Annoying, pointless, avoidable accident...

Adam

Adam

Adam

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
9,279
So this morning, I had an accident.

Picture the scene: The road turns to the right, there is a small turning straight ahead. The driver infront of me sees that workmen are carrying our roadworks and has a manual lollipop (stop/go). He saw this went red and reverses in order to change his route to take the side road. Unfortunately, I was between his van and the side road :mad:

So, I have a third party witnesses and the third party has admitted liability so all good in that respect.

The damage is absolutely minimal. I have a dent in the bumper, some scatches and the top and bottom grilles of my LCR have become dislodged and no longer fit in place. I feel like an absolute ******* putting a claim in just before Christmas as the guy was genuine and made an error.

Thing is, with the grilles no longer fitting I suspect there is more damage than there first appears. I also don't want there to be damage when I come to sell the car in the next few months. There is no doubt the bumper will need to be replaced as well as the top and bottom grilles.

So rant over, very small amount of damage but what option do I have? :(
 
What if someone was walking behind his van seeing that he had stopped? Would he have made a genuine mistake then?

Pretty stupid trying to revese on a main road in traffic to be honest.
 
offer him the alternative to pay cash if he requires

Its the most can you do without being taken for a ride. Get a quote for the work and let him know how much it will be.

I've been in the wrong before, and theres not much else you can ask of the driver you hit other than to be A) understanding and not go mad, and B) offer you the alternative to pay cash if it works out better.
 
Glad it's not that bad, and certainly not your fault. Think yourself lucky, I reversed into a concrete post on Christmas Day last year. Ended up having to have a whole new rear quarter welded in... epic, epic fail on my part.
 
haha thats a point.

the "in the wrong incident" i mentioned was christmas eve last year. Definately the best way to spoil your christmas.
 
Put a claim in - the fact its 'just before christmas' is irrelevent as the other guy wont need to pay a penny until he renews his insurance next year.

Whereas if he pays for it all now it'll cost him cash now.
 
I don't see what the fuss is about.

Its quite simple, claim. He pays nothing, and as fox said, the time of year is irrelevant.
 
I said straight away that if there is damage it will be going through the insurance. As much as i'd like to offer him the chance to pay cash, i'm sure the insurance route will be cheaper overall.

I also work long hours Mon-Fri so I simply don't have the time to do quotes etc :(

Just feel a bit **** really. Can't be bothered with the hassle and feel sorry for the guy. Oh well!
 
lordrobs said:
Exactly. I wouldn't feel bad in the slightest, not like its coming directly from his pocket and the kids are going to get a lump of coal and an orange for christmas :p
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It's the credit crunch, they should count themselves lucky to receive that much :p
 
MrLOL said:
haha thats a point.

the "in the wrong incident" i mentioned was christmas eve last year. Definately the best way to spoil your christmas.
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Ooo I dunno, last year was one of the best Christmas Days I've had in some time. Actually managed to get tipsy, which after that much food is unheard of. The worst part of it was having to drive a 3 cyl Yaris around for 3 weeks whilst my car was in for works, seriously not cool. :o
 
Adam said:
I said straight away that if there is damage it will be going through the insurance. As much as i'd like to offer him the chance to pay cash, i'm sure the insurance route will be cheaper overall.

I also work long hours Mon-Fri so I simply don't have the time to do quotes etc :(

Just feel a bit **** really. Can't be bothered with the hassle and feel sorry for the guy. Oh well!
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I would be the same.

Whilst I don't go out of my way to be a **** I wouldn't spend my own time chasing after quotes plus by the time you factor in a rental the bill starts racking up even for a minor bump.
 
Adam said:
I said straight away that if there is damage it will be going through the insurance. As much as i'd like to offer him the chance to pay cash, i'm sure the insurance route will be cheaper overall.
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An "honest mistake" doesn't include reversing your truck without looking, because you can't be arsed to wait at a stop sign. Just go for the insurance, its the least hassle to both parties, gives him no chance to screw around, and gets you resolve quicker.

Adam said:
I also work long hours Mon-Fri so I simply don't have the time to do quotes etc :(
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So just do the insurance route. One quick call "oh hai, I need insurances help thanx".

Adam said:
Just feel a bit **** really. Can't be bothered with the hassle and feel sorry for the guy. Oh well!
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See above. Just go through insurance, its why you BOTH pay for it.
 
Helphire are handling the claim, they have been great so far. Hoping they are able to organise a body shop for the weekend.

It will be interesting to see what hire car they give me :)
 
I see them mentioned a lot on here and I believe I would have paid my excess with my insurer which I didn't need to do with Helphire. Additionally, I also receive a comparable car to my LCR.
 
When I claimed against a 3rd party, Adrian Flux instructed help hire to handle the claim. They arranged the assessor, hire car and all fees. Well they cocked that up and sent me cheque for the value of the hire car... and the hire car was paid for by them already. So I'm all for Helphire :D
 
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