Car Accident - Elephant Insurance

[greggy50]

Hello
My car is insured with Elephant and have been involved in a knock for knock accident that is currently going being sorted

Anyway due to the dent being in the rear 1/4 been told my car will probably be wrote off on clio sport as they will insist on changing the whole panel instead of trying to pull the dent out and the car is only worth £2000 - £2500.

My excess is £800 but would be happy to pay this if they fix it properly but as said suspect it will be wrote off.

Have a few issues however I have had it looked at and for £4/£500 I can have it repaired myself as the majority will pull out and the back bumper is easily repaired will need some filler around the arch though most likely if do it this way instead of replacement.

Reason being if I take it to Elephant and they do write it off can I choose to keep it and not bother claiming?

Also heard if they do write it off and offer me a figure they cancel my insurance which being 20 will be a lot of money to replace as I have only used 3 months and paid it one off. If I do decide to keep it after being deemed uneconomical to repair will it still be cancelled?

If I transferred the policy to a different car now would this make teh insurance stand after my car was paid out as thought may be a way of getting round it?

My Options appear

Let them write car off probably get about £1400 back at best after excess and have no insurance - fked
Car written off decide to keep and drive with dent in it if insurance is not cancelled this could be a okay option
Pay £800 if car not wrote off - not likely this will happen
Don't bother taking the car at all to be viewed and leave the claim

As its knock for knock from what I can make out my insurance pays for mine and the other persons insurance pays for there car if this is the case could I just cancel my claim fix the car myself and keep my no claims bonus?

Sorry for all the questions here is another do you think it is a write off or not?
http://www.cliosport.net/forum/showthread.php?6578...

[greggy50]

Oh and sorry reading back grammar is rather sketchy...

[Petrolhead_Rich]

If you decide now you dont want to claim then they will continue your insurance and not charge your excess, you keep the car and pay £600 to get it fixed. - /personal experience with the Insurance company named (not sure if the naming and shaming rule applies here)

Stick with the claim and i'm not sure, but they will probably replace the panel which as you say would just be a cat d/c write off I believe!

[Hudson]

Elephant are fking useless, be prepared to do all of the legwork and dont be surprised when they roll over, beg and play dead when the injury lawyers turn up.

Spineless sts, the lot of em

[greggy50]

Hudson said:

Elephant are fking useless, be prepared to do all of the legwork and dont be surprised when they roll over, beg and play dead when the injury lawyers turn up.

Spineless sts, the lot of em

Great...
Already had some women asking if I have any neck pain and I am like no not at all

She is ringing me later in the week to see if I have any neck pain by then same for my sister this was a 15mph crash ffs no wonder they is a suing culture they are literally trying to pressure me to go for whiplash almost fking unbelievable I just hope the other people don't want to try and make a quick buck or it will just become a fking nightmare to sort out.

Oh and she said its free at first but if I don't reply this separate solicitor on behalf of elephant will start charging me for their services...

To be honest think I am going to go to the garage they say, get them to have a quick look at it if they mention the words write off at all will just cancel my claim and fix it myself.

Hopefully will maintain my knock for knock and keep my no claims and just take the repair costs on the chin as done some search's on consumer action group etc... and they do seem fking useless.

[greggy50]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

If you decide now you dont want to claim then they will continue your insurance and not charge your excess, you keep the car and pay £600 to get it fixed. - /personal experience with the Insurance company named (not sure if the naming and shaming rule applies here)

Stick with the claim and i'm not sure, but they will probably replace the panel which as you say would just be a cat d/c write off I believe!

Okay so it is best to not take it to the garage they recommended at all and just get it fixed myself?
I think I will ring tomorrow and say what will happen if I fix it myself as I can get it done for £600 and my excess is £800 so don't see the point?
That way I can just drive it with a dent and wait and see what happens with the other person involved and if it remains knock for knock as then wont pay and excess and keep my no claims.

