Dealing with motor insurers as a third-party

cookdn

Hi All

Been away from BikeRadar for a number of months but I am now doing a one-way 22 mile commute four days a week (alternate directions) on the Boardman CX Team I bought last September.

Unfortunately I got knocked off my bike ten minutes into my test ride back to work last Wednesday morning at 0630. No permanent harm to me, just some bruising and scrapes as I slid across the road. However my night-vision jacket and berghaus backpack were holed and there is superficial damage to the rear derailleur and right-hand front brake-lever/shifter. My SPD pedals were transferred from my MTB so have had a good bashing in their previous life.

From my perspective this is 100% the fault of the driver of a Mini Cooper that tried to exit a roundabout driving through the space occupied by me and my bike. The car approached from my rear-offside so I had no prior warning before I was hit by the front nearside wing of the car. The driver was extremely apologetic and claimed that she thought that I was leaving the roundabout at the same exit as her. However when you look at my road position, her direction of travel and the roundabout layout the only plausible explanation for the collision is that she simply did not see me before committing to her manoeuvre.

After some shenanigans getting details of her insurance I find myself dealing with the third-party Personal Injury team at Directline. I haven't yet had a conversation with the claim handler as I only got Directline’s details late yesterday afternoon once Nottinghamshire Police were involved. (What made no sense to me was that the driver had reported to the accident to Directline on Thursday but still refused to tell me who her insurer was?)

I am hoping that they will simply deal with my claim in full, even if it is on a ‘without prejudice’ basis. I have no intention to claim for personal injury, I just want my bike fixed and the damaged jacket and backpack replaced. Does anybody have any advice/experience on how to proceed with this? Are Directline likely to try and squirm out of responsibility on tenuous grounds or apply wear-and-tear to the settlement figure? Are there strategies to overcome stuff they might try?

I would be grateful of any advice or similar experiences people could share.

Best regards
David

vitesse169

Use your household insurance to deal with them - these insurance types will try to beat you with a stick & make you accept a much lower ammount. That, or use one of the many teams that ad in the cycle press - I used cycle-aid and they did me proud.

seanorawe

Contact british cycling and they can handle all that for you. Im in the same boat

cookdn

Spoke to Directline. Their insured disputes liability (roll-eyes). More remarkably the claims handler I spoke to told me categorically that they would not deal directly with me as a third-party and that I must appoint a solicitor. They would not comment on whether they would be attempting to make a claim from me (not that the car was damaged).

Putting aside the question of liability, to me this seems to be a bullying tactic. On one-hand they are trying to put the obstacle of appointing a solicitor in front of me, on the other I have no doubt that they will try to respond to any claim I make with the threat of a counter-claim.

I’m not currently a British Cycling member (thanks anyway seanorawe, that may change if they can provide easy access to legal support should this happen again) however I had a useful chat with a lady at Simon A. Holt & Co. Solicitors (aka Cycle Aid, thanks vitesse169) who gave me the excellent advice of playing Directline at their own game through the Small Claims Track. Because I am only interested in claiming for the bike and clothes damage totalling £350-400 she agreed it isn’t something worth appointing a solicitor for and nothing they could take on the basis of no-win, no-fee.

Nottinghamshire Police are visiting me tonight to take a statement. It will be interesting to hear their point of view regarding the accident circumstances though I cannot see it coming to anything as there were no witnesses.

My plan is to get an estimate from my LBS for fixing the bike and then forward that with replacement details for the clothing to Directline. They will get 14 days to settle in full and then,on the assumption I will be ignored, I’ll go down the Small Claims Track of the County Court.

[Information redacted - sorry, don't want to prejudice any action the police may take.]

All advice, comments and opinions welcomed.

Best regards
David

gbsahne001

can you not appoint a solicitor and add that to your claim?

cookdn

gbsahne wrote:

can you not appoint a solicitor and add that to your claim?

