AAARRRHH!!! Just had a prang!!! How much EXCESS???

[monte]

First of all if you can read this and give me some advice It would be greatly appreciated  

Well peeps, I was on my way to Revo this morning, but like the title says....I have just pranged the car. My own fault, I know, well in the eyes of the insurance anyway 
I was pulling out at a T junction, (turning right) I saw a black golf heading towards me indicating left to turn into the road I was on and slowing right down. I pulled out a little and glanced the other way to see if it was clear the other side, and CRUNCH! 

The guy (who was working for Europcar) has made a mess of my front wing and bumper. The woman behind him pulled over and said he had his indicator on for the last mile, and that she had been waiting for him to hit someone.

Well just checked my policy  I cannot believe it. It is the first time I have read it properly. I thought my excess was high at £500, but that was just my voluntary excess. It says the compulsory excess is £450 + voluntary £500 = £950.

£950 excess I would have never accepted the policy on those terms if I had known. (ELEPHANT Insurance BTW).

So now I don't know what to do. I have a witness to the accident, but like I said, I am sure I will still be at fault! It would be way cheaper to fix the car myself, but I am sure that the other party has already got the wheels in motion with their company insurance.

Gonna call Elephant at 1pm when I get home 

.......I called Revo, and they will still sort my car in a few weeks 

[vRStu]

I think you should speak to elephant and tell them that you are not prepared to be held at fault.  You could also lodge a written complaint with Europcar.  You need to make sure you claim from their insurance and not yours.

[edd666999]

if you have a witness that can confirm that he was indicating, you could claim 50/50. but thats the best you will get imo.

[no golf clubs at all]

Sorry to hear this matey...dont think I can offer any words of encouragement, I think as you pulled out into traffic regardless of the muppet indicating then you may be held at fault. I know its not what you want or need to hear right now, I am sorry.

That is shockingly high for excess etc, saluatory lesson for us all to check and make sure we are all familiar with our policies.

I am reckoning that your repairs will run into £2k ish, so it will be worth your while just getting your credit card out and getting on with it.

At least no one was hurt, dont beat yourself up about it, it is just after all a car. (and some money)....

Good luck, but DO NOT ADMIT ANY LIABILITY!!! leave that to the big boys in the insurance companies to argue about.

[Sunglasses Ron]

Nooooooooooooooo! Gutted for you Carlo.. Just when you have some good luck (with the Revo prize) this happens..  
Like others have said, you may as well contest it, but I wouldn't hold your breath. Was there much damage to his? Where did this happen bud?

[monte]

Thanks for the replies   I guess the most valuable lesson is to check insurance docs with a fine toothed comb! I know I set my insurance excess at £500 and that was on a comparison site. I cannot believe it says all this bolly about Compulsory Excess + Voluntary Excess = Excess to Pay!!!

Nooooooooooooooo! Gutted for you Carlo.. Just when you have some good luck (with the Revo prize) this happens..  
Like others have said, you may as well contest it, but I wouldn't hold your breath. Was there much damage to his? Where did this happen bud?

I know mate, I know..... I was pulling out of Moor Street onto Carholme Road.

I have a feeling the car will go to Brooklands too, and I have heard lots of bad reviews about them  

As for His damage, He just had some front bumper damage.

[monte]

I think you should speak to elephant and tell them that you are not prepared to be held at fault.  You could also lodge a written complaint with Europcar.  You need to make sure you claim from their insurance and not yours.

Could you please give me a bit more info Stu??? 

[em2evol]

I agree with not admitting liability... It sucks that the excess is so high - mine is £1300, but if it brings the policy price down... I guess you thought the same as most people "well I'm not likely to claim" but you always get idiots on the road eh 

Good luck with getting it all sorted out...

[S2 Ant]

You choose where the car goes for repairs as well, so if you dont like the garage they first choose, then ask for a list of insurance approved places or find one you're happier to use.

[no golf clubs at all]

^^^^ wot he said...yes, your insurer may prefer you to go to their garage but you do have the say where it goes to a degree, it may mean a few extra days pinning down quotes and waiting for the go ahead etc but twill be worth it rather than getting a dodgy paint job.

...is your splitter ok? see if the repairer will slap on an ed30 front splitter for you (whoops assuming you have a std GTI that is)...else you would be expecting an ed30 splitter! 

Good luck pal, horrible when these things happen.

[LouCyffer]

You choose where the car goes for repairs as well, so if you dont like the garage they first choose, then ask for a list of insurance approved places or find one you're happier to use.

Spot on. You choose where your car goes for repair. The myth that you need 2 or more quotes is just that; a myth. If you have an accident repair centre in mind, get your quote, send it to the insurer and state that it isn't going anywhere else.
As you were on a minor road, joining traffic you will not get out of some portion of blame for this one. However a witness statement to the effect that the vehicle had failed to cancel a turn signal over a distance of around a mile could lead to police interest. A driver who fails to notice the turn signal repeater on their dashboard is clearly not paying attention to the instruments. Which includes a speedometer. This opens up 'driving without due'...
Avoid credit hire companies. They arrange to hire you a replacement car while yours is off the road. There has been a massive growth in this practice. The repairs on yours are delayed while you run up a huge hire bill. If you're lucky, the other party's insurer pays. If it all falls through your insurer or you can be left with huge bills.

Finally make this website your best friend: http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/insurance

Good luck mate

[stealthwolf]

Sorry to hear this. I've seen a few drivers around who seem to have no idea their indicator is on. These are people I tend to more wary of than other drivers.

Above advice is sound. I'e always been careful with excesses and for the first couple of years, I had zero voluntary excess but £250 compulsory excess - applies to drivers under 25 and for certain cars. You need to let your insurance company know even if you foot the bill yourself.

[vRStu]

I think you should speak to elephant and tell them that you are not prepared to be held at fault.  You could also lodge a written complaint with Europcar.  You need to make sure you claim from their insurance and not yours.

Could you please give me a bit more info Stu??? 

You need to find their insurance details and then contact them advising them that you were hit by one of their insured persons and ask them to tell you how to proceed.

[nc35]

I agree with Stu.

Tell them you have a whitness he slowed to turn. Then ran into you.

Will still record as an accident for you insurance, but if not knock for knock your excess & NCB should be intact.

A wise man once told me to always phone the police and the slightest twinge of an injury phone an ambulance. You never know if you have hurt yourself until much later.

Hope it all works out for you.

[vRStu]

Slightly different circumstances but we were once hit by a driver in a car park.  Luckily someone saw it and gave us the details of the car.  The Police then visited him and they provided us with his insurance details, I made a claim with them not involving our insurance at all and had the car repaired.