Hi guys

I had a guy in a Ford focus swipe the front of my car on the way home from work yesterday

Its a 53 reg Seat Leon Cupra and the other guy was in a 56 reg Ford focus.

The guy was completely at fault, I was sitting in the left lane at a set of light with 2 lanes that filter into one lane further on (the right lane filters into the left lane, which I was already in)

As the lights turned green and I set off I was getting close to where the right lanes filters into the left, then I noticed the driver of the focus coming at full pelt in the right lane trying to overtake everyone, I couldn't believe it when he kept coming and tried to get past me too, there was another car coming the other way and so he ran out room trying to get past me and hit the front drivers side of my car.

I signalled him to pull over along with a few other gestures. He did pull over eventually 2 round abouts away and around the corner from the scene, which was fair enough since its a busy road and the contact was fairly minimal.

The driver who had been behind me this whole time followed us and also pulled up as he had seen what happened and stopped as a witness which I was very grateful for, he had a go at the Focus driver too since he was going way to fast and was basically driving dangerously by doing what he did.

I took the drivers details and made sure the number he gave me was correct by ringing his phone, I also took the witnesses details. I got a photo of the Focus number plate but unfortunately not the damage.

The damage to my car is pretty much only to the wing, meaning replacing this should have it fixed, but then theres the painting and what not to get it back to being right.

I mentioned to the guy that if he was willing to pay for the work then I would be happy to let him settle it out of the insurance but if he tried to mess me around then I would contact his insurance and possibly the police.

Anyway after visiting a couple of body shops yesterday, I have quotes for around £600 which I think are ridiculous for replacing a bolt on wing.

I know there is a wing of the same colour on Ebay at the moment for £75 I don't mind purchasing this and fitting it myself to bring down costs if the guy is willing to pay for the paintwork, he was very apologetic at the time and seemed reasonable

I tried ringing the guy last night to discuss this but got no answer, I've only tried ringing once and left a message for him to call me back but yet to hear anything. Ill try him again later today.

I'm just starting to worry that I didn't contact the police and or insurance straight away, and where I stand if he decides to ignore me and claim nothing happened, I have the details of the witness still so can call him if need be but I was just wondering what the collective on here would do as I'm sure someone has had a similar situation.

Any help would be much appreciated.

Ill take a photo of the damage and post it up in a little while.

[Edited on 22/2/12 by redeye]

Phone his insurance direct & deal with them,he sounds like a div and will muck you about.

Phone your insurance but be sure to tell them you may be fixing the car yourself, in which case, you will not be making a claim. It's better to keep them infirmed in case things turn out messy. If the guy had said sorry and handed you £300 for your trouble, then I wouldn't have told the insurance company but he could still deny it was his fault.

Firstly, just to clarify I take it you mean he hit the front passenger side?

EDIT: Having seen your pic it is clearly drivers side. I am not disputing your version, more just raising this so you get your story straight, but how did he hit the drivers side if he went up the left lane?

It won't matter that you have not contacted your insurance company, in terms of you claiming, but it might matter if he tries claiming off you. Apparaently you are meant to inform your insurance comany of every incident, regardless of whether you are going to claim or not.

I had a very similar incident several months back. The other driver was pretty adamant he wasn't going to pay me a penny privately. I informed the insurance company, which ended up being the worst possible approach. They made out they were logging the incident but the next thing I knew I was being sent paperwork for a claim. My renewal was two months later and by that time they had decided that they were treating it as a high value claim, just in case the other guy tried claiming off me. They said they had to keep the "claim" open for three months which meant I was renewing based on a NCB loss of three years, plus not earning one for the current year, so a total of four. They also informed me that whether or not a claim was made the incident would affect my renewal.

I ended up biting the bullet and paying for the repairs myself. I didn't end up losing NCB and the effect to my premium was negligible. I did, however, have to renew with a vastly increased premium and get it corrected afterwards.

Needless to say, if it happened to me again I would not be telling my insurance company.

If the wing or ebay is the same colour what other paintwork is required? Or is their bumper etc damage?


Rich

[Edited on 22/2/12 by jamesbond007ltk]

Phone your insurance, not his. Let them do the phoning etc. It's dodgy going outside insurance for claims now. You say you suggested he settle without going to the insurance but what was his response?

