luke2152
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 10:12 AM |
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Off topic insurance related
So i had an engine fire in my everday car last month. Initially was going to claim on it but then weighed up value of vehicle (not much) vs what it
will do to my no claims and decided not to claim. Anyway i said i want the vehicle back so i can break it but they said they'll only release it
to a registered breaker because its a hazard. Or words to that effect. Can they even do that. Surely as I'm not claiming its still my car to do
as i want with. Anyone have any experience with this?
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benchmark51
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 10:30 AM |
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If you haven't made a claim and haven't received a payout from them, the car is still your property. Inform them that you have decided to
repair the car after all and you require them to return it. If they wont comply, suggest legal action and a claim for cost incurred.
What I don't understand is, how have they got possession of it in the first place.
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nick205
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 10:49 AM |
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As above - if they've not received a claim or paid out then it's still your property anyway. I can imagine the vehicle had to be
recovered from the scene either to a garage for inspection or to your house. As I understand it if you claim and they pay out you should still have
the right to buy back the remains of the vehicle.
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luke2152
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 10:52 AM |
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quote:
What I don't understand is, how have they got possession of it in the first place.
Well highways agency got it towed off the motorway and then when i started the claim insurance company collected it. Unfortunately i sent them my v5
as well which might make it hard to reverse things
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bonzoronnie
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 11:53 AM |
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From personal experience.
Once an insurance company have got their hands on your car, you are unlikely to see the car again unless you complete the claims process. 
Been there, done that & even eaten the pie several times in the past.
If you have informed your insurance company of the fire & they have recovered your car, most likely this will still count as a claim, even if you
drop it.
As the insurer has recovered the car, they have already incurred expense.
If you start to get heavy handed with them, they will most likely yield to your request.
Downside, you will be asked to pay for the recovery & for the cost of secure storage to date.
Storage costs will be grossly inflated to make sure the collection of your vehicle is not economically viable.
Bear in mind, your car may not even be in the same county anymore, they store them everywhere.
This has been my personal experience over the years.
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Slimy38
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 12:26 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by bonzoronnie
Storage costs will be grossly inflated to make sure the collection of your vehicle is not economically viable.
Bear in mind, your car may not even be in the same county anymore, they store them everywhere.
This has been my personal experience over the years.
Yep, same experience here. My wife bashed her mini up, just a bit of front end damage that we were going to get fixed. Unfortunately she hit another
car so it had to go through insurance. The car was towed 50 miles away to a storage unit in the middle of nowhere. Not only did we have to pay the
storage costs (despite us wanting the car immediately returned home which was about half a mile from the accident), we had to pay for the transport
costs!!
The car was a write off, but instead of us having money to fix it, the storage and transport costs got rid of the insurance claim, and then to top it
all off we had to pay the excess.
I wish we hadn't have had to get insurance involved, I could have got a couple of mates to help push it the half mile home and just got it
sorted.
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luke2152
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 12:34 PM |
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I don't think they would hit me with storage costs as their email said they store it for 30 days free of charge. I'd imagine id have to
pay for initial recovery. They did offer to get it to a breaker of my choice and id get the money from the breaker (less expenses no doubt). But id
rather just break it myself. Their argument is duty of care which is really none of their business when its still my car.
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MikeR
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 12:44 PM |
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I've been told if the car has been in a fire the heat affects the rubber and causes it to become very acid (or something). Its supposed to be
very dangerous to work on it. Found this out years ago when i was in a scrap yard and about to start stripping a car for a part.
The rules may now mean it has to go to a authorised breaker so the dangerous bits get disposed of properly.
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luke2152
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 12:51 PM |
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Also if im going to not claim (for the sake of keeping costs down next time i get insurance) should i be offering to pay for all their expense (ie.
Recovery) so they have indeed not paid out any kind of claim. I'd hate them to say it still counts as a claim instead of a notification which
will probably raise it a bit anyway.
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bonzoronnie
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 12:55 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeR
I've been told if the car has been in a fire the heat affects the rubber and causes it to become very acid
The rules may now mean it has to go to a authorised breaker so the dangerous bits get disposed of properly.
That is also my understanding of the hazzards of engine fires.
Health & safety aspects of correct vehicle disposal.
That said, would not be the first time I have seen cat C fire damaged cars for sale from licensed insurance disposal companies.
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Chris_Xtreme
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 01:15 PM |
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I'd check with your insurance company, sounds like you have already made a claim as they collected the car. That to me already means you would
have to declare you have made a claim. (Unless you can get them to agree that you paid for all the costs and they will remove the claim off the
insurance database)
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SteveWalker
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 09:43 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeR
I've been told if the car has been in a fire the heat affects the rubber and causes it to become very acid (or something). Its supposed to be
very dangerous to work on it. Found this out years ago when i was in a scrap yard and about to start stripping a car for a part.
The rules may now mean it has to go to a authorised breaker so the dangerous bits get disposed of properly.
Years ago there was a story circulating that Viton seals when heated to high temperatures would release Hydroflouric acid. Hydroflouric acid is
extremely dangerous, as it can enter the skin without burning the top layers and do severe damage below. It also attacks bone. Although the right
treatment soon enough can stop it, it is not always noticeable that there is a problem and once in the bone, amputation may be the only option.
However, this story was debunked and it has been considered that there is no risk from burnt cars in real world scenarios.
HSE link
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ian locostzx9rc2
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| posted on 9/3/17 at 10:32 PM |
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As the insurance company has got involved already regardless of wether you get any payment from them or you get your back back it will be noted that
you have a claim on your insurance so your premium will more than likely go up.
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luke2152
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| posted on 10/3/17 at 12:57 PM |
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Well I have just paid £330 for recovery and storage and have their assurances that no claim will be recorded against me and my risk profile
hasn't changed (due to a fire being a random event and not an accident). I'll be happier when I have it in writing though. Next years
premium would otherwise have skyrocketed from around £500 to £1500 and I might have seen an increase on the GBS and my bike as well so it did make
sense.
I'm still arguing with them about whether I can have the vehicle back. The girl on the phone (who really doesn't have a clue) said
she's emailed their engineering department so hopefully I can get something useful out of them. The general argument is that cat B write off
has to go to a registered breaker. I just can't see how they can write it off before they own it (ie. pay out a claim).
Stevewalker that HSE link is excellent and might be just what I need to persuade them.
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