Insurance Claim Advice please . . .

[timal]

Good grief - I hit -'post' rather than 'preview'! Apologies for half-ars*d message - full details:

Going around narrow corner on Saturday afternoon - LDV Convoy van (used to be called Sherpas I think) approaching me & taking up most of road

I slammed on anchors, kerbed nearside front wheel & just before I ground to a halt the van hit me down the offside. It turns out that lucky Tim had been hit by a glass carrying van - you know the type, with big veritcal rack on side which juts out at the bottom - which cut through the fibreglass like a knife through butter . . .

[pic] www.flamesolutions.com/Pix/Sick.jpg [pic]

This pic shows the exact position where I came to rest - you'll notice white lines so I was on my side of the road correctly.

So, basic advice required please people - insured with Privilege (who were very good & arranged collection in just over an hour) but I'm facing a chuffing great £450 excess. Is it likely that I will encounter a knock-for-knock argument even though the van driver was on my side of the road?

Just as summer comes too . . .

Cheers
Tim

Edited by timal on Monday 5th June 07:54

[mondeohdear]

timal said:

Good grief - I hit -'post' rather than 'preview'! Apologies for half-ars*d message - full details: Going around narrow corner on Saturday afternoon - LDV Convoy van (used to be called Sherpas I think) approaching me & taking up most of road I slammed on anchors, kerbed nearside front wheel & just before I ground to a halt the van hit me down the offside. It turns out that lucky Tim had been hit by a glass carrying van - you know the type, with big veritcal rack on side which juts out at the bottom - which cut through the fibreglass like a knife through butter . . . [pic] www.flamesolutions.com/Pix/Sick.jpg [pic] This pic shows the exact position where I came to rest - you'll notice white lines so I was on my side of the road correctly. So, basic advice required please people - insured with Privilege (who were very good & arranged collection in just over an hour) but I'm facing a chuffing great £450 excess. Is it likely that I will encounter a knock-for-knock argument even though the van driver was on my side of the road? Just as summer comes too . . . Cheers Tim Edited by timal on Monday 5th June 07:54

Tim,

The road looks very narrow. was the other lane the same width as your's? an LDV with glass hangers on each side is obviously fairly wide and the driver may have been concerned about any glass on the nearside. No defence on his part but I think it will lead to a knock-for-knock decision if his vehicle is physically unable to fit within his lane totally. His insurance company would probably say you should have had time to go up on the kerb to pass at walking pace.

[jonnyb]

mondeohdear said:

No defence on his part but I think it will lead to a knock-for-knock decision if his vehicle is physically unable to fit within his lane totally. His insurance company would probably say you should have had time to go up on the kerb to pass at walking pace.

If his vehicle wont fit then he should not have been down there. If you were totally within your lane then you are not at fault. Its their problem they made the vehicle wider than it should be by an aftermarket modification.

The problem your going to have is proving you were totally within your lane. Any witnesses?

[Bob the Planner]

They will probably go for a knock for knock. Its a pity you were not stationary when he hit you. Did they stop and exchange details at the time or have you only caught up with them later ?

When a 40 tonner trailer caught the side of the Tusc, I was stationary (stalled ) and he just kept coming round the corner. It was a 10T weight limit road too. I held out for it not being my fault - it took some time but got the right result in the end. If in doubt hang out for the result you want.

Oh and on the "should have mounted the curb" - well why should you mess your alloys for someone taking up too much of the road ?

[timal]

Hi guys - sorry for delay - have been tied up with work.

Ok, so a difference of opinion then!

Roughly in order:

Mondeohdear - yes, the road was as narrow on both sides. He was carrying no glass externally. Bend was blind - I slowed to what I believed to be a realistic pace to avoid oncoming traffic but this guy appeared pretty quickly. However, I couldn't say if his speed was over the limit as it all happened so quickly. All I know is I steered to the left to avoid collision, kerbed front wheel on nearside then 'scra-a-a-a-tch' as impact occurred. I also have a picture of this - the kerbing is far too big to have happened before.

jonnyb - I agree with your viewpoint here in principle, as why the heck should I have to fork out for staying on my side of the road, although I have to bear in mind my lovely insurance company's ability to weedle their way out of anything & everything! No witnesses. However, I took a photograph (as originally posted) that shows where I came to rest - suspect it is only a maximum of 10 feet from where impact ended. The other guy 'should' acknowledge that I took the picture without subsequently moving the car.

Bob - yes me too! As mentioned above, I was travelling very slowly by the time he actually hit me (& he was going MUCH faster) but unfortunately I was still moving. Yes, he stopped & we exchanged details.

Thanks for your trailer tale - I don't envy that experience at all - but I guess it goes to prove that all is not cast in stone.

To rub salt in the wounds, I've now discovered that the replacement car that I paid extra for will only be available to me for TWO WEEKS! 'kin small print . . .

Fingers crossed!

[jimothy]

Talk to anniesdad - I believe he specialises in handling insurance claims.

[jasandjules]

Hmm, I would personally go and measure that road, the width. Of both lanes. Then ask the opposing side to disclose the total width of the van with the glass.. If the van is wider than the road then you have a good argument before you start IMHO.

I don't see a huge amount of room to pass there anyway..

I am a firm believer in if you are in the right, then why should you bend over and take a hit?

[M@H]

Bad luck

Did you get any pictures of any tyre marks or remaining debris on the road at all..? Did the other vehicle skid..? Basically I agree with trhe posts that its not your fault and you shouldn't be made to pay,therefore (assuming you have it) I'd be using the Legal Protection that you've got as an extra policy on top of your insurance, this is the whole point of it and you can force them to take it seriously, or report them to the Insurance Ombudsman if they don't co-operate.

Cheers
Matt.

[fenderbender]

Huge sympathy - this happened to me when driving through Bucks in 1989 except my assailant was a single deck bus. He took the corner too wide and I ended up in a ditch. In my case the bus did not stop and the driver later denied everything. Despite taking Police and legal advice I could not prove the bus was at fault because there were no witnesses. Net result was I lost my NCB and had to pay the excess. Witnesses are the key to a successful claim against the other guy.
Best of luck!