'its my fault', the insurance company get back in touch with you, you play hard ball and get as much out of them as you possibly can. DONT accept their first offer.

[bobbyhibs1983]

Ye I ve very little experince in dealing with insurance companies as my post have probably indecated.Im not too sure what the right way to sorta sometihng out but My understanding is i have to cliam against his insurance and i feel i gotta go throw my insurance.

anyhow thanx for the advice jack and Killiehibbie

[Geo_1875]

If your car is worth less than the cost of repairs but still roadworthy they might offer you a sum in settlement. Don't accept this either as they'll offer half of what they are prepared to pay. Next time your buying insurance either take out legal cover or look for one that gives cover against uninsured drivers.

[MacBean]

It was my understanding that you would make a claim against the other persons Insurance as they have hit your car. Even if they have TPF&T they would still be liable for your repairs. There is nothing to be done by your insurance, you need to get the other guys insurance details, and make a claim against his insurance.

[Darth Hibbie]

Not sure for TPF&T but I thought you had to make a claim against the other guy[s insurance company].

You claim against them, they ask the other guy, he says 'its my fault', the insurance company get back in touch with you, you play hard ball and get as much out of them as you possibly can. DONT accept their first offer.


It was my understanding that you would make a claim against the other persons Insurance as they have hit your car. Even if they have TPF&T they would still be liable for your repairs. There is nothing to be done by your insurance, you need to get the other guys insurance details, and make a claim against his insurance.

What they said.........

Because you are third party there is nothing for your insurance company to do. You will need to make the claim direct against the other parties insurance company. If you are having trouble with them try visiting citizens advice they are usally pretty good with these things.

[Twiglet]

Ye I ve very little experince in dealing with insurance companies as my post have probably indecated.Im not too sure what the right way to sorta sometihng out but My understanding is i have to cliam against his insurance and i feel i gotta go throw my insurance.

anyhow thanx for the advice jack and Killiehibbie

If the guy hit you and accepts liability, from what I understand it's irrelevant what type of insurance you have.
You need to get his insurance details and speak to his insurance company. The claim is against him and his insurance, not yours.
Get his policy number (he should have a wee card with all the details he needs, inc the claims phone number, I was previously with elelphant and I'm sure they started sending me them with my renewal docs), call the claims number. If he has contacted them about the damage to their car then there will be a claim open and they should know about you and you can take it from there.

I've been on the this end of things before and the guys insurance company took a wee bit of pushing to start the ball rolling as they were really dragging their feet about it.

The bottom line is he hit you, if the police report back that up, give your insurance company a copy and if they feel the other guy in genuinally at fault then they may chase even if you have 3rd party as they won't be out of pocket for it.

Hope this helps.

[bobbyhibs1983]

Ok thank you all for your help.I think its a wee bit of mis understanding on my part.

I assumed that in an event of an accident that i would forward the details to MY insurance who would handle all small final details.I have the other persons insurance/policy number and name and address.

So all i gotta do is phone his insurance compane up and ask them what to do?
Im hoping to speak to the citzens advice though to see what my options are.

Again thank you all for your advice

[Twiglet]

Ok thank you all for your help.I think its a wee bit of mis understanding on my part.

I assumed that in an event of an accident that i would forward the details to MY insurance who would handle all small final details.I have the other persons insurance/policy number and name and address.

So all i gotta do is phone his insurance compane up and ask them what to do?
Im hoping to speak to the citzens advice though to see what my options are.

Again thank you all for your advice

Yes. Phone them as soon as you can to get the ball rolling.
Tell them your car is damaged. Insurance companies have garages they deal with in each area.

What happened when I had a claim was it was arranged to get my car assessed by one of their assessors at the garage, they then passed it to the insurance company who then contacted me and told me if they were going to do the repairs or write the car off (repaired thankfully!).

Let us all know how you get on and if you need any more information later.

[bobbyhibs1983]

Yes. Phone them as soon as you can to get the ball rolling.
Tell them your car is damaged. Insurance companies have garages they deal with in each area.

What happened when I had a claim was it was arranged to get my car assessed by one of their assessors at the garage, they then passed it to the insurance company who then contacted me and told me if they were going to do the repairs or write the car off (repaired thankfully!).

Let us all know how you get on and if you need any more information later.




Ok thanx for your advice mate.I ve have a couple of quotes from local garages, vauxhall garage and union motors and they have quoted me in the region on £1500-£1800 this due to sometihng about new parts needed and labour costs but the people at union motors have told me that things can be done for as little as £600 this due to 2nd hand parts.
Again thanx for all whom have offered advice

[Removed]

Ok thanx for your advice mate.I ve have a couple of quotes from local garages, vauxhall garage and union motors and they have quoted me in the region on £1500-£1800 this due to sometihng about new parts needed and labour costs but the people at union motors have told me that things can be done for as little as £600 this due to 2nd hand parts.
Again thanx for all whom have offered advice

Hope you get it sorted but why would any insurance company pay £1500 or more to repair a car that is only worth a fraction of that. They'll probably offer you £400 and you'll need to get it repaired youself from 2nd hand parts or write it off and buy another car. It's a pisser no matter what way you look at it though.

[magnificent_seven]

Ok thanx for your advice mate.I ve have a couple of quotes from local garages, vauxhall garage and union motors and they have quoted me in the region on £1500-£1800 this due to sometihng about new parts needed and labour costs but the people at union motors have told me that things can be done for as little as £600 this due to 2nd hand parts.
Again thanx for all whom have offered advice

The guy whos car hit you should be claiming off his insurance. Even though you are third party fire and theft cover, that is only for claims that YOU are at fault for. The person who hit you is liable for the damage to your car and under law he will be required to have at least third party only cover. Have you spoken to his insurance company? The claim will go down under his name and it will not affect your no claims discount. If you are struggling and need legal advice, check your policy to see if you have motor legal services. This will have a feature that allows you to get free legal advice. If the legal cover is not on your car insurace policy, check your bank account as you might have it on there.

[bobbyhibs1983]

Ok thank you all for your advice.I have given the insurance company the best quote and am told they will contact the garage in question on monday with the ok and therefore the garage will conatact me.

Just want this over and done with . but again thank you all again