I can't find the article I read, but the options for recovering legal expenses in the Small Claims Track are (intentionally) limited. The DirectGov site says "up to £260 for legal advice for some claims".

From my research to make appointing a solicitor worthwhile I would need a personal injury claim that exceeds £1,000 in value. Maybe bruising and scrapes are worth that (shrug) but I am trying to be reasonable. Being reasonable is probably the problem and we should be just as unreasonable as the motorists that knock us off and don't seem to give a shit.

My bike is at the LBS overnight. They are doing a temporary repair to realign the rear mech hanger and a quote for replacement and fixing the rest of the damage.

Best regards
David

benthic

I went through similar earlier this year... and eventually got a cheque. No solicitors involved; just a carefuly-worded letter, some follow-up e-mails and dogged persistence!

The crucial question is - do you have an independent witness?

cookdn

Benthic wrote:

I went through similar earlier this year... and eventually got a cheque. No solicitors involved; just a carefuly-worded letter, some follow-up e-mails and dogged persistence!

Well done, no doubt it felt worthwhile.

Benthic wrote:

The crucial question is - do you have an independent witness?

Unfortunately not as the roundabout was deserted at 0630.

From the perspective of a civil action I only need to demonstrate that on balance of probabilities (> 50%) the car driver was responsible and I don't think that would be too hard. She has already demonstrated herself to be untrustworthy (and I have the evidence in SMS and email transcripts) even before the circumstances of the collision are examined.

Hopefully as soon as Directline get a court summons they will settle, probably on a "without prejudice" basis, rather than take on the costs of a hearing and defence which would only increase their costs overall on the assumption I succeed. There was no damage to the car (to my knowledge) but no doubt Directline will try to threaten me with an unquantified counter-claim at some point.

Ultimately all the car driver is thinking about is their wallet. My claim got too big to settle privately (£350 to £450) but they do not want to lose their no-claims discount either.

Best regards
David

benthic

The £160 of damage to my clothing and bike, whilst not peanuts, was not particularly the reason for me perusing it. The driver, in my case, didn't even bother to stop. So, yes, it has felt worthwhile in that his insurance premiums will be greater for the next few years to come.

Suing the insurance company is one approach, but it's not the one I took.

After getting fobbed off / ignored by the driver's insurance company over the course of two to three weeks I then wrote directly to the driver explaining why he was liable for my losses and suggested that he forwarded the enclosed copy of the letter to his insurance company (the "letter of claim"). Things *started* moving shortly afterwards.

....lot's of getting witness forms sent out, filled in, sent back, acknowledged, agreement that my losses would be met, etc., etc...

It did eventually reach the stage when I e-mailed the driver's insurance company to say that unless the cheque arrived with the next seven days I would take action directly against their client without further reference to them. That got a result.

cookdn

Benthic wrote:

The £160 of damage to my clothing and bike, whilst not peanuts, was not particularly the reason for me perusing it. The driver, in my case, didn't even bother to stop.

What action did the Police take with the driver? I guess they had to help you trace the vehicle registration.

Benthic wrote:

Suing the insurance company is one approach, but it's not the one I took.

After getting fobbed off / ignored by the driver's insurance company over the course of two to three weeks I then wrote directly to the driver explaining why he was liable for my losses and suggested that he forwarded the enclosed copy of the letter to his insurance company (the "letter of claim").

[....]

It did eventually reach the stage when I e-mailed the driver's insurance company to say that unless the cheque arrived with the next seven days I would take action directly against their client without further reference to them. That got a result.

Glad you got the result you wanted. Was responsibility for the collision in dispute at any stage?

I wonder what the legal position is on pursuing the claim and serving summons on the driver directly, effectively ignoring the involvement of their insurer? Could it be enough to persuade the driver to get the insurance company to make the whole thing to go away?

Best regards
David

benthic

What action did the Police take with the driver? I guess they had to help you trace the vehicle registration.

