Alleged insurance incident in car park - what do we do?
A woman friend, aged about 80, has recently been accused by another woman of scraping her Mercedes in a public car park.
The Mercedes owner stated that, two weeks previously, she had parked next to a ‘light blue car with a boxy rear end’ and returned to find that her car had been damaged.
She claimed that my friend’s mid-blue Golf was the vehicle involved but offered no proof or witnesses, other than to claim that a mark on the Golf’s front plastic moulding was the contact point.
By this time the Mercedes was being repaired in the garage and its owner was driving a courtesy car, so there was no opportunity for any damage to be examined.
My friend’s insurance company has now informed her that the other company is pursuing a claim against her. I have examined the Golf, a seven year old car, and, apart from some age-related nicks, there is nothing to indicate a recent engagement with another vehicle.
Furthermore, my friend, although aware that a car was next to hers when she left the car park, is certain that she did not make contact with it on departure. Can you please advise where my friend stands and suggest a course of action?
The Mercedes owner stated that, two weeks previously, she had parked next to a ‘light blue car with a boxy rear end’ and returned to find that her car had been damaged.
She claimed that my friend’s mid-blue Golf was the vehicle involved but offered no proof or witnesses, other than to claim that a mark on the Golf’s front plastic moulding was the contact point.
By this time the Mercedes was being repaired in the garage and its owner was driving a courtesy car, so there was no opportunity for any damage to be examined.
My friend’s insurance company has now informed her that the other company is pursuing a claim against her. I have examined the Golf, a seven year old car, and, apart from some age-related nicks, there is nothing to indicate a recent engagement with another vehicle.
Furthermore, my friend, although aware that a car was next to hers when she left the car park, is certain that she did not make contact with it on departure. Can you please advise where my friend stands and suggest a course of action?
Asked on 30 March 2012 by Iwannajag
Answered by
Honest John
Tell the insurer to refuse the claim and let the matter go to court. Tell the insurer that if it pays out and penalises your friend in any way, your friend will sue the insurer for any loss.
We give you the low down on how to save on insurance, little-known tricks and tips, what insurance groups mean and how to use insurance aggregators to beat insurers.
Insurance group finder and how to save on insuranceSimilar questions
I was involved in a car accident last year and the other party admitted liability. His insurance company rang and confirmed liability both to me and my insurers. My insurance duly paid for all the repairs...
I bought a 2003 BMW 540i Touring M-Sport in February 2017 from a dealer for £6900. It is a rare model and very high spec. I insured with Admiral fully comp. April 15th 2017, I pranged the front end of...
My nephew is struggling to keep his one-man business going, has asked me for help. A couple of weeks ago he was driving into his office car park past a car, which was parked on the hatched ‘no parking’...
.jpg)
