Potentially written off Golf R lease, lots of questions..
Discussion
Hi all
I currently have a VW Golf R Estate on Lease which has been awesome for the past 18 months, plenty of fun and practicality. However, I slipped on ice and have about 17.5k of damage waiting to be either approved or denied by my insurer, mean-time I am left with a TINY automatic Aygo courtesy car that I can barely fit a rucksack in. This is very much depressing me.
If the car is repaired, it'll be months before it's ready and it's due to go back in July which means I'm stuck with a tiny car in the meantime that isn't sufficient for my needs, perhaps my fault as I didn't ask for a like-for-like car on my insurance. Ideally, it'll be written off and I can use my gap insurance of 7500 to pay off any extras and the valuation of the car to just walk away. Hopefully everything is covered there but I'm not sure if it would be and how it works with a written off lease? Presumably the insurance pays out to VW, my GAP finishes off any extras and we walk away.
If the car is written off, I need a new car, fast. Handily I'm away for works for 2 weeks from Monday so I do not need a car for 2 weeks but if it's written off they'll want to keys back for the courtesy car and I'll come back to no transport.
To make matters worse I'm now with 3 claims (potentially 4) to my name from the past 13 months as I've had a few prangs with this car already. You probably want to know what so here goes:
1) Rear ended by an MX5 in December 2016 (still ongoing, they won't accept responsibility)
2) Mirror smashed off by a learner driver on a 2 lane country road (Still ongoing, very likely a 50/50 claim)
3) The crash I discussed above (My fault)
4) Another car hit me an hour after I crashed and damaged the underside of my car (Insurer say they may be able to add this as a notification rather than a claim)
So what are my options? I'm pretty skint cash wise but I do earn quite well, thus the lease as I can budget for the monthly payments easily, and my insurance is through the roof, I'm getting quotes for brand new Focus 1.0L cars at 1k (without fine tuning)
If the car isn't written off I need another car to at least be able to get around as the Aygo is just insufficient to my needs, I have a dog and also have to carry large items in the car
If the car is written off, I need another car fast, do I get an old car and a personal loan or something for say, 10k and keep that a few years that is low on insurance? Or do I get a car on 0% APR and drive that then pay off the balloon payment at the end? I have looked at Focus ST Estate's which I get on 0% APR fully loaded for 27k and I would keep for at least 5-6 years. Or do I try and get another lease? Problem with that option is that they are rarely in stock in my experience so I'd need to wait a few months. Another option could be to buy a recent car used like a pre-facelift Golf estate or Focus ST estate? The only issue with that is I've never seen a 0% APR used car so I'd be paying a chunk of interest
Either way I'd prefer an estate and something with a bit of poke (Insurance is a weird thing as a Focus ST is 1300 to insurance vs the 1000 for a 1.0L Focus, a MK7 Golf R is 1300, but a 320D F31 is 2000!)
Any advice would be appreciated as I'm currently lost and banging my head on the wall.
An extra note is I may get a promotion in April which would mean that next year I'd have a car allowance (or a choice of company car, albeit either a diesel or a hybrid)
Thank you.
I currently have a VW Golf R Estate on Lease which has been awesome for the past 18 months, plenty of fun and practicality. However, I slipped on ice and have about 17.5k of damage waiting to be either approved or denied by my insurer, mean-time I am left with a TINY automatic Aygo courtesy car that I can barely fit a rucksack in. This is very much depressing me.
If the car is repaired, it'll be months before it's ready and it's due to go back in July which means I'm stuck with a tiny car in the meantime that isn't sufficient for my needs, perhaps my fault as I didn't ask for a like-for-like car on my insurance. Ideally, it'll be written off and I can use my gap insurance of 7500 to pay off any extras and the valuation of the car to just walk away. Hopefully everything is covered there but I'm not sure if it would be and how it works with a written off lease? Presumably the insurance pays out to VW, my GAP finishes off any extras and we walk away.