Between me and the witness we cobbled together the reg no and I had a good idea of the make, model and colour of the car. The witness kindly called the police for me who turned up about 5 mins later. They took a statement from me in the car.

I got myself to work.

The police called back a few hours later. They had found the driver who admitted to using his horn to vent his frustration at me (he had objected to me overtaking him, even though he was stationary behind a car waiting to turn right against the oncoming traffic) but denied having collided me 30 seconds and 50 metres further up the road.

The police said something along the lines of, "We identified the car through our computer and drove out to where he lives. We saw that there are loads of dents all over his van but none of them are bicycle-shaped. He’s denied all knowledge and also he’s very ‘pro-police’ so we’re not going to take the matter any further. His name, address, phone no. and insurance company are XXXX. Good luck!”

Was responsibility for the collision in dispute at any stage?

Yes. Absolutely. But I had a witness. One could speculate that he and his insurance company realised that him admitting to his road rage prior to the collision would weaken his argument of not being aware of my presence on the road, if it later went to court.

I wonder what the legal position is on pursuing the claim and serving summons on the driver directly, effectively ignoring the involvement of their insurer?

I'm not a lawyer, but I took the view that, insured or not, it was the driver who was liable for my losses due to to his negligence [I though his actions amounted to malice, but that would be more difficult to prove]. Whether or not he instructs his insurance company to act on his behalf is then up to him.

You can also sue, without prejudice to later suing the driver, the driver's insurance company instead. This is covered in The European Communities (Rights against Insurers) Regulations 2002. It's a very short piece of legislation; have a read. Relevant section at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/3061/regulation/3/made

cookdn

Bethnic

Have I got this straight?

You correctly proceeded where a larger road user’s path (Van Man) had become obstructed behind another vehicle that was stationary waiting to turn right. Van Man then indicated his frustration that he couldn’t proceed, where you could, by sounding his horn.

Once Van Man is moving he deliberately collides with you and your moving bike and then fails to stop. This is witnessed by an independent third-party.

The Police trace the vehicle and interview the driver. Van Man freely admits being at scene of the accident and the fact he was enraged by his inability to proceed when you could, but denies the collision.

The Police decide not to take the matter any further, despite the testimony of you and the independent third-party, on the basis that there is no obvious damage to Van Man’s vehicle and that somehow Van Man had endeared himself to them.

Sorry, that seems to be pants behaviour on behalf of the Police. Telling you that Van Man was ‘pro-police’ hardly demonstrates their objectivity and to me could be interpreted that their position was in some way biased. Did they ever take a formal statement from either you or the witness?

What was their reaction regarding the damage to your bike? A collision between a vehicle and a bicycle is not necessarily going to result in damage to the vehicle because a the point of direct impact may only be between the vehicle and the body of the cyclist. This is what happened to me, the damage to my bike and clothing was caused by me and my bike sliding across the surface of the road. However my right forearm is heavily bruised, I guess, due to an impact with the nearside wing mirror of the car which was in it's retracted position when I picked myself up off the road.

Benthic wrote:

You can also sue, without prejudice to later suing the driver, the driver's insurance company instead. This is covered in The European Communities (Rights against Insurers) Regulations 2002. It's a very short piece of legislation; have a read. Relevant section at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2002/3061/regulation/3/made

Thanks for the link to the legislation. I’ll do a bit more research but my interpretation of the wording in isolation is that it is giving you the option to issue proceedings against the driver or their insurer, I don't see where it is giving you a second opportunity should a first attempt fail (IANAL applies). It is still helpful as it means that my idea to ignore the insurer would seem perfectly legal.

Best regards
David

benthic

Have I got this straight?

Yes; exactly as you've summarised. But life is short and I didn't think that pushing for criminal prosecution and all the time, hassle and stress would be worth it. I mean, what would it actually get me?

Did they ever take a formal statement from either you or the witness?