Sorry to hijack your thread but the price some of these bodyshops charge makes me see red no wonder insurance premiums are so high, £600 for a wing is a rip off. Try taking it to a smaller bodyshop and say its non insurance probably get it done for £150.
Cheers,
Bob

quote:

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EDIT: Having seen your pic it is clearly drivers side. I am not disputing your version, more just raising this so you get your story straight, but how did he hit the drivers side if he went up the left lane?

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The problem with that is that even if you fix it yourself they will load the premium next time around unless you manage to make a successful claim against the other driver.I was once rear ended by a forigen driver that then drove off, I got his reg details and a witness details and reported to the police and my insurance, but never got to claim against him as he did not live at the address the car was registered to etc.
The next time around my insurance had gone up and when I asked why I was told due to the fact I had submitted accident details and not completed a claim against the other driver so it went against my record even though I had repaired the car myself.
I would try and find the other drivers address and pay him a visit with a few mates if necessary.
Paul

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Originally posted by owelly
Phone your insurance but be sure to tell them you may be fixing the car yourself, in which case, you will not be making a claim. It's better to keep them infirmed in case things turn out messy. If the guy had said sorry and handed you £300 for your trouble, then I wouldn't have told the insurance company but he could still deny it was his fault.

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Im just worried my insurance will sky rocket next year if I inform them of an accident, even though it was in no way my fault

Im hoping Im getting worried about nothing since Ive only tried to make contact once, Ill try calling again later today.

The bumper is ok, needs a bit of T-cut but my car was never perfect before anyway. replacing it myself with the wing of the same colour is definitely any option, but getting a true match is difficult due to possible fade ect. but to be honest it wouldnt bother me too much so long as the guy compensates me a little more than just the price of the wing.

I agree the price of the work is ridiculous, the wing is a simple bolt on job.

I went to another body shop too and got pretty much the same quote for around £600

This happened to a mate's wife a few months back.
Some dozy git grazed the back of her car (all details exchanged and £80 damage to fix at a bodyshop) They settled for cash as it looked straightforward then a month ago the same dozy git claimed against her for whiplash Obviously fancied a free holiday.
All now recorded as a claim and premiums have all gone up etc etc. You can't escape the insurance companies especially with the "where there's a blame there's a claim" compensation culture in this country.

Steve

quote:

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Originally posted by redeye


I agree the price of the work is ridiculous, the wing is a simple bolt on job.

I went to another body shop too and got pretty much the same quote for around £600

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True

But £600 is still way to much for such a small area

Whilst I was at the body shop I asked for a separate quote for fixing a dent in the rear wing, Its not a big dent and could likely be fixed by the likes of a dent removal expert, however the body shop quoted £500 for this aswell.

Can you report it to the police but not your insurance?

I'd ask the guy for £100 and fix it yourself. If he doesn't pay up I'd probably get furious and angry but still not try to claim as it'd end up costing more than the repair in premiums etc.

For the sake of a wing, I would certainly not be calling my insurers. Saying the word "accident" on the phone to them is similar to saying "bomb" in a USA airport.

Bit of an update

got through to the guy just a few minutes ago

He's agreed to pay £300 cash which I shall collect from him tomorrow.

Ill use this to buy the new wing, fit it myself and get it sprayed by a local shop when I get the time.

Obviously im doing him a massive favour by accepting this but I think its the best way to settle since insurance companies want nothing more than to rip us off.

So long as he is true to his word and pays the £300 then Im happy enough that he's paid for his mistake, even if hes got off lightly

Dont tell your insurance company anything.Even if you dont claim, you still had an accident and they will load you premium next year.
£600 is about right for the repair, you wouldn't believe the price of paint etc.

be very careful about telling your insurance company things

I rung them ages ago to ask about the procedure as my wife had caught a car in a private car park, turned out the car wasnt taxed, or insured, after some pressure on the girl that owned it, she decided to drop any ideas

I rung for a quote later that year, and when the paperwork came through it mentioend a claim with £nil value, but it was still on my record, all I did was ask for a claim form to be posted just in case

Sounds like youve got a result then, as the guys have said tell the insurance companies nowt as your fault or not protected NCB or not your premium will go up.
Cheers,
Bob

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Originally posted by redeye
I had a guy in a Ford focus swipe the front of my car on the way home from work yesterday .......

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quote:

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Originally posted by redeye
Its a 53 reg Seat Leon Cupra and the other guy was in a 56 reg Ford focus.

