The short story is that a neighbour has accused me of damaging rear bumper of her Vauxhall Corsa by driving into it. I did park very close (within 1 cm) in order to unload a fridge after she parked appallingly outside my house. However I did not touch the car. In any case the damage was 2 vertical gouges which could not have been inflicted by a mark 2 golf in parking mode.
There are no witnesses to this fictitious incident. However she has clearly claimed on her insurance for a replacement bumper.
I am concerned she will try to reclaim this from me. Where do I stand. Can she without contacting my insurers? Doesn't she need a police report?
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I am sure that if her insurance company tries to collar you for this one and you can prove that this is a made up case, then I am sure that they would be keen to know about this. I remember hearing a very good piece on R5 about dodgy claims and how insurance companies are keen to prosecute.
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Two years ago my wife left a multistory carpark in Swindon and to her knowledge never hit any other car nor was there any other cars near her. However, three months later a solicitors letter, issued in Ipswich, came through the door asking for damage payment to a car she was supposed to have hit in the above mentioned carpark. The payment demanded was in excess of £1,000.00. Three witnesses "saw" the incident which according to them did appalling damage to the other car. There was not even a mark on our motor, mind you it was three months later when I checked. Faced with such "evidence", we had no option but to involve the Insurance company who took the case over. We did however lose two years NCB. What can you do in such circumstances. Was her car damaged by another and our car was just conveniently there or had it been damaged earlier and we filled a desire to find someone to blame.
My boy once had a very low speed bump with a taxi, when the cabbie came around for the insurance details I noticed that most of his headlight and front wing were badly damaged. I think he was hoping to pass the buck onto my lad. I told the insurance company soonest but the telephonist was not the brightest button in the box and six weeks later I got a phone call from their engineer asking about my statement. This I did, it turned out that the cabbie having got the essential details from my son rushed around to his friendly repairer and had the damage recitified within 24 hours. My lad lost a year's NCB the insurance Co. lost all that money through inefficiency. As you say a camera would have come in handy to collect images of damage to both cars. Live and learn.
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I'd imagine that having Protected NCD would help (I think my policy says that I can have 3 claims in 2 years before my NCD is "altered" - or am I reading this wrong?
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It just goes to show some of the terrible scams that are pulled.
All I can think of is this. If this "accident" in the car park was supposed to have caused "terrible damage" to the other car, i.e. yours, a visit to a bodyshop and an inspection by someone who knew what they were doing should have proved that no bodywork repairs had been carried out on your vehicle for several months. There are many signs that can be looked for. So where had all this "terrible damage" gone?!
Would be interested to know whether the insurance company came to inspect your vehicle, for this reason, or, perhaps, they simply weren't bothered. Quicker and easier for them to take away your NCB without getting involved in further investigation.
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Why don't you talk to her and ask her what part of your car made the marks? Let her work out for herself that you could not have done it!
If she claims on her insurance and can't pin it on you then she'll pay back 10 times the cost of the bumper in increased premiums. Let her know and she might thank you.
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Do not part with your insurance details to anybody. If a policeman asks, then either don't give them to him or emphasise how they must not be passed on.
If she writes to your insurers, they may disallow your bonus while they work out what is going on.
You may need to behave differently to maintain relationships, but insofar as the accident is concerned;
Take photographs immediately. Of your car and hers. Those vertical marks would be harder to point out once they are not there. In fact, take lots of photographs. If you've got a body specialist you know, buy him a pint and get him to look at both pieces of damage and write his comments. Dito if you have a policeman friend.
Do not communicate with her on the subject other than stating that is nothing to do with you.
Do make sure it was nothing to do with you and was neither your car or anything you were unloadng from it. Also bearing in mind that moving a large wieght in or out of your car will cause it to go up and down.
The photographs of both cars are important.
And do not complete a claim form/accident report form for your insurer.
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oh and.......
it might not be a "made up" claim, she might truly believe you did it.
she doesn't need a police report.
she can contact your insurers, although it is less complicated for you if she does not, but they cannot deal with the claim without your permission. Although if she gets really pushy they might ask for a letter from you stating it was not you and that whatever happens you will not be submitting any claim to them.
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Mark,
Also take a photo of the fridge???
Matt35
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