I gave a description of what happened to the police in the back of the car. The witness said that they were not particularly helpful when she spoke with them, but I don't know any more detail about the conversation than that.

What was their reaction regarding the damage to your bike?

My commuter bike is a scratched-up Raleigh Royal of about 1983 vintage! I keep it well-fettled but in terms of damage there wasn't much that needed doing, apart from straightening the handle bars, a quick wheel true, re-routing the gear cables and replacing the non-expensive set of lights I had on it. The single most expensive item to get damaged was my Night Vision jacket.

The police only really want to get involved if there's bodily injury. I didn't think I had any (that's adrenalin for you) until, a few hours later, I realised I had some bad grazes and some previous soft tissue injuries had been aggravated. Anyway, luckily, I suffered no permanent damage.

I don't see where it is giving you a second opportunity should a first attempt fail

This bit: "....the entitled party may, without prejudice to his right to issue proceedings against the insured person, issue proceedings against the insurer."

My advice is to write to the driver. If they have any sense they'll pass it onto their insurance company. Nothing is going to start happening unless letters are sent in any case. Make sure you send them Special Delivery (there is no guarantee with Recorded Signed For, as, to my frustration, I discovered).

benthic

This was the key paragraph in my letter:

"Because you failed to observe or act upon the presence, path and position of my bicycle and drove into collision with me, thereby affording me no opportunity to avoid the collision, you were negligent in your actions and therefore wholly liable for the losses I have suffered as set out in Table 1."

cookdn

Benthic wrote:

This bit: "....the entitled party may, without prejudice to his right to issue proceedings against the insured person, issue proceedings against the insurer."

Re-reading I think you are correct but it looks like you need to issue proceedings against the insurer first and in doing so are not prejudicing your right to subsequently issue proceedings against insured person. I'm not sure I can think how this maybe useful other than a situation developing where the vehicle had no valid insurance at the time of the collision but IANAL :-).

Benthic wrote:

My advice is to write to the driver. If they have any sense they'll pass it onto their insurance company.

We're past that stage, the driver has passed it to their insurer and Directline have confirmed they had a policy in force. I'm now waiting to see what the Police do. If they pursue the matter their report should assist me recover costs even if a prosecution ultimately fails.

Benthic wrote:

This was the key paragraph in my letter:

"Because you failed to observe or act upon the presence, path and position of my bicycle and drove into collision with me, thereby affording me no opportunity to avoid the collision, you were negligent in your actions and therefore wholly liable for the losses I have suffered as set out in Table 1."

Thanks for that. May come in useful once correspondence starts to be exchanged. I guess the account of the independent witness helped you out recovering from the Insurer despite Van Man denying responsibility. Not really a chance for a defense to succeed in civil proceedings based on balance of probabilities.

Best regards
David

benno68

I realise that you are being reasonable by not claiming personal injury and I would have probably done the same to effect a quick settlement.

However clearly the driver responsible is being unreasonable by disputing liability for the accident. At this stage I would seek the services of a solicitor to include a claim for pain, suffering and distress caused and claim for everything that is considered legally reasonable, this incident may put you off cycling for the forseeable future resulting in additional travel costs, as well as painful bruising and road rash, you may have flashbacks/nightmares. Take photo's of the bruising etc. Would be best if you saw your GP - even if it's for some decent painkillers so that there is a record of the injury.

Sadly in this day and age, being reasonable can often backfire. Indeed if Direct Line have told you to get a solicitor, mention this to a lawyer.

I've never had to use a solicitor but I've heard that these are on the ball:

http://www.rjw.co.uk/legal-services/personal-injury/cycling-accident-compensation-claims/#axzz23FdTsOOr

Regarding liability, if it is proved that the driver was 50% to blame, this would mean that you recover 50% of your overall claim - it would also mean that you could be held 50% liable for any damage caused to the vehicle involved. From the circumstances that you have described, the driver is fully responsible by overtaking you on a roundabout and cutting across you when she would have know of your presence!

