Where do I stand

[AshleyR]

Little over a year ago I had a crash, my insurance was voided for reasons I won't go into now;

I was insured with company X and was involved in a collision with another gentleman insured with company Y.

Whilst everything was being sorted company Y sent me a letter making me aware that a claim of £746 was being made against me for damages to vehicle only.

Today I recieved a letter from company X saying that damages to other parties vehicle were over £2,000. Nothing is mentioned about admin fees included in this charge, where have they gotten an extra £1,300 from?

Can I take legal action, it seems like they are trying to steal from me?

 

[Puntodriver1991]

Little over a year ago I had a crash, my insurance was voided for reasons I won't go into now;

I was insured with company X and was involved in a collision with another gentleman insured with company Y.

Whilst everything was being sorted company Y sent me a letter making me aware that a claim of £746 was being made against me for damages to vehicle only.

Today I recieved a letter from company X saying that damages to other parties vehicle were over £2,000. Nothing is mentioned about admin fees included in this charge, where have they gotten an extra £1,300 from?

Can I take legal action, it seems like they are trying to steal from me?

Well your excess will be factor, obviously wont be the whole £1300, but can be quite high, depending on what your voluntary was and the compulsory set by insurance company

 

[AshleyR]

Well your excess will be factor, obviously wont be the whole £1300, but can be quite high, depending on what your voluntary was and the compulsory set by insurance company

They've voided my policy, why am I paying excess?

 

[Puntodriver1991]

They've voided my policy, why am I paying excess?

Hmm, i dont know just a suggestion.

Ask the insurance company for a breakdown of the cost

 

[AshleyR]

Hmm, i dont know just a suggestion.

Ask the insurance company for a breakdown of the cost

Phoning them tommorow, when I spoke to the case manager a few months ago I was told that I would probably only have to pay a certain percentge of the costs back, have they put a mark-up on what they payed out to make it seem as if I'm getting a good deal?

Surely this is illegal?

I can see them turning around and saying, the total costs were (example) £1500, but we'll cut you a deal and you can pay £1000 (thus making them a profit of £250).

They are without a doubt the most slimy people I have ever dealt with.

 

[custard]

theres not really a lot of detail
the price you were quoted before,was this for repairs?
you could find the toal includes car hire and any other costs involved
when you were told that price,was the car repaired already or was that the quote?

 

[AshleyR]

theres not really a lot of detail
the price you were quoted before,was this for repairs?
you could find the toal includes car hire and any other costs involved
when you were told that price,was the car repaired already or was that the quote?

Company Y sent me a letter asking for the £750 to settle (i.e. pay everything), I told them to contact my insurer as it was still ongoing.

Now the price has jumped by almost 280%.

 

[custard]

so you told them to contact your insurer when the policy was void?
you would need to request a full breakdown of the costs but you would be liable for all costs
now if you didnt pay the £750 at that point then its possible they could have recalculated it
do you still have that letter and have you contacted your insurer regarding what happened at their end?

 

[AshleyR]

so you told them to contact your insurer when the policy was void?
you would need to request a full breakdown of the costs but you would be liable for all costs
now if you didnt pay the £750 at that point then its possible they could have recalculated it
do you still have that letter and have you contacted your insurer regarding what happened at their end?

My insurer don't know that company Y sent me the letter asking for the settlement. And I told them to contact my insurer before my policy was voided (sorry should have made that clearer)

To sum up, I could have paid £750 to company Y and it have been sorted, but since it got passed over it's now over £2000 for no reason it doesn't include admin fee's etc)

BTW, the company I was insured with admitted that they don't insure people at my age (after I'd claimed ofcourse), however if I tried to get a policy online it would still let me, issue me with a certificate and only flag it up if I tried to claim. I've also read reviews of people saying the same thing online! They make me sick!

 

[custard]

have you filed a complaint with the ombudsman?
you really need to contact this company and enquire where therse costs have come from and why its increased from their original letter
you may want to start dealing with them by letters only via recorded delivery to keep a track of all contact

 

[AshleyR]

have you filed a complaint with the ombudsman?
you really need to contact this company and enquire where therse costs have come from and why its increased from their original letter
you may want to start dealing with them by letters only via recorded delivery to keep a track of all contact

Contacted ombudsman, apparently they're really busy at the moment, I just don't want 2 meatheads turning up on my doorstep for money I don't have to spare!

It honestly appears as if the are stealing from me, how can they get away with it?