If the car is written off, I need a new car, fast. Handily I'm away for works for 2 weeks from Monday so I do not need a car for 2 weeks but if it's written off they'll want to keys back for the courtesy car and I'll come back to no transport.
To make matters worse I'm now with 3 claims (potentially 4) to my name from the past 13 months as I've had a few prangs with this car already. You probably want to know what so here goes:
1) Rear ended by an MX5 in December 2016 (still ongoing, they won't accept responsibility)
2) Mirror smashed off by a learner driver on a 2 lane country road (Still ongoing, very likely a 50/50 claim)
3) The crash I discussed above (My fault)
4) Another car hit me an hour after I crashed and damaged the underside of my car (Insurer say they may be able to add this as a notification rather than a claim)
So what are my options? I'm pretty skint cash wise but I do earn quite well, thus the lease as I can budget for the monthly payments easily, and my insurance is through the roof, I'm getting quotes for brand new Focus 1.0L cars at 1k (without fine tuning)
If the car isn't written off I need another car to at least be able to get around as the Aygo is just insufficient to my needs, I have a dog and also have to carry large items in the car
If the car is written off, I need another car fast, do I get an old car and a personal loan or something for say, 10k and keep that a few years that is low on insurance? Or do I get a car on 0% APR and drive that then pay off the balloon payment at the end? I have looked at Focus ST Estate's which I get on 0% APR fully loaded for 27k and I would keep for at least 5-6 years. Or do I try and get another lease? Problem with that option is that they are rarely in stock in my experience so I'd need to wait a few months. Another option could be to buy a recent car used like a pre-facelift Golf estate or Focus ST estate? The only issue with that is I've never seen a 0% APR used car so I'd be paying a chunk of interest
Either way I'd prefer an estate and something with a bit of poke (Insurance is a weird thing as a Focus ST is 1300 to insurance vs the 1000 for a 1.0L Focus, a MK7 Golf R is 1300, but a 320D F31 is 2000!)
Any advice would be appreciated as I'm currently lost and banging my head on the wall.
An extra note is I may get a promotion in April which would mean that next year I'd have a car allowance (or a choice of company car, albeit either a diesel or a hybrid)
Thank you.
Edited by Acksaw on Friday 5th January 18:16
Edited by Acksaw on Friday 5th January 18:19
The Spruce goose said:
Surprised you claimed for a mirror.. if it was me i would just get a runabout sub 1k until everything is sorted out.
It ended up needing a new window and the door repainting/dent removing as it essentially exploded and hit the car quite hard, it was a £1200 claim when all said and doneRuctions said:
Have you ever thought that driving just isn’t your thing?
I don't want to come across as rude or anything like that whatsoever and i really do apologize if I do but I am just a curious person by nature.I'd like to know what went through your head when you posted that and for what reason you posted that.
Once again, not trying to be rude or a smart-arse or anything like that.
No real point me addressing that point but I will anyway. You don't know the circumstances of the crash, if I was avoiding another car who was having an issue in the ice or if I had to stop for a pedestrian that slipped on the road etc. It happened and I've asked for help. I've had one at fault claim in 9 years of driving.
And I thought PistonHeads was a place that had more adults than the typical Facebook groups.
Thanks for your input either way.
Also the Golf R isn't 4wd it's AWD and it doesn't matter how many wheels can drive if you have no traction
And I thought PistonHeads was a place that had more adults than the typical Facebook groups.
Thanks for your input either way.
Also the Golf R isn't 4wd it's AWD and it doesn't matter how many wheels can drive if you have no traction
The problem is you have people that don't live in the real world, s
t happens, mistakes made. I had 3 accidents in the space of 6 months all not my fault, one took a year to close though. that is how it happens.
Like I said get yourself a banger to keep you driving save a bit of money too.
t happens, mistakes made. I had 3 accidents in the space of 6 months all not my fault, one took a year to close though. that is how it happens.Like I said get yourself a banger to keep you driving save a bit of money too.
