Insurance

Convicted Driver Insurance

Pardeep singh

New Member
Hello
Basically - I have lost my license following a drink driving offence which involved me crashing in to a parked car (no one else was involved other than myself) and car insurance has been suspended - the other parties insurers are seeking £15000 cost for damage to the car plus extras - my insurance company feel this excessive as the car was worth £5000 which has been sent. The other party also want £6000 for car hire which was just for one month as part of the £15000 (which I can' afford). My ex insurers will pursue the case on my behalf if I sign a form but they have said they may then seek the legal costs from me. I dont know what to do.
Regards
Pardeep
 
I sent the following email to my insurance company..

Dear ?

I write with reference to case number XXXXX.

Firstly to let you know that the accident date stated (22nd May 2008) is incorrect and the actual date is 21st June 2008.

Secondly I would be very grateful if you could answer the following questions in reference to the above claim.
    • As my insurance has been suspended because of the drink driving offence does this mean that I am no longer entitled to any legal advise from yourselves? If so are you able to suggest where I might get some legal advise regarding this matter?

    • I would like to reiterate that on least three different occasions whilst I was waiting for the police to give me my blood results, I was told by Swift Cover that if I was found to be over the drink driving limit I would not be paid out for my car. However, I was told that I would be covered for all third party costs. This was reiterated once again when I told Swift Cover that I was found to be over the limit when my blood results finally came through. Please could you clarify this point for me. Why has this changed?

    • Finally, the costs for the third party which I was told are £15,000 do not commute with the value of the other parties car which I believe was valued at £5000 and which was paid to the other party within a month. Also the other parties insurers are asking for £6000 for car hire for one months hire! Are you able to provide a breakdown?

    • You have offered me the opportunity to pursue the case on my behalf - I am not in a position to pay £15000 to the other party. Through legal action you are hoping to reduce this but what are the chances of success and would I have to pay the legal cost also if you are unsuccessful - obviously I cant pay more than £15000 just as I cannot pay £15000. In the circumstances I don't know what decision to make and would be really grateful if you could provide any clarity to help me make a decision.
Thank you for your time
Regards
 
And my insurance company replied with....

Dear Sir

Thank you for your e-mail. To cover the 1st point of your e-mail we would suggest that you contact legal advise from an independent source such as the Citizen Advise Bureau or your own family solicitor maybe able to give you better advise.

In relation to the second point of your e-mail if we provided cover for this accident then it would be correct that we would have covered the other parties claim, however as your policy has been voided back to the date of loss we do not indemnify you for this claim. As such we will settle the other parties claim as is our legal obligation as Road Traffic Acts Insurer and will recover the money from yourself directly.

Finally in relation to your last point the cost of the claim is currently broken down as follows:

£6340.68 For Hire charges which is currently going through court proceedings – this is the area we are disputing as we do not believe this is a fair sum to be claimed.
£311.38 for Storage & Recovery Charges of your car
£76.38 for the engineers fee for inspecting the other parties vehicle
£5272.96 for the value we have paid for the other parties vehicle.
This equals a total of £12,001.04 for the costs claimed.

However as we disputing the cost of the hire claim this is resulting in solicitors fees which can only be approximated at £3500.00. This is total brings the claim to £15,000.00 however it is hoped by reducing the hire charges we will reduce the overall cost of the claim.

Please confirm via return that you are now signing the form of consent. This will then enable us to continue dealing with the claim and seek redress of the monies paid from you. Failing this it will be left for the claimant to pursue the damages directly against you. We therefore urge you to sign the form.

Kind Regards
 
If your insurance policy excludes your own lossess (as distinct from third party losses) in the event of damage caused by you whilst over the drink drive limit, then you are liable for your own losses. Losses incurred by the third party ought to be covered by your insurance but your insurance company are asking for your signed consent to enable them to deal with the third party claim on your behalf. If you refuse to give this consent then your insurer may refus to indemnify you in relation to this claim.

This is a civil matter and you should seek advice from a civil solicitor immediately. If you cannot find a civil solicitor to help you then I would agree with your insurer that you should speak to the Citizen's Advice Bureau
 
Enter code DRINKDRIVING10 during checkout for 10% off
Top