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You've had the perfect solution really, id agree you should never mention these incidents to the insurers. They will bum you when renewal comes round, even when its not your fault.

300 quid from his own pocket will hopefully make the other guy think a bit about how he's driving too.

However, id be tempted to keep the cash and leave the car as is! In fact, i wouldnt dream of fixing it

Yeah Im happy enough with the outcome and hopefully the guy will stop driving like a twat now.

I hate insurance companies and dealing with them is the last thing I wanted to do.

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However, id be tempted to keep the cash and leave the car as is! In fact, i wouldnt dream of fixing it

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Two suggestions

One: Get a second hand wing and respray it. Reason for saying this, replacement parts (even originals) always sound different if you knock them than the one you already had.

second: Get him to sign a statement that it was his fault and that insurances or anyone else will not be informed of the incident. If he takes it to the insurance or anyone else regarding the incident, he will have to pay you £20,000. And get a wittness as well when signing.

[Edited on 22/2/12 by l0rd]

[Edited on 22/2/12 by l0rd]

Best plan if at all possible is to avoid the bastards in the Insurance industry altogether. I was hit in the Locost last summer, damaged my O/S clamshell but whole length of the other totally at fault tintop. Despite all of my efforts not to make a claim it ended up being settled as a 50:50. I am left way out of pocket, repairing mine myself and 3 policies have been loaded because of the incident - the toy, my daily car and my wife's because I'm a named driver on her car.

I had that in 2003 when some twat working for 'teatime tasties' rammed me off a roundabout, then claimed i pulled out of another entry into him. Had to settle 50/50 and lost £700 just on my own car, nevermind future premiums.

You've probably had the best out come so long as he doesn't decide to declare it to the police or the insurers, so keep your witness details safe and try and keep things pleasent dealing with him and let him know that you'll both get hit if he tells them.

The Whole insurance thing is a joke, When my car was hit whilst parked last year I couldn't afford to claim on my 'fully comp' insurance because it would have cost far too much. I'm doubly angry at the moment as I want to get rid of it. I've been offered whats owed against it by my dealler, Online a slightly older car with 2K more on the clock but otherwise identical is on auto trader for £400 less than I paid for my car Brand new so If it hadn't been for some knob doing a hit and run I would now be able to shift my car quickly and had some money left over.

To be fair if that dent is how it looks to me I would not bother repairing it, I might be tempted to give it a knock from the inside to try and straighten it up a bit though

By the look of it I put a bigger dent in my own door once leaning on it

£300 cash in hand this morning, hopefully that will be the end of it.

thanks very much for the helpful advice guys

Now I can finally afford that new sump Ive always wanted

Patrick

Some wanker hit the back of my Megane 2 years ago, I wasn't even in the car at the time, it was parked, after being recorded on CCTV blasting down the road at what the police determined was over 70MPH in a 30 zone, he launched a Punto into the back of my car, the punto was destroyed, his car was also destryoed, he wasn't wearing a seatbelt as his chest hit and bent the steering whell (TWAT), I contacted my insurance company to explain that the Police had been called out, details exchanged and the info they needed to contact his insurance company, as this was not my fault at all, I expected to have my car repaired on his insurance, and that would be the end of it, A typical Asian, then messed me about for weeks, at which point I needed to hire a car, eventually the car was repaired, funny how my renewal was nearly twice what I paid prior to the accident. Although I didn't claim on my insurance, Swinton well and truly shafted me...

When I cancelled to find a much cheaper quote online, I got my proof of No Claims from them, it listed an enquiry I made about damage on my car 4 years ago, and also about my damage (That I didn't claim for)

Although they say this had nothing to do with the price of my renewal, I find it almost immposible to see why this would be on my record if I didn't claim?

All in all, All insurance companies are wankers, wanting your money, and waiting to find one shred of evidence to void your insurance and leave you high and dry.

Avoid contacting your insurance at all costs if it can be sorted out of insurance.

£600 for a wing is daylight robbery

When I took my car to the Accident Repair Centre in Huddersfield, I was told "its just a 2 day job mate" Funny, it took 10 days for me to get my car back. Its all about making as much money as possible, and is why we all pay a hefty price for insuring the smallest of cars.

The insurance on my TR1KE is a third of what my main car is :-)

My damage on my car was a cracked bumper, and broken rear light.

Repair cost was £1400 :-)

[Edited on 23/2/12 by The Venom Project]