QUICK advice RE an accident!

fast as fupp

the insurance companies responsibility is to minimize their losses by paying you the minimum amount possible. they will run rings around you and you will end up losing out. you should also be compensated for the injuries youve suffered which were not your fault. are you qualified to assess this?

the naiivety youve shown in your postings on this matter would indicate that you seeking professional advice is essential.

also have the police been informed? they should have been as you were injured.

Cleat Eastwood

fast as fupp wrote:

the insurance companies responsibility is to minimize their losses by paying you the minimum amount possible. they will run rings around you and you will end up losing out. you should also be compensated for the injuries youve suffered which were not your fault. are you qualified to assess this?

the naiivety youve shown in your postings on this matter would indicate that you seeking professional advice is essential.

also have the police been informed? they should have been as you were injured.

+1 to this. Contact BC. To you its a shocking one time event - to them its a common occurrence - they've done it before, they know the ropes and the right way to go about stuff.

Mikey23

I had intended to contribute but others have already stated the blindingly obvious and the op seems determined not to listen anyway ...

kamil1891

fast as fupp wrote:

the insurance companies responsibility is to minimize their losses by paying you the minimum amount possible. they will run rings around you and you will end up losing out. you should also be compensated for the injuries youve suffered which were not your fault. are you qualified to assess this?

the naiivety youve shown in your postings on this matter would indicate that you seeking professional advice is essential.

also have the police been informed? they should have been as you were injured.

Probably you are right, but then again I'm still confused, I know I don't owe anything to that driver but he is really trying to cooperate and we know that solicitors would take an arm and a leg of his insurance.

Yes, the police was on the place but I don't know whether they've made any statement etc. I was not able to think at the time. I've got prove of being at hospital after the accident.

The insurance company told me that they want to solve this quickly as that's in their interest and asked me to provide all the details about my losses and assessment from my GP/physio. So, I assume they will pay what will be stated. Can they run rings around the obvious ?

PS. I also presume the injuries aren't that severe to cause any long term therapy.

kamil1891

OK, sorry! I was being daft :oops:

I will contact BC then asap.

Bozman

If you're dealing directly with his insurance company i bet that you'll get a call from an ambulance chasing solicitor within the next few days.
When i tried your route the insurance company(Tescos) passed all of my details over to a solicitor to assist in a personal injury claim..... I hadn't mentioned personal injury I just wanted my bike back on the road. Tescos denied passing the details over, then they tried to slow the claim down by saying that they were still waiting for witness statements....there was one witness and that had been delt with 6 weeks previously, in the end i got feed up and i got a solicitor and a £1000 claim cost Tescos(and us) roughly £12500 for the costs and the claim.

mouth

I know it's probably too late now but in such an event isn't it illegal for him to NOT give you his insurance details. After all that's where the compensation sharks will start circling anyway.

OwenB's quote "he must have insurance to hold a Taxi license" (I may have paraphrased slightly). No. Can hold a license for whatever you want but you don't need to have insurance just because you have a license. I had a taxi license (which I never used) a few years ago and once it came through the post noting more was ever heard.

Poor bugger's insurance is likely to go back to £80-100 per week but he shouldn't have admitted it. Also, even if his insurance is dodgy as you may well suspect it is, it doesn't mean he doesn't have to pay just because the insurance don't want to.

British Cycling is the way forward here. They retain specialists n such claims. Let them deal with it.

fevmeister

Have a look here - http://www.britishcycling.org.uk/campai ... -Stories-0

ad_snow

I have no experience of taxi insurance but I was 19 I was involved in an accident which resulted in me receiving 5 points on my license (I pleaded guilty which was probably the reason I didn't lose my license.) My insurance was cancelled on me, and when I got back on the road a year later my premium had only gone up £400 which seemed very reasonable to me.

So, I wouldn't worry about being 'nice' to him, even if he is a reasonable/decent guy. Assuming he's been driving for many years with no claims etc, he won't face too much on an insurance hike. You need to protect yourself and make sure you get enough money out the situation to cover everything, including loss of earnings (if applicable) and immaterial things such as physio etc.

P.S My car accident was nothing to do with speed, so don't form a bad opinion of me :P

kamil1891

That's good to hear. Sorry for being so dumb etc but I really tried to work the best way around it.

I've already contacted police which keeps a note of yesterdays situation and I've got a reference number. Tomorrow I'm calling BC.

thescouselander

Taxi drivers pay stupid money for insurance. A local driver round here told me he was paying around £4000 per year! I can understand why the driver in question wanted to settle outside of his insurance - the rise in next years premium will probably be quite punitive.

diy

If there is no personal injury and he can pay quickly it might be the best route. However, it doesn't sound like he can pay, so you should either contact his insurance and make a claim or contact yours and get them to do it.

He is stalling you to reduce your options. He knows that the claim get more complex for you if you delay.

kamil1891

As I've said before, he agreed to his fault and informed his insurance straight away after the accident. He is actually cooperating with me, so I have no issues with the driver itself apart from him being a bad driver I'm already sorting things out. Bike left with my LBS and will be assessed soon, photographs are made and tomorrow I will receive a quotation from my physio for my rehabilitation.

Yes, I would take money if I knew 100% I would not suffer from any injuries but the reality is that everyday it's getting worse, today I couldn't even walk because of my feet. I cannot cough because of my ribs and sore stomach(?) and I feel pain everywhere.

I really appreciate advice given here, otherwise I could have been even more naive.

The_Slowboat

Kamal, i usually just read these boards but felt compelled to jump in.

For a start your accident was just a couple of days ago so do not rush into anything and do not allow any company you deal with to push you into anything, be that solicitors or his insurer.

As people have already said his insurers job is to keep costs down, that might be by short changing you or avoiding legal fees, it's difficult to say which route they will be going for so tread carefully. Be very careful if you are asked to sign any documentation.

You mention that you have been given his solicitors details 'incase' but that right there is not legit in itself. His solicitors act for him, they cannot and are not permitted to act for you.

As I said at the start, do not rush into anything. If in a few weeks you have recovered from your injuries and you are satisfied his insurer will reimburse all your costs in full then great, if your still having problems in a few weeks and concerned by those then it's up to you whether you seek legal advice.

Good luck

Simm0

There is another post similar to yours on here and I will advise you the same as i did him. Have the guy charged by the police if that is an option and make a full claim. Are you a member of BC or CTC as they will help and advise and if you aren't then consider joining. To cut a long story short I was involved in an accident and the guy admitted liability, was very nice etc. I had to claim him as bike was wrecked and I required surgery, physio etc but he then denied everything even though police/ambulance were present and there were 2 eye witnesses. I had to take him to court and luckily won my case but it was a lot of hassle I shouldn't have had to go through and it took me about a year and a half to get reimbursed. The system is seriously flawed IMO and the only people who gain out it are lawyers! Charge him it makes things a lot easier for you later. The police in my case were lazy as they didn't automatically charge the driver who hit me even though I was hospitalised and had about £1500 worth of damages to the bike alone, yet they would fine me automatically for doing 35 in a 30 where there is no injury etc. Also in hindsight if you have been injured I think people should be charged as we are not second class citizens because we ride bikes and maybe if it happens to enough people then word will spread and people will be more careful! I'm waffling, so much for the long story short, good luck and hope you make a full recovery,