I've had a crash, what happens now so I don't get screwed?

[rb5er]

AMC sorted my claim out very quickly and efficiently. New E-class for 9 days and car repaired where I wanted it to be.

[dacouch]

Jonno02 said:

dacouch said:

If you're dealing with the other Insurer then Ombudsman has no jurisdiction.

Rubbish. I dealt with a third party insurance non fault accident recently. They were dragging their heels, claimed I was going to the ombudsman and what do you know, the issue was sorted nearly instantly. Insurers are governed by the Ombudsman regardless of if it's their customer or not.

The person you spoke to at the Insurer must have had the same understanding of the Ombudsman as you eg they did not understand it.

As a third party you have no contractual relationship with the other persons Insurer so the Ombudsman will not become involved as you're not their customer. There are some occasions the Ombudsman will become involved for a third party dealing with another Insurer but they're very rare.

The Ombudsman in effect has no authority over an Insurer you're not a customer of, in your case the person you spoke to either did not understand this or realised your claim was being handled badly and decided to sort it out.

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/faq/answers/...

when the event you're complaining about took place (time limits apply if you leave it too late to complain); and
your relationship with the business you are complaining about (for example, we can't always deal with disputes between businesses - or where you're not a direct customer)."

Or where you're not a direct customer is the relevant part

[The Flying Ox]

dacouch said:

The person you spoke to at the Insurer must have had the same understanding of the Ombudsman as you eg they did not understand it.

What that says to me is that what matters is whether or not the person you speak to at the 3rd party's insurer understands the FO rules. Insurers are more than happy to take the piss*, so why not chance your arm on their lack of understanding to achieve a fair outcome?

• case in point: my current insurance battle over a bathroom water leak. 3 x floors, 2 x ceilings, 2 x walls and a number of furnishings damaged. Local trades quoted in the region of £3k to fix. Insurance loss adjuster laughed at the quotes and wanted us to cash settle for £800. We told them we'd be more than happy for them to fix it themselves for £800. Their contractor removed the bathroom suite, took one look at the damage and left. Their loss adjuster re-visited and has now miraculously decided the repairs will cost in excess of £5000. All the while, we're 5 months down the line with no bathroom and a living room in bits, and nowhere else to stay. My son has his bath in the kitchen sink at the moment. So you'll forgive me if I don't lose any sleep about playing them at their own game.

FWIW, I didn't know that about the FO and their juridiction re: 3rd part insurers.

[TypeRTom]

Someone crashed into the back of my last year and I used an accident management company, never again.

I would go through your insurer, especially if your car is likely to get written off because if you don't agree with the valuation you can go to the ombudsman. If you go to the other insurer or an accident management company and you don't agree with their valuation then going to the ombudsman is not an option.

[KungFuPanda]

If you go to the third party insurer and you're not happy with their valuation of your vehicle, you still have the option of binning them off and going to yours. As a negotiating tool however, you do still have the option of telling them you're sick of waiting for them to come up with a reasonable offer and you will go and utilise and AMC who will cost them money each day they either over the value of your car.

[D4MJT]

Firstly, thanks all for your input.

By way of update, I've now settled this.

I cancelled the claim with my own insurer as it would have meant losing out on my excess and NCB until they had resolved the claim with the 3rd party insurer, and they didn't want to give me a time frame for this.

I settled the claim directly with the 3rd party insurer, the other driver admitted full liability, my car was assessed, deemed a Cat C total loss due to a kink across the boot floor, and the 3rd party insurer arranged for my car to be collected, and promptly sent me a cheque, which cleared today.

Happy days, I didn't need to pay my excess, my NCB is unaffected, and all is well in the world.

As I'm fine I didn't claim for whiplash, however the amount of people calling me trying to get me to do so is staggering. No wonder insurance is f***ed.

[Sump]

You will still get a price hike come renewal as you've been involved in an accident.

[D4MJT]

Sump said:

You will still get a price hike come renewal as you've been involved in an accident.

Proper ray of sunshine you are mind

I've ran a quote with the non-fault claim declared, I'm getting stuffed an extra £65 a year.

Edited by D4MJT on Thursday 21st May 16:13