[Misc] Car Insurance Claim - Advice please

[The Andy Naylor Fan Club]

I had a small incident last week when someone swapped lanes and went into me. No personal injuries, just a prang which has left a few Bob's worth of repairs that need to be done. I informed my insurance broker who then transfered me to a different department /company (very similar name) which turns out to be a claims management company. The told me that they would deal with my case on my behalf and it will NOT go via my insurance company to save me paying my excess fees! I have an email from the other drivers insurance company admitting fault by their client, but they have also asked if I wanted to deal with them direct and this is the bit I am uncertain about. Is it OK to go it alone via the insurance company of the other driver now that they have admitted liability ? What are the pitfalls that I could come up against? I am led to believe by my claims management company that I can still go through my insurance company if I wish but again they mention the excess fees involved. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[Affy]

Insurance underwriter here. I would never recommend dealing outside the insurance. I’ve seen too many cases where liability becomes disputed and there is little legal recourse without the backing of an insurance company behind you. If it is non fault then you have no concerns going through your policy. It won’t affect your No Claims and shouldn’t have much impact on premium as long as a full recovery is made.

You will have an excess applicable to your repair but if you have admission of liability, your insurers should waive this. If not, you should get it refunded eventually when liability is settled.

My advice, use your insurers and their approved repairers. The third party insurers will be trying to mitigate their costs at every opportunity.

 

[The Andy Naylor Fan Club]

Insurance underwriter here. I would never recommend dealing outside the insurance. I’ve seen too many cases where liability becomes disputed and there is little legal recourse without the backing of an insurance company behind you. If it is non fault then you have no concerns going through your policy. It won’t affect your No Claims and shouldn’t have much impact on premium as long as a full recovery is made.

You will have an excess applicable to your repair but if you have admission of liability, your insurers should waive this. If not, you should get it refunded eventually when liability is settled.

My advice, use your insurers and their approved repairers. The third party insurers will be trying to mitigate their costs at every opportunity.

Thank you. VERY helpful and very grateful.

 

[Affy]

Thank you. VERY helpful and very grateful.

No problem. Happy to help. If you want to chat through anything send me a message and I’ll give you my work number.

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Surprised your broker advised going to a third party. You’d have to declare the accident to your insurer at next renewal anyway.

 

[The Andy Naylor Fan Club]

Surprised your broker advised going to a third party. You’d have to declare the accident to your insurer at next renewal anyway.

It seems the third party in question is a subsidiary of my insurance broker. Thanks to the advice from @Affy I immediately got back to my broker instructed them to claim via my comprehensive insurance.

 

[METALMICKY]

All I can add is that if your insurance company relies on a claims management company called Kindertons you should run a mile! Totally incompetent for two claims I had. The first was just so simple when some dozy bint clipped my car when she was parking. In the second a works van decided to plough into the back of me to the extent that my car was written off.