Good luck.

dilemna

Why do you think that Direct Line would roll over easily and give you a cheque for £££? Stop being naive.

They are the insurer of the driver who knocked you down. The driver or any policy holder is NOT supposed to admit liability under the terms of their policy as the insurer is indemnifying their policy holder for all claims. Direct Line will not pay out unless they have to. It is not hard to reach the £1000 threshold for PI cases. What I suggest you do is get down to your GP with your injuries, get them doumented, get some pain killers and ask for some physio. Then ring up a solicitor such as the ones that act for cyclists and get the ball rolling asap. Direct Line will simply stall hoping you give up and they don't have to pay out. Some insurers refuse to deal with litigants in person, to try to fob you off. It's not that you can't represent yourself but it's a lot bloody harder than if you have a solicitor acting for you.

Why don't you want some compensation for your injuries?

Read the stickie at the top of this forum What to do in case of an accident.

bails87

I wouldn't necessarily have agreed with the above post immediately after the event, but seeing as they're 'playing hardball' you've not got much choice. I was hit by a driver insured by Zurich and looked after myself. They were very helpful and gave me what I consider to be a fair amount of compensation for my injuries (bruising and grazing). The driver admitted liability immediately and didn't try any funny businesss, I think he was genuinely upset he'd hit me, and it was a pure mistake rather than aggressive/malicious driving.

But if they've told you to use a solicitor then use one, and put their bill on your claim. If a solicitor is doing x hours work for your case then surely they just add 'x*hourly £' onto the final settlement? I'm not sure how the value of your injuries makes any difference.

cookdn

Benno68 wrote:

I've never had to use a solicitor but I've heard that these are on the ball:

http://www.rjw.co.uk/legal-services/personal-injury/cycling-accident-compensation-claims/#axzz23FdTsOOr

Thanks for that, I'll bear them in mind.

Benno68 wrote:

Regarding liability, if it is proved that the driver was 50% to blame, this would mean that you recover 50% of your overall claim - it would also mean that you could be held 50% liable for any damage caused to the vehicle involved.

Apologies, I am probably muddling the discussion by introducing percentages. Civil disputes have much lower burden of proof than criminal prosecutions that have to be proved 'beyond all reasonable doubt'. With 'balance of probability' the court (judge) simply needs to be satisfied that the occurrence of the event was more likely than not. More information here:

Proof on the balance of probabilities: what this means in practice

Best regards
David

hstiles

If they insist on dealing with a solicitor then more fool them. Phone up a no-fee claims company - plenty of ads in the back of the cycling mags - and let them deal with it.

I was hit by a car and although I initially contacted a claims company, I tried dealing directly with the other parties insurers (Direct Line interestingly enough). They were reasonable, moved quickly and settled cost of bike quickly and offered me a fair personal injury settlement some months later, after physio and independent doictor assessment.

cookdn

Seems a long time since I first started this thread. Directline basically ignored the first two letters I sent to them other than one phone call after my second letter to confirm that I was not claiming for personal injury. My third letter was sent recorded delivery on 24 October and in compliance with court pre-action protocol was a final warning to respond within 28 days or I would proceed the matter to court. They have not responded to that either.

I've just used the HM Courts Money Claim Online service to start proceedings in the Small Claims Track of the County Court. Cost for a claim of just under £500 was £35 which is added to the final amount. It will be interesting to see what happens next. I suspect Directline will just settle in full on a without prejudice basis. I can't see that they have much scope for disputing the value of my claim now it is in the hands of the County Court after they ignored it for four months.

Part of me is hoping that they try to defend this as the circumstances of the collision are obvious and their insured will make a very weak witness. It could be quite an entertaining day out, hopefully at Directline's expense .

Obviously this is not wrapped up yet but, after early-on deciding to stay emotionally detached, the process has been quite straight forward so far. Unless I have missed something vital in my research, acting on your own behalf is not that difficult.

