Settle a car crash by cash... advice needed

Associate
Joined
11 Jun 2009
Posts
435
Hey all,

I got into a little bump on the weekend, a driver had let me out and I merged into moving traffic which stopped while I was checking the other way... ~5mph into an old Renault Clio :(.

Thinking of my insurance I asked the lady if we could settle cash. I've received a quote today for £1200 to mend the 'back plate and boot floor being completely bent', prior to this the only complaint I had was the boot was a 'bit stiff'.

Anyway, I don't really have much to push back with, and honestly it was my fault, she seemed a fair person so I'm happy for the work to be carried out.

What I'm worried about however is:

A) The garage having me on as they know it's an 'insurance claim' and
B) Agreeing to the £1200, having it turn into 1500... oh and the exhaust is damaged now we've looked too. Or a week later, my lights have stopped working etc.

Can anyone advise what is the best way to proceed? Can I ask the lady to agree in writing to the work being carried out and concluding the repairs to her vehicle?

edit: Just to add my main concern is a hike in insurance due to the car I drive, I'm 27 and drive an XF so wondering how much I'm relying on my NCB to be able to afford the insurance...

edit2: because I'm 27 not 28 :/!

Thanks guys!
 
Last edited:
Associate
Joined
17 Dec 2009
Posts
2,008
best bet, especially at that vlue is to probably tell her to go through the insurance company. she will have reported it anyways to them and youre meant to too..

if it was a cheap fix id be inclined to go outside but at 1200 its not an excessive amount in terms of claims so wouldnt knock your insurance prices too much,mand youre likely to not loose 1200 over the course of building your ncb back up..

i had a similar one, where she called me and offered to do it out of insurance and even gave me the garage as to where she got her quote from. pretty high in quote price but i knew he is a very good bodyshop and you get what you pay for, and ultimately if i was going outside court at someone elses fault id want premium paid to ensure my car got fixed properly. i just told her to go through the insurance and thanked her for honesty and giving me the option not to, and it bumped my insurance up £200 the following year
 
Associate
OP
Joined
11 Jun 2009
Posts
435
Thanks guys, just added and edit above to say my main concern is I'm only 27 and drive an XF, I'm not sure how much of my reasonable insurance quote is due to my NCB? It's £79 at the moment, I can deal with it doubling, but more than that... I can't.

Edit: Can I inform my insurance of the incident, but make no claim yet? And also get a quote for if I did make a quote?
 
Caporegime
Joined
8 Sep 2005
Posts
29,917
Location
Norrbotten, Sweden.
Please...

In the whole entire history of insurance job quotes/claims who doesn't add extras onto it or charge more because they know its getting covered....

A normal job that's £200 quid soon sky-rockets because its an insurance quote.

I would go through the claim, let their guys get 2nd or 3rd repair quotes for the job and just carry on with life and a little extra premium
 
Associate
Joined
17 Dec 2009
Posts
2,008
your price wont double from £80 p/m its a low payout and its n ot just about a crash but the amount you payout. if you have a crash for 10-30k it will boost your inusrance up more than a 1/2k jobbie
 

Deleted member 11679

D

Deleted member 11679

I understand your concerns with regards the insurance, however, it's what we pay insurance for after all. I personally would claim on that kind of money and pay the increased premium via direct debit through the next 12 months.

Have you put a quote through with your insurer or a broker and had a look at what the price would be like with no NCB and reporting the details of the incident? I'm with Direct Line and I know I could do this online if I needed to.
 
Associate
OP
Joined
11 Jun 2009
Posts
435
I understand your concerns with regards the insurance, however, it's what we pay insurance for after all. I personally would claim on that kind of money and pay the increased premium via direct debit through the next 12 months.

Have you put a quote through with your insurer or a broker and had a look at what the price would be like with no NCB and reporting the details of the incident? I'm with Direct Line and I know I could do this online if I needed to.

Thanks, I've done this with no NCB and the quote has come out cheaper than what I'm currently paying... !!!

I'm going to give them a call now.
 
Soldato
Joined
11 Oct 2005
Posts
4,796
Location
Manchester, UK
When I had a minor bump last year, I tried to prepare for the worst and ran quotes with a fault claim and a £500 cost. It actually reduced my premiums by £100 for some strange reason. Luckily I heard nothing from the person who I bumped.

I'd just go through insurance.
 
Soldato
Joined
7 Dec 2011
Posts
10,401
Unless you have a crazy excess going through insurance is a no brainer.

I had a bump a few months ago that looks to be going 50/50 - this means i'll go back to 3 years no claims (despite having more than 6, but they don't count after 5) and from checking my insurance due next month I'll either be paying the exact same or in the region of £30 more for the year. That plus £100 excess is about all the extra it will have cost me.

I'm 30 so not far off your age either.

£1200 for a 5mph repair is nonsense - either it was a fair bit quicker, into the corner of the car or they're just at it. Either way let insurance deal with it
 
Soldato
Joined
9 Jun 2005
Posts
13,958
remember that you most likely wont lose all of your NCB for this claim

i certainly cant see you been worse off than you will be by paying 1200 quid cash
 
Soldato
Joined
13 Jan 2004
Posts
20,929
Insurance. End of.

Even with a cash settlement you still have to notify your insurer. If you chose to make a false deceleration on your renewal (IE - not tell them) that's your risk.
 
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