Insurance claim or not? Skoda Kamiq
Discussion
Hi
Background
Have a Kamiq on lease from VWFS (lease ending July 2025), my wife had a bump with a DPD van, when turning left, which was parked on a bend/junction in a narrow street.
Currently only had 1 year of NCB - as only owned a car for 1.5 years (My licence is 15 years old - age 37. My wife's licence is 6 years old - age 33).
No points, previous incidents etc.
Insurance is with Churchill with me as the main driver and my wife as an additional driver. Paid £850 p.a. last year for insurance (£500 the year before) (ending in mid-July 2024)
I notified the insurance company about the incident on the same day (and my wife reported it to the police online as the DPD driver did not give their insurance details and only gave the number of their manager who also refused to give insurance details and said it would be dealt directly between insurers). My wife provided her details (but the DPD driver did not ask for them and wasn't provided insurance details - hence the notification to the police since neither party really exchanged insurance info).
The DPD courier van (white van without any logos) got a slight scratch but my car had more extensive damage due to initial contact and then the manoeuvre after (...which really made it worse)... the DPD driver was extremely apologetic and said he had to park there due to volume of deliveries and being in a rush. In any case, given they were stationary, my insurance company would consider this my (wife's) fault so any claim would be at fault. Unclear if the DPD van guy will claim for the scratch on his van but possible. They may think I will claim on their insurance based on what was discussed though but can always make a claim of course.
Damage
DPD courier van: https://i.ibb.co/tx5th22/9ff54be6-d86a-4b42-9b3e-6...
My car: https://i.ibb.co/kqLhdrd/af1eada7-9fae-403e-8939-2...
I took my car to a Volkswagen-approved bodyshop and they said that both passenger doors will need to be changed and the passenger side will need a full paint so quoted around £2,800 or so for a private quotation (inc. parts etc of which around £1600-1700 is just the doors inc. VAT)., 5 days labour at £900 and £200 for paint I assume)
My excess is £400.
Questions
1. Should I self-fund the repair or make a claim on insurance? Any guesses what my insurance premium increase would be. I have already notified the insurance company so regardless of if the DPD driver make a claim, guessing premium would increase anyway but really want to know if I actually will save money by paying for this privately
(i.e. would the increase in premium be much higher if I actually claim and then have to pay more than £2,800 in higher premiums over the next 5 years vs. self funding)
2. When I renew my policy - should I enter the accident under my wife's details as an additional driver or mine? It's a bit unclear as for eg. the question in "Confused.com" for both of us separately is "Have you had any motor accidents, claims or losses in the past 5 years, no matter who was at fault or if a claim was made?" so I will have to say yes to accident for her and give the claim details.
However, do I have to enter the same incident again in my name too as I am the main driver / policy holder? Or can I say no for me if full disclosure is made under my wife's name.
There is also a question in the consued.com details of "whether the claim made was under a policy held in their name" which I will have to say no to when entering details under her name.
3. Is there a timeline to make a claim under your own insurance? For eg do we have to get it fixed under the current policy year (ending mid-July 2024)
Any other advice is welcome as this is the first such incident for us
Background
Have a Kamiq on lease from VWFS (lease ending July 2025), my wife had a bump with a DPD van, when turning left, which was parked on a bend/junction in a narrow street.
Currently only had 1 year of NCB - as only owned a car for 1.5 years (My licence is 15 years old - age 37. My wife's licence is 6 years old - age 33).
No points, previous incidents etc.
Insurance is with Churchill with me as the main driver and my wife as an additional driver. Paid £850 p.a. last year for insurance (£500 the year before) (ending in mid-July 2024)
I notified the insurance company about the incident on the same day (and my wife reported it to the police online as the DPD driver did not give their insurance details and only gave the number of their manager who also refused to give insurance details and said it would be dealt directly between insurers). My wife provided her details (but the DPD driver did not ask for them and wasn't provided insurance details - hence the notification to the police since neither party really exchanged insurance info).