Best regards
David

mouth

Out of interest, which roundabout?

cookdn

Mouth wrote:

Out of interest, which roundabout?

This one http://goo.gl/maps/5GsE9, travelling South to North, A60 to Barker Gate (A6008). The car driver was exiting East to Canal Street and literally tried to drive through me, colliding with my offside pushing me into the exit.

I'm not sure where the car entered the roundabout as it approached from my rear offside. I have my theories but as I have not seen the motorist's report to their insurer yet I wouldn't want to speculate online.

Best regards
David

Headhuunter

cookdn wrote:

Seems a long time since I first started this thread. Directline basically ignored the first two letters I sent to them other than one phone call after my second letter to confirm that I was not claiming for personal injury. My third letter was sent recorded delivery on 24 October and in compliance with court pre-action protocol was a final warning to respond within 28 days or I would proceed the matter to court. They have not responded to that either.

I've just used the HM Courts Money Claim Online service to start proceedings in the Small Claims Track of the County Court. Cost for a claim of just under £500 was £35 which is added to the final amount. It will be interesting to see what happens next. I suspect Directline will just settle in full on a without prejudice basis. I can't see that they have much scope for disputing the value of my claim now it is in the hands of the County Court after they ignored it for four months.

Part of me is hoping that they try to defend this as the circumstances of the collision are obvious and their insured will make a very weak witness. It could be quite an entertaining day out, hopefully at Directline's expense .

Obviously this is not wrapped up yet but, after early-on deciding to stay emotionally detached, the process has been quite straight forward so far. Unless I have missed something vital in my research, acting on your own behalf is not that difficult.

Best regards
David

This is exactly why I will always go with a no win no fee lawyer in these situations, insurance companies are an @rse to deal with. When I was knocked off 3 years ago, the driver was at fault and my bike was a write off, also I had some injuries. I had no idea how to go about making a claim, the bike was worth about 500 quid but the driver was only willing to give me a "couple of hundred"... After advice from people here and elsewhere, Russell Jones and Walker took over. They were magnificent and dealt with everything very efficiently, all I had to do was sign stuff they sent through... They not only got me the cost of the bike but 5500 quid in compensation (as well as costs associated with my injuries - medication etc). I know some people here don't like the "claims culture" but if insurance companies blatantly ignore the "little man" and refuse to respond to letters then they only have themselves to blame as far as I'm concerned. If I ever have an off in future I will go back to RJW, I haven't got the time to waste chasing insurance companies....

Iamnot Wiggins

I'm going to assume that most people on here are drivers as well as cyclists. You know when you get your renewal in the post and it's gone up, even though you haven't made a claim and you're at maximum NCB? It goes up because insurers have to pay out for false & over inflated injury claims, like is being suggested by a few of you on here. It's idiotic, stop it.

As for Direct Line, I've had to claim from twice as the third party with drivers at fault and admitting liability at the scene (one driver wasn't wearing his glasses and literally did not see me!!). Once you've got the reg number, run it through askmid.com to obtain the details of the insurer and the policy number and then ring them to report the accident. Then ring them, everyday, until they start taking you seriously. It's a drivers duty to report any incident which may lead to a claim being made and you'd be surprsed how many don't. This is the sticking point as insurers will onyl write, never call, which is a complete ball ache.

Both claims came to nover £1,000 each. One was settled within a week, the other took slightly longer with varying different stories being passed my way about them not accepting htings over th ephone, or by email etc. It's all bolocks so don't be fobbed off in any way, shape or form. Nothing in a motor policy stops you, the third party, from making a claim against an insured driver.

gezebo

I took admiral to court over a car v my house crash! Although the costs were different the process was the same.

Now you have started a money claim online (small claims) process they will either settle immediately or drag it out and employ solicitors.

