Road traffic accidents can be distressing and
difficult to deal with. This guide is designed to offer
general advice on what should be done and how. |
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If anyone
was injured you must report the accident to the police.
Exchange details with other drivers involved in the incident,
making sure that you get full contact details and insurance
information. Take down the contact details of any witnesses as
these may be valuable in the future.
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This should be
done as soon as possible. They will ask you for some details
relating to you, your policy with them (have your policy
number ready) and the accident. You will probably have to
complete a claim in which you will be asked to detail exactly
what happened with a diagram if appropriate.
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If you have
comprehensive insurance, any repair costs will normally
be met by your insurer. Be aware that a claim may affect your
no claims bonus.
If you have third party insurance (or
third party fire & theft) then the repair costs will not
be met by your insurer. Instead you will have to meet the
costs and claim them back from the insurance company for the
person responsible for the accident. Your solicitor can do
this on your behalf.
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This means that the
damage to the vehicle is beyond economic repair, i.e. the cost
of the repairs will be close to or more than the value of the
vehicle. Instead of repairing the vehicle, the insurance
company will offer you the value of the vehicle.
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You will need to liaise with
your insurer (comprehensively insured) or the other driver?s
insurers (third party insured) to try to negotiate a better
offer. The insurer will usually refer to an industry standard
car value guide, so if you feel that the offer is unfair you
will need to support this with evidence such as similar
vehicles appearing in Autotrader.
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Where you
have Comprehensive Insurance your insurer will wish to arrange
the repair for you using one of their preferred garages. Where
you are third party insured, you will require a written
estimate for the repair from a reputable garage. Some insurers
insist on 2 quotes. If the vehicle is written-off, you will
require a garage to provide a written statement to confirm
this. The other driver?s insurer (the third party insurers)
will arrange an inspection so that the repairs can be carried
out or the vehicle disposed of.
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When your vehicle is
written-off or cannot be used for a long period of time, you
ought to apply to receive a refund on your tax. You will need
to call the DVLA.
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If your solicitor is
successful in proving that you were in no way responsible for
the accident, your insurance company ought to give back your
no claims bonus.
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What should I do at
the scene of the accident?