The DPD courier van (white van without any logos) got a slight scratch but my car had more extensive damage due to initial contact and then the manoeuvre after (...which really made it worse)... the DPD driver was extremely apologetic and said he had to park there due to volume of deliveries and being in a rush. In any case, given they were stationary, my insurance company would consider this my (wife's) fault so any claim would be at fault. Unclear if the DPD van guy will claim for the scratch on his van but possible. They may think I will claim on their insurance based on what was discussed though but can always make a claim of course.
Damage
DPD courier van: https://i.ibb.co/tx5th22/9ff54be6-d86a-4b42-9b3e-6...
My car: https://i.ibb.co/kqLhdrd/af1eada7-9fae-403e-8939-2...
I took my car to a Volkswagen-approved bodyshop and they said that both passenger doors will need to be changed and the passenger side will need a full paint so quoted around £2,800 or so for a private quotation (inc. parts etc of which around £1600-1700 is just the doors inc. VAT)., 5 days labour at £900 and £200 for paint I assume)
My excess is £400.
Questions
1. Should I self-fund the repair or make a claim on insurance? Any guesses what my insurance premium increase would be. I have already notified the insurance company so regardless of if the DPD driver make a claim, guessing premium would increase anyway but really want to know if I actually will save money by paying for this privately
(i.e. would the increase in premium be much higher if I actually claim and then have to pay more than £2,800 in higher premiums over the next 5 years vs. self funding)
2. When I renew my policy - should I enter the accident under my wife's details as an additional driver or mine? It's a bit unclear as for eg. the question in "Confused.com" for both of us separately is "Have you had any motor accidents, claims or losses in the past 5 years, no matter who was at fault or if a claim was made?" so I will have to say yes to accident for her and give the claim details.
However, do I have to enter the same incident again in my name too as I am the main driver / policy holder? Or can I say no for me if full disclosure is made under my wife's name.
There is also a question in the consued.com details of "whether the claim made was under a policy held in their name" which I will have to say no to when entering details under her name.
3. Is there a timeline to make a claim under your own insurance? For eg do we have to get it fixed under the current policy year (ending mid-July 2024)
Any other advice is welcome as this is the first such incident for us
Been through something similar earlier this year
We have a "multicar" type policy and i am classed as the "main policy holder" and my wife is the "secondary policy holder".
We each have our own cars and are named drivers on the others car, and we have a certificate of insurance for each vehicle showing policy holder.
Damage to her car was in my eyes very minor bumper damage and a scratched headlight - both replaced, the total bill as £3400 which i thought to be extortionate but has been paid without quibble by the insurers.
A month after the accident our renewal was due - the existing insurers only increased the premium from £580 to £723 despite the large increase in insurance costs this year and a blameworthy accident .
You need confirmation from your insurers how they will record the accident on industry databases - in your name as policy holder or in her name
We have a "multicar" type policy and i am classed as the "main policy holder" and my wife is the "secondary policy holder".
We each have our own cars and are named drivers on the others car, and we have a certificate of insurance for each vehicle showing policy holder.
Damage to her car was in my eyes very minor bumper damage and a scratched headlight - both replaced, the total bill as £3400 which i thought to be extortionate but has been paid without quibble by the insurers.
A month after the accident our renewal was due - the existing insurers only increased the premium from £580 to £723 despite the large increase in insurance costs this year and a blameworthy accident .
You need confirmation from your insurers how they will record the accident on industry databases - in your name as policy holder or in her name
Been through something similar earlier this year
We have a "multicar" type policy and i am classed as the "main policy holder" and my wife is the "secondary policy holder".
We each have our own cars and are named drivers on the others car, and we have a certificate of insurance for each vehicle showing policy holder.
Damage to her car was in my eyes very minor bumper damage and a scratched headlight - both replaced, the total bill as £3400 which i thought to be extortionate but has been paid without quibble by the insurers.
A month after the accident our renewal was due - the existing insurers only increased the premium from £580 to £723 despite the large increase in insurance costs this year and a blameworthy accident .
You need confirmation from your insurers how they will record the accident on industry databases - in your name as policy holder or in her name
We have a "multicar" type policy and i am classed as the "main policy holder" and my wife is the "secondary policy holder".
We each have our own cars and are named drivers on the others car, and we have a certificate of insurance for each vehicle showing policy holder.