If solicitors get involved then remember that often they will be employed on a sub-contractor type basis so they will want the matter to go to court (more ££) and reason will go out of the window.

Also the £35 fee is not the end of it, other fees will be added too and payable by both sides. This fee is set by the court to actually submit the papers to a judge( I think) and also another fee set by the judge to actually get a date for a hearing (definite).

If you know you are right then stick with it, hopefully they will settle sooner rather than later. These courts often settle in favour of the 'little man' but don't loose perspective and remember you are not getting paid for your time and the solicitors are!!

cookdn

gezebo, thanks for the info.

If it gets as far as being allocated a hearing, the fee is a further £55 which I'm quite happy to punt. For claims under £1,500 there is no fee for filing the hearing allocation questionnaire.

I can't see it getting that far. My theory is that Directline have taken a commercial decision to ignore my claim in the hope that I lose interest. Their costs so far are almost nil as they haven't responded to any of my letters, including the pre-action letter for which they can be awarded sanctions by the court.

It will be interesting to see what happens next. My court claim was issued on Friday by the Northampton County Court and is considered served from tomorrow. Directline have until Wednesday 12 Dec to acknowledge the claim with the court, otherwise I can apply for a judgment in default. If they acknowledge the claim without offering a settlement they then get a further fourteen days to enter a defence.

Costs in the small claims track are fixed so I shouldn't become liable for any legal costs that Directline incur of they try to defend this. This is why it is not cost effective for me to use a solicitor as I cannot recover those costs either. I think I know what I'm doing , I'll post to this thread again when something happens.

Best regards
David

DrLex

Fingers crossed for a good result.

cookdn wrote:

[...] I'll post to this thread again when something happens.

Best regards
David

Please do; it's useful to know of people's experiences in these (alas increasingly common) situations.

Headhuunter

Iamnot Wiggins wrote:

I'm going to assume that most people on here are drivers as well as cyclists. You know when you get your renewal in the post and it's gone up, even though you haven't made a claim and you're at maximum NCB? It goes up because insurers have to pay out for false & over inflated injury claims, like is being suggested by a few of you on here. It's idiotic, stop it.

As for Direct Line, I've had to claim from twice as the third party with drivers at fault and admitting liability at the scene (one driver wasn't wearing his glasses and literally did not see me!!). Once you've got the reg number, run it through askmid.com to obtain the details of the insurer and the policy number and then ring them to report the accident. Then ring them, everyday, until they start taking you seriously. It's a drivers duty to report any incident which may lead to a claim being made and you'd be surprsed how many don't. This is the sticking point as insurers will onyl write, never call, which is a complete ball ache.

Both claims came to nover £1,000 each. One was settled within a week, the other took slightly longer with varying different stories being passed my way about them not accepting htings over th ephone, or by email etc. It's all bolocks so don't be fobbed off in any way, shape or form. Nothing in a motor policy stops you, the third party, from making a claim against an insured driver.

I haven't got the time to phone and chase insurance companies everyday so as far as I'm concerned it's the no win no fee route from now on as clearly insurers only responde properly to solicitors

bails87

I would have thought that my quote has gone up because arsholes are crashing into people?

I also don't think anyone has said to commit fraud by submitting a false injury claim. The insurers told the OP to use a solicitor, so some of us said that he should, seeing as that's what he's been told to do. If it's use a solicitor or be ignored then it's not the OP who's at fault, it's the insurance companies.

Headhuunter

bails87 wrote:

I would have thought that my quote has gone up because arsholes are crashing into people?

I also don't think anyone has said to commit fraud by submitting a false injury claim. The insurers told the OP to use a solicitor, so some of us said that he should, seeing as that's what he's been told to do. If it's use a solicitor or be ignored then it's not the OP who's at fault, it's the insurance companies.

I think most insurance companies prefer to deal with solicitors anyway, a few people on this forum have mentioned that they have been told by insurers to appoint a solicitor to deal with them...