Accident in the snow

MRT803

MRT803

Tech Admin
Club Admin
Mar 30, 2012
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Nottingham
Morning all.

Was on my way to work this morning and I was hit on the passenger side at relatively slow speeds, by an old guy in a Ford Fusion.

I have damage to the wing and door, while the other driver has a cracked front bumper.

After swapping details and inspecting both cars, we both drove away.

Given that both cars could be repaired at a low cost, some advice on how to proceed would be grateful (e.g. claim or not to claim).

I will also need to get my wheel/steering/suspension inspected as it's likely the wheel took a knock (but it seemed ok for the 3 miles back home).

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Forgot to add that both of us have no injuries and he admitted fault.
 
as far as i can see that dent in the wing could probably be pulled out but dont know about the door though as their thicker skinned..

i would get some quotes first then decide on weather or not to claim...see what it'l cost.

its good that he admitted fault and thankfully your ok and the damage is not that bad.really!
plenty of frosty wings about:)

had to move my car yesterday after a focus did a 180 on the bend near the lay by where mines parked.
old folk love these fusions dont they,seem to be popping up everywhere....to me there more like a transit connect with windows..

hope yr ok though ,im sure your gonna get a flood of help on here..
 
It wouldn't be too pricey to source down a replacement Frosty panel. The guy should pay what it costs, but if he's admitting fault, either he or his insurance should pay for it. You should have no reason to claim.
 
Claiming is certainly a double-edge sword as even as a non-fault party you'll have to declare it and it often whacks your premium skyward!

'tis a bummer though chap, here's to a swift resolution!
 
You can't go through one insurance company and not the other. Strictly, even if you don't claim you insurance company should be informed. I would add a cautionary note, a verbal
Admittance of guilt does not stand up when it comes to making a claim.

If it were me, I would be telling him how much it will cost to get a new wing and paint it and see what the other driver says to that
 
New Cougar body parts are not available any more so if you claim the car is likely to be written off. But a traditional body shop with panel beating skills should be able to repair that.
 
Interesting about Fusions... My brother in law has one and refuses to drive it in the snow, claiming it's a 'f*** ing B....' even with decent winter tyres fitted...
In contrast I was cheerfully passing stranded Mercs and Volvos this morning on the school run... Albeit at 18mph in 3rd - as a blizzard struck just as rush hour started... We have LOTS of hills here - think Brighton with worse roads...
 
Get a sensible quote for repair.

Ask him whether he'd prefer to pay cash or via insurance. If the latter, then contact his insurance company directly and advise them of the claim and circumstances (looks like he overshot the junction in the snow?) and wait a day, and telephone your own insurer and advise them that the incident has taken place but you will not be claiming through them.

Given the circumstances, the Fusion driver's insurance is likely to accept liability within a working day or so. If they do not accept liability, forget it and pay for it yourself.

If they do accept liability, then explain that you drive a low value car which means a lot to you, and that you are not injured and do not want claims management or hire cars, and that you would prefer a cash settlement to the value of the quote which can provide to them if necessary.

Typically they'll just post a cheque to you within the week and the matter is closed and the matter is above board insurance-wise.
 
if the other driver has said it was their fault put a claim in, its what insurance is for, technically to get your moneys worth from insurance you should make a claim every 5 years, Contrary to Si's post, the fact that the other party has verbally accepted blame means it shouldn't affect your no claims, just be sure to tell your insurance company when you claim that blame was accepted at time of detail swap
 
Sorry to see this Mark, going through the insurance will only result in a write off surely
Hope you get it sorted
 
Procomm said:
if the other driver has said it was their fault put a claim in, its what insurance is for, technically to get your moneys worth from insurance you should make a claim every 5 years, Contrary to Si's post, the fact that the other party has verbally accepted blame means it shouldn't affect your no claims, just be sure to tell your insurance company when you claim that blame was accepted at time of detail swap
Click to expand...
The trouble is the awkward question along the lines of "Have you been involved in an accident in the last-X years regardless of fault" that insurers love to ask. My wife's car was hit whilst it was parked on her drive way by a P*ssed up uninsured motorcyclist who thought he'd use my wife's 7 day old £26K car as a brake, requiring several new panels and return to manufacturer for spraying and roof realignment (was an early twin-top). Four years later it still loads her premium by about £50, not a huge sum but it's bloody irritating considering the circumstances!

As the caveat goes though "your mileage may vary" but from experience this is something to consider in the long term, no doubt there are a host of factors that affect it though.
 
Scrapyard job this looks like, I would just get another front wing and door in Silver, bolt them on, job done. Speak to the other guy first and if he agree to this then this would be the best and cheapest option for sure. No insurance company's involved, nice and easy. Should not cost more than £50 this way and some time.
 
Procomm said:
if the other driver has said it was their fault put a claim in, its what insurance is for, technically to get your moneys worth from insurance you should make a claim every 5 years, Contrary to Si's post, the fact that the other party has verbally accepted blame means it shouldn't affect your no claims, just be sure to tell your insurance company when you claim that blame was accepted at time of detail swap
Click to expand...

My point was if the other chap denies having admitted liability there is no proof otherwise
 
Sorry to hear of your accident Mark and hope it can all be sorted to your benefit. (y)



I have a Frosty passenger door available, yours if you want it Mark.
 
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spjmorris said:
Sorry to see this Mark, going through the insurance will only result in a write off surely
Hope you get it sorted
Click to expand...

It definately will if OP follows the default practise of claiming against his own insurance for an approved repair, who then claim against the 3rd party insurance, which all costs administration money. Of course when the hire car rolls up and the claims management company phones asking if your feelings were hurt in the accident then costs spiral. That'll write off cars worth 5 times a Cougar's value. An approved repair will kill a Cougar out of hand due to brand new OE parts availability.

What you want is cash-in-lieu, which your own insurer will refuse to offer, but in my first hand experience on more than one occassion, most 3rd party insurers in cut-and-dry cases are happy to go along with as it cuts out all the costs of the Platinum Service above.

I've done this less than 9 months ago and got the money inside a working week - this isn't some old fart's tale from 1960...
 
Sorry to hear your woes Mark. This weather is causing many accidents across the UK. Hope you get it sorted in your favour.
 
Nothing to add from me, other than to say I'm sorry you're having to go through this hassle. Best of luck getting it sorted!

(There's no sill damage is there?)
 
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