Advice needed please....

[Rhys182]

My girlfriends clio dci was hit by another car in december. Someone reversed into the passenger door and rear quarter panel causing dents.

We went to Reanult to get a quote and they gave us a leaflet for brittania (non fault claims company), they called us and said they would chase everything up for us (we ave them third parties phone number, address, and name).

Several weeks having passed we've now been told by brittania that he is uninsured and they are not sure whether the car is even registered to him or not. And as brittania make their money by claiming their costs back from the third party they will no longer do the job. So...

anyone had experience with this type of thing?
Should i go straight to the police?
Phone the guy myself (I think this is pointless as he's been giving brittania the runaround)
plus the quote we had from renault was £1500 for a new door skin and spray whole passenger side of car!!!

f**king insured tw*ts!!

Any help appreciated. Thanks

 

[Ross16V]

hate to say this, but i dont think theres anything more you can do than take it up with the law. i dont know if theres some way they can get him to pay for the damage out of his own pocket.

 

[Rhys182]

Just been doing a bit of searching myself and found this...

"And if you are hit by an uninsured driver, expect to pay dearly. For a start, the accident goes against you as a "fault" claim. This means you will have to pay out the excess - normally £300 - on your policy. Not only this, but you will lose your no-claims bonus, which on average works out at a cost to you of £250 over a two-year period."

This sucks, its no wonder so many people drive without insurance. "An estimated 1.2 million people - or one in 20 UK motorists - drive regularly without insurance, according to figures from the Department for Transport."

I'm not a violent person and am normally quite rational but this has got me infuriated. its no wonder people take the law into their own hands. Luckily i know where he lives!

 

[Ross16V]

thats unlucky. Is there any news on what happened to him? Driving ban? With stats like that (1 in 20) the government should put a hefty fine on people that drive uninsured, not only owuld they make a mint, but the money could be used ot fix innocent peoples cars who have been effected!

 

[Rhys182]

No news mate, just pondering what to do. We havent contacted him yet as we were told not to by brittania. Your right about the government but they only turn a blind eye once again...

"The courts usually fine offenders between £150 and £200 - a sum, he points out, significantly lower than the average motor insurance premium."

The full article is http://money.independent.co.uk/personal_finance/insurance/article333765.ece
quite interesting reading.

Could do with some advice from someone working in insurance. Anybody?

 

[jonesyx]

invove the feds.

aint there an compensation fund for people involved in accidents with uninsured drivers? try googling it, or someone else will be able to point you in the right direction.

 

[RafChandler]

Hi mate, a very similar thing has happened to me in the last 3 weeks apart from i was luckily hit by an insured driver.

What contact details do you have for this person?

What i did was ring there insurance compnay directly, told them what had happened and then sent a covering letter stating all the facts.

I then went to Renault and got Brittannia to carry out the repairs (who still have my car at the moment).

You are going to have to pass on all the details to the police, as its not on that this guy was driving without insurance.

Have you phones your insurance company and informed them what has happened?

Be very carefull with the hire car from Britannia if you end up getting one. I had a mini cooper s which got stolen, and they are wanting to hold me responible for it, i could end up with a huge bill from Britannia yet. I would think twice before using them.

 

[CrazyK]

Hello Mate,

There is a couple of things you can do, there is a part of the GIC general Insurance Council which deal with claims of non fault parties hit by uninsured drivers. You would have to do a bit of research, try google.

I would also check with your own insurance company as many companys now offer a protection for their customers if they are hit by uninsured drivers. ( directline started this but many companies have this now).

Thirdly go to the old bill and report what has happened, I know that if the driver gets prosecuted he will only get 6 points and a £200 fine but you can sue the third party for damages and this is much easier to do if the guy has already been prosecuted for the offence.

Hope this helps!

K

 

[Rhys182]

Cheers for the help guys.

Been reported to police now so will wait and see if they will chase it up. Girlfriends insurance is tescos so hopefully they have a good policy on this sort of thing (she'll be phoning them 2moz). I have also phoned the MIB (motor insurers bureau) who basically advised us to do what you have said.

Will see how it goes and posts course this sort of thing is well known for most people.