Damage to her car was in my eyes very minor bumper damage and a scratched headlight - both replaced, the total bill as £3400 which i thought to be extortionate but has been paid without quibble by the insurers.
A month after the accident our renewal was due - the existing insurers only increased the premium from £580 to £723 despite the large increase in insurance costs this year and a blameworthy accident .
You need confirmation from your insurers how they will record the accident on industry databases - in your name as policy holder or in her name
1. Should I self-fund the repair or make a claim on insurance? Any guesses what my insurance premium increase would be. I have already notified the insurance company so regardless of if the DPD driver make a claim, guessing premium would increase anyway but really want to know if I actually will save money by paying for this privately
No one today including your Insurer will be able to accurately answer this - it may go up ( and would have done anyway perhaps ) it may stay the same or it may reduce ( unlikely currently ) although if you shop it around perhaps. If you claim you are taking out nearly 3 years gross premium so if I had to guess I would suggest that all other things being equal a hike of at least 10% is possible - the loss quantum is relatively modest so I would doubt much more than this.
I’m not you but if I were I would claim - that’s why you buy Insurance and so if you don’t your overall annual costs are much increased with no guarantees.
(i.e. would the increase in premium be much higher if I actually claim and then have to pay more than £2,800 in higher premiums over the next 5 years vs. self funding)
As above but personally I think you might be overthinking this.
I’ve had 2 claims over the past 25 years - one deemed at fault and one not and not claimed from my Insurance - in both cases the premium the next year went up no more than 10%.
Both claims were significantly larger in quantum.
2. When I renew my policy - should I enter the accident under my wife's details as an additional driver or mine? It's a bit unclear as for eg. the question in "Confused.com" for both of us separately is "Have you had any motor accidents, claims or losses in the past 5 years, no matter who was at fault or if a claim was made?" so I will have to say yes to accident for her and give the claim details.
Your wife was the one involved as a ND under your policy so you simply answer accordingly.
However, do I have to enter the same incident again in my name too as I am the main driver / policy holder? Or can I say no for me if full disclosure is made under my wife's name.
The latter , no because you have already truthfully answered.
There is also a question in the consued.com details of "whether the claim made was under a policy held in their name" which I will have to say no to when entering details under her name.
Correct - the policy is in your name but you have already answered truthfully.
3. Is there a timeline to make a claim under your own insurance? For eg do we have to get it fixed under the current policy year (ending mid-July 2024)
If you are claiming then claim now. Each Insurer may have slightly different terms and conditions but if claiming why would you wait ?
Hope it all works out ok for you.
No one today including your Insurer will be able to accurately answer this - it may go up ( and would have done anyway perhaps ) it may stay the same or it may reduce ( unlikely currently ) although if you shop it around perhaps. If you claim you are taking out nearly 3 years gross premium so if I had to guess I would suggest that all other things being equal a hike of at least 10% is possible - the loss quantum is relatively modest so I would doubt much more than this.
I’m not you but if I were I would claim - that’s why you buy Insurance and so if you don’t your overall annual costs are much increased with no guarantees.
(i.e. would the increase in premium be much higher if I actually claim and then have to pay more than £2,800 in higher premiums over the next 5 years vs. self funding)
As above but personally I think you might be overthinking this.
I’ve had 2 claims over the past 25 years - one deemed at fault and one not and not claimed from my Insurance - in both cases the premium the next year went up no more than 10%.
Both claims were significantly larger in quantum.
2. When I renew my policy - should I enter the accident under my wife's details as an additional driver or mine? It's a bit unclear as for eg. the question in "Confused.com" for both of us separately is "Have you had any motor accidents, claims or losses in the past 5 years, no matter who was at fault or if a claim was made?" so I will have to say yes to accident for her and give the claim details.
Your wife was the one involved as a ND under your policy so you simply answer accordingly.
However, do I have to enter the same incident again in my name too as I am the main driver / policy holder? Or can I say no for me if full disclosure is made under my wife's name.
The latter , no because you have already truthfully answered.
There is also a question in the consued.com details of "whether the claim made was under a policy held in their name" which I will have to say no to when entering details under her name.
Correct - the policy is in your name but you have already answered truthfully.