 

[custard]

its a bit early for that,you need ot contact them for a breakdown and reasons its higher than before

 

[AshleyR]

its a bit early for that,you need ot contact them for a breakdown and reasons its higher than before

I'm phoning tommorow, will keep you posted on how it goes and will be naming and shaming when it's sorted.

Thanks for your help mate!

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

I'm phoning tommorow, will keep you posted on how it goes and will be naming and shaming when it's sorted.

Thanks for your help mate!

Don't phone them!

Keep it in writing. Have no proof of what was said over the phone

 

[usetherudders]

Your ex-insurer would've have paid the third party claim under their RTA liability as the last known insurer, they are now looking to recover their outlay from you as your policy was voided ab-inito.

The cost presented by insurer Y was their outlay ie payment for vehicle repairs or total loss and storage costs.
In addition to this the third party may have used an accident management company or legal expenses provider to recover their uninsured losses in the respect of excess, car hire charges, loss of earnings and loss of use.
So it is quite easy to see how the claim has risen to £2000 and doesn't seem too excessive and believe me I've seen far worse!

I guess no injury claim has been submitted yet?

You're wasting your time going to the ombudsman as you have no grounds for a valid complaint as what you have told us you took the policy out on false pretenses and the small print in your policy will contain a cancellation clause for misrepresentation.

At the end of the day you can't pay then the insurer may come to an arrangement with you.

Sorry for the bad news but the insurer is quite within their rights to recover their outlay.

Please don't shoot me down but this is how the industry works and I'm happy to give anyone here advice.

Regards
Simon

 

[leebassman]

surely if they have accepted your payment for the insurance (unless you have give false details) and sent out paperwork and certifacte what grounds do they have to void insurance in the first place,unless drink driving are driving somebody elses car on full comp policy etc. If your unsure id go see a specialist soliciter to see if its all above board.

 

[usetherudders]

If the policy was voided ab-initio then Ashley R would've received a full refund, as if the policy was never in force.

They would have voided the policy on misrepresentation as the policy was taken out on false pretenses.
Insurers can void policies for many reasons such as failure to disclose convictions, accidents and modification to name a few.

 

[custard]

If the policy was voided ab-initio then Ashley R would've received a full refund, as if the policy was never in force.

They would have voided the policy on misrepresentation as the policy was taken out on false pretenses.
Insurers can void policies for many reasons such as failure to disclose convictions, accidents and modification to name a few.

but if you give all your details(DOB in this case) and the system allows you to complete the policy?

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Your ex-insurer would've have paid the third party claim under their RTA liability as the last known insurer

Details of where you got this from? Insurance company don't have to pay out if policy was void at time of incident.

Accident is then treated as a none insured collission by the 3rd partys insurance is it not?

You not getting RTA liabilty confused on the basis that if an uninsured driver is hit by an insured driver, the policy of the insured driver will have to cover damages to the uninsured car even though they techincally shouldn't have been on the road.

 

[usetherudders]

Details of where you got this from? Insurance company don't have to pay out if policy was void at time of incident.

Accident is then treated as a none insured collission by the 3rd partys insurance is it not?

You not getting RTA liabilty confused on the basis that if an uninsured driver is hit by an insured driver, the policy of the insured driver will have to cover damages to the uninsured car even though they techincally shouldn't have been on the road.

Mr MEP,
Insurance companies get all details via the MIB database, it is extremely difficult for insurers to avoid payment of any claim if they were the last known insurer.


If an insurer decides that it can't indemnify it's insured, it must still consider its statutory obligations under the Road Traffic Act and subsequent regulations. It is extremely rare for an insurer to be able to escape it liabilities under the RTA, but it will almost always retain liability under article 75.

Have you heard of article 75? Look it up.

No I am not getting confused my friend, please refer to my original post. I think you are getting confused with the MIB uninsured driver agreement which is designed to provide compensation for innocent victims.
Insurers pay a levy into this fund and cannot claim any losses from it.

There are many market agreements amongst insurers to keep claim costs to a minimum and cheaper claim costs result in cheaper premiums.
These agreements are also designed to create better working relationships between insurers so it would be quite common for the insurer to settle the TP claim and then look to recover from their policy holder.

Ashley R did refer the TP insurers to his insurance company after all.

As I said in my first post I'm here to give you guys helpful advice from an insurers perspective so please don't shoot me down if you don't like what your being told, then sorry, its the fact.