If however they try and blame it all on me for elephant being useless then I could be stuck paying £800 excess and my repair costs?

Situation is I was inside lane of roundabout car outside lane indicated left to exit I did as had a feeder lane but car then decided to carry on to the next exit and hit the back corner of mine as I attempted to take it. I said knock for knock as I was going a bit too fast but on the other hand they should not have indicated miles too early as in my eyes the speed they were going etc... it looked like they were taking the exit.

[Basil Brush]

Have to say Elephant were pretty good when I had a claim with them a couple of years ago. They were happy to let me choose who did the work etc and sorted it all pretty quickly.

Whichever way you handle it, it'll go down as an accident so will affect your renewal.

[greggy50]

Realise that insurance runs till mid april though so have a long time left and at £1200 would rather not through away £8/900 of insurance as with the accident going to be more like £1500 to reinsure it for a year.

More I think just fixing it myself seems more and more like a better idea as I keep my no claims (albeit with a crash down), pay £600 to fix it or whatever and I keep my insurance. Certainly going to ring up tomorrow and see what they have to say about me taking this option.

[Big_Dog]

I had an old SL that was badly repaired by their approved repairer. Eventually after an inspection by an independent vehicle examiner they offered me £12500 to write it off or pay me £4500 to keep it. I found that they were quite happy to sensible about it.

[Fatman2]

Can I ask why you're going through the insurance if it's knock for knock?

The wife had a 50/50 in a supermarket car park and the insurers advice (Privilege) was that it would be more favourable for both parties if you didn't take it any further. Otherwise you lose your excess and will also have a claim on your record. We took their advice had it agreed mutually with the other party and went our separate ways. Ok so it cost me to get the car repaired but this was less than losing the excess and the increase in premium.

[greggy50]

I would imagine the other parties excess would be far lower and being a new scenic a new front bumper, wing and a alloy to them it probably seems worthwhile going through the insurance already suggested settling it outside but they didn't want too. I think they may try and go for a stupid whiplash claim or something possibly in the current culture they is in the UK and the fact I myself keep being asked by the insurers if I am sure I don't have any neck injuries...

[oldcynic]

I may be way off track after a couple of glasses of wine but I don't think you pay the excess on the Third Party (as in other vehicle) repairs - you'd only pay the excess on repairing or writing off your own car. So if you pay your own repairs and let your insurer sort out the TP bit you're better off. And however infuriating it may be, you don't need to get involved in the injury claim either.

You'll still have a claim on your record and lose your no-claims bonus, but you won't have an £800 excess to pay on top of it all.

[greggy50]

oldcynic said:

I may be way off track after a couple of glasses of wine but I don't think you pay the excess on the Third Party (as in other vehicle) repairs - you'd only pay the excess on repairing or writing off your own car. So if you pay your own repairs and let your insurer sort out the TP bit you're better off. And however infuriating it may be, you don't need to get involved in the injury claim either.

You'll still have a claim on your record and lose your no-claims bonus, but you won't have an £800 excess to pay on top of it all.

If I don't claim I wont loose my no claims bonus happened to my friend with admiral he bumped a car but in his case paid the repair costs as it was his fault through insurance and kept his ncb but I will ring up and ask the question.

But yeah to be honest I just think sorting it out myself does make more sense either way as could just save the £600 and drive it around with a dent in as its a clio 172 with 70k miles on I may just run the thing into the ground to be honest...

[Fatman2]

I think you may be right cynic but Privilege do things slightly differently. They have a situation where they pay half/half for the repairs. You pay your own excess but the repairs are split 50/50 so that both insurers pay identical amounts. Thus it wouldn't have mattered if we had not claimed on our side as the other claim would have been enough. The only way it would have worked for us was if both parties mutually agreed to walk away. Fortunately the other party was open to discussion.

Never used Elephant though so they may well do things differently.

Fair enough though OP so hope it all gets sorted ok.

Edited by Fatman2 on Thursday 30th August 23:36