Pistonheader101 said:
Ructions said:
Have you ever thought that driving just isn’t your thing?
I don't want to come across as rude or anything like that whatsoever and i really do apologize if I do but I am just a curious person by nature.I'd like to know what went through your head when you posted that and for what reason you posted that.
Once again, not trying to be rude or a smart-arse or anything like that.
Like I say, why bother replying if you don't know the circumstances? What actually happened (Which is on dashcam that has been sent to the insurer, with GPS speed) is that I was descending a hill at about 10-15 mph, grip was fine, I got to the bottom and there was a patch of compacted snow that I hit and I tapped the brake and I was off, the damage would have been minimal apart from the fact that I hit metal fencing which has a 3 foot drop behind, therefore, the underside of the car was damaged, the subframe took a bit hit as well which is partly it hitting the wall and secondly the concrete that the fence post was anchored in with. I had nothing to hide so I shared the dashcam footage with the insurer who've asked me to not post it anywhere for now. After that, another car had the same issue and hit me instead of the fence which I was stuck in and further damaged the underside of the car (Exhaust, fuel tank and lines also suspension). I had sill damage which is a pricey fix to go with it from where it came to rest on the wall.
Now could I have some more sensible replies or am I perhaps better off asking elsewhere?
Now could I have some more sensible replies or am I perhaps better off asking elsewhere?
If you say you earn well but are skint I think you have to have a look at your spending and what you need and can afford not what you want and need to use credit for.
Sounds rude I know but after carefully reading your post this is what springs to mind.
Your financial management and understanding is appalling.
Sounds rude I know but after carefully reading your post this is what springs to mind.
Your financial management and understanding is appalling.
If it makes you feel better my daughter used the ice scraper to remove the snow from our lease golf r, every panel now needs painting, I’m tempted to get a quote to repair but it may have to be an insurance one.
In your case, get something cheap with a long mot until it all pans out then you can decide without any pressure what route to take next.
In your case, get something cheap with a long mot until it all pans out then you can decide without any pressure what route to take next.
jimi said:
If it makes you feel better my daughter used the ice scraper to remove the snow from our lease golf r, every panel now needs painting, I’m tempted to get a quote to repair but it may have to be an insurance one.
In your case, get something cheap with a long mot until it all pans out then you can decide without any pressure what route to take next.
Ouch! That’s gotta hurt...sorry dude In your case, get something cheap with a long mot until it all pans out then you can decide without any pressure what route to take next.
loskie said:
If you say you earn well but are skint I think you have to have a look at your spending and what you need and can afford not what you want and need to use credit for.
Sounds rude I know but after carefully reading your post this is what springs to mind.
Your financial management and understanding is appalling.
I'm overpaying on my mortgage all my spare cash to get it paid off before I'm too old to enjoy life. I have a rainy day fund but why dip into that unnecessarily? Overpaying on a mortgage is better than savings, just ask Martin Lewis....Sounds rude I know but after carefully reading your post this is what springs to mind.
Your financial management and understanding is appalling.
Acksaw said:
I'm overpaying on my mortgage all my spare cash to get it paid off before I'm too old to enjoy life. I have a rainy day fund but why dip into that unnecessarily? Overpaying on a mortgage is better than savings, just ask Martin Lewis....
Or invest it in crypto currency and make a killing ! Ouch, some bad luck there.
I vote for buying a £1-2k car privately (Focus estate, maybe Volvo V40), paying insurance on a monthly basis, then hope you get a promotion come April. That way, if you get a company car you should be able to sell this and not lose too much on depreciation.
Hope you have video footage of the learner driver accident!
I vote for buying a £1-2k car privately (Focus estate, maybe Volvo V40), paying insurance on a monthly basis, then hope you get a promotion come April. That way, if you get a company car you should be able to sell this and not lose too much on depreciation.
Hope you have video footage of the learner driver accident!
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