3. Is there a timeline to make a claim under your own insurance? For eg do we have to get it fixed under the current policy year (ending mid-July 2024)
If you are claiming then claim now. Each Insurer may have slightly different terms and conditions but if claiming why would you wait ?
Hope it all works out ok for you.
Couple of points:
White van man is probably not going to have it repaired, minimal damage on a commercial vehicle, unless its privately owned and very new its the sort of damage most vans end up with.
Get another quote for repairs! Those 2 doors are repairable, seen much worse fixed. 5 days labour?? Painting 2 brand new doors and swaping over internal components should not take a professional body shop longer than 2 days I'd have thought. But if its going through the insurance and not paid for privately it doesn't really matter.
Insurance, whose to notify on.
My wife was driving my car, an old but immaculate Landrover Discovery 2 when it was keyed in a car park. Truthfully told the insurance company the circumstances. They apportioned the claim to both of us, my policy, her 'in charge' of my vehicle when damaged so she had to notify her own insurance company that she had a non fault claim. Both policies increased, not massively but frustrating.
White van man is probably not going to have it repaired, minimal damage on a commercial vehicle, unless its privately owned and very new its the sort of damage most vans end up with.
Get another quote for repairs! Those 2 doors are repairable, seen much worse fixed. 5 days labour?? Painting 2 brand new doors and swaping over internal components should not take a professional body shop longer than 2 days I'd have thought. But if its going through the insurance and not paid for privately it doesn't really matter.
Insurance, whose to notify on.
My wife was driving my car, an old but immaculate Landrover Discovery 2 when it was keyed in a car park. Truthfully told the insurance company the circumstances. They apportioned the claim to both of us, my policy, her 'in charge' of my vehicle when damaged so she had to notify her own insurance company that she had a non fault claim. Both policies increased, not massively but frustrating.
thank you all. from some dummy quotes the increase in insurance only seems to be a couple of hundred strangely
will get another quote of damage too as it does seem strange that the entire 2 doors need changing for what appears to me to be not too much damage
but it could just be that the official / approved body shop of VWFS has this sort of policy
will get another quote of damage too as it does seem strange that the entire 2 doors need changing for what appears to me to be not too much damage
but it could just be that the official / approved body shop of VWFS has this sort of policy
richhead said:
why only one year ncd if driving 15 years with no incidents?
anyway youve told them now, so might just as well claim, so damage is done, insurance may or maynot go up, its not a given that it will
never had a car as a main policy holder beforeanyway youve told them now, so might just as well claim, so damage is done, insurance may or maynot go up, its not a given that it will
in London and didn't really need a car much - have been on my brother's insurance as an additional driver for many years but doesn't give me NCB
Just let the insurance deal with it.
Trying to arrange a repair yourself to save a few quid in premium rise isn’t worth the hassle. They’re going to put it up now anyway because you’ve told them.
Plus, when you fix VW’s car it would probably be a good idea to get it done properly so their are no issues when you give it back.
Also, do you have to tell VW you’ve damaged their car?
Trying to arrange a repair yourself to save a few quid in premium rise isn’t worth the hassle. They’re going to put it up now anyway because you’ve told them.
Plus, when you fix VW’s car it would probably be a good idea to get it done properly so their are no issues when you give it back.
Also, do you have to tell VW you’ve damaged their car?
The biggest unknown here is the van as you have no control over what happens with it in the event they get it fixed.
The owners of the van (presumably a lease company) won’t bother shopping around and where they go might assume it’s an insurance job. They will probably rent another van while it’s being repaired so they don’t lose revenue and you’ll be on the hook for that too.
The owners of the van (presumably a lease company) won’t bother shopping around and where they go might assume it’s an insurance job. They will probably rent another van while it’s being repaired so they don’t lose revenue and you’ll be on the hook for that too.
taffer87 said:
loskie said:
just let the insurance sort it out. You've (correctly) declared it to them so you will see the same rise regardless.
not sure this is true? if no claim is made (by myself or the van) then surely the rise will be lowerNotifying them and not claiming will count as a non fault claim, may be an increase, may not.
Claiming will mean fault claim and reduction/loss of ncb, definitely an increase, and a bigger one.
But on those figures, I'd be claiming all day long.
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