Advice Needed Car Insurance Advice

[Journey]

Hey guys, I thought this might be the place to post this, seeing as we have many experienced and varied people from all over the place

Firstly may i say, i am not looking to commit any kind of fraud or cheat my insurance company or anything underhanded, i am just looking for points of view based on experience as i have very little myself in making any claims, in fact we have not made any claims in at least 8 years, perhaps more

To cut a long story short, a few months back i was in a neighborhood that i am not overly familiar with and i had to reverse into someones drive way in order to turn around (it was a tight street), whilst reversing i scraped the rear passenger side of the car and bumped the boot part on a wheelie bin

I did not report the claims at the time, mainly because there was so much going on in the family (still is) and i am worried now that it is too late to make a claim

Is it mandatory that you report a claim straight away? If i say i have only just done it i am worried they will send out some forensic expert with a kit who will know i am not telling the truth and cancel the policy and then we will be screwed in the future

I cannot afford to pay out of my pocket for the repairs but also don't want to get in trouble with the insurance company either for not reporting this straight away

Any advice or experience would be appreciated

We have protected no claims on the policy

Thanks in advance

 

[TJExcalibur]

That depends on your excess. Protected no claims is a bit of a con because if you claim its on in your details for all insurance companies and the next time you renew the price will be higher.

 

[Journey]

That depends on your excess. Protected no claims is a bit of a con because if you claim its on in your details for all insurance companies and the next time you renew the price will be higher.

Thank you for replying, i am more worried about claiming for something that happened a few months back, that is my biggest concern

 

[Captain Jack]

I'd say that if it's a single car accident (i.e. no other cars were affected except yours), there would be nothing to stop you from saying that it happened yesterday.

It does depend on excess. Mine is only £100 but some cheaper covers have excesses of up to £500! Sometimes, it's cheaper to just do it out of your own pocket than go via insurance. And like TJ said, your insurance premium WILL go up, so add that into account too.

 

[Journey]

I'd say that if it's a single car accident (i.e. no other cars were affected except yours), there would be nothing to stop you from saying that it happened yesterday.

It does depend on excess. Mine is only £100 but some cheaper covers have excesses of up to £500! Sometimes, it's cheaper to just do it out of your own pocket than go via insurance. And like TJ said, your insurance premium WILL go up, so add that into account too.

Thanks for replying CJ - we currently have it set at no excess to pay, i paid a higher premium for this and to have the no claims protection as well

If you think i am safe to claim as a recent incident i may well go ahead with it, i am a worrier as you know, so will give it some more thought first

 

[aceb]

Either you're going to commit fraud or you're not. The claim process will want to every detail about the time, date, traffic conditions, weather, witnesses, other vehicles etc, who knows they may even contact the house owner to ask if they have CCTV coverage of their property. So if you're happy lying about that lot say it was yesterday

 

[Journey]

Either you're going to commit fraud or you're not. The claim process will want to every detail about the time, date, traffic conditions, weather, witnesses, other vehicles etc, who knows they may even contact the house owner to ask if they have CCTV coverage of their property. So if you're happy lying about that lot say it was yesterday

You make good points and i think that this is what is putting me off the whole thing, i am not a good liar and will trip myself up for sure

 

[Captain Jack]

Your original question remains unanswered. How quickly do you have to report it? If you say you couldn't do it at the time, because of family issues then it might not be a big deal.

 

[Journey]

Your original question remains unanswered. How quickly do you have to report it? If you say you couldn't do it at the time, because of family issues then it might not be a big deal.

True, i didn't think of it logically like that, i will have to dig out the policy and have a read

 

[Archived-1]

Just forget you ever did it, you've only just noticed the damage on your car today while washing it.

 

[TJExcalibur]

;)Yes just say it was parked in the road when you were out visiting and when you got home noticed the damage.
Honesty is the best policy unless it costs you money.

 

[sonnetpete]

If you were in France you would come home from the supermarket car park with damage like that each time you went shopping...

 

[Archived-1]

My car had damage like that when I bought it .

 

[Topper]

My car had damage like that when I bought it .

My car had damage like that when I sold it

 

[Channel Hopper]

If you were in France you would come home from the supermarket car park with damage like that each time you went shopping...

Yep, people just don't know how to drive wheelie bins in France.

 

[2cvbloke]

When it comes to claiming for things like scratches, scrapes, dents and dings, don't bother, in the long run they'll charge you more for the privilege than it would if you just repaired the damage yourself (either DIY or hiring a bodywork specialist), insurance is only really needed for crashes and injuries, but even then the insurance people will find ways to worm out of paying out, after all, they hire lawyers that specifically work on finding ways to avoid paying up and trying to make it somehow your fault...

Insurance; It's the world's biggest legal scam...

 

[sonnetpete]

Yep, people just don't know how to drive wheelie bins in France.

Out here in the sticks, we don't have wheelie bins....or even bins for that matter..

 

[PaulR]

Out here in the sticks, we don't have wheelie bins....or even bins for that matter..

Our sticks are similar to yours and we have wheelie bins. One for non-recyclable items and a smaller one for recyclable stuff. Oh, and each is collected weekly - are you listening Wirral LA?

Pete, do they use individual wheelie bins anywhere in the commune, closer to the village?

 

[sonnetpete]

Pete, do they use individual wheelie bins anywhere in the commune, closer to the village?

Don't think so, there are two large industrial size bins in the 'salle de fetes' car park next to the mairie. I think the few people actually living in the village (commune population less than 250) just pop along there with their black bin bags. My nearest 'bin' is about 400 metres up the road. A larger village (one which actually has shops) , about 10 minutes drive away, does have wheelie bins.