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My wife had a very very minor bump in a carpark...very slight scuffing to the paintwork of the third parties car. Zero damage to our car. We're 'fessing up to the fact that the accident did happened and that it was my wife's fault (although arguably the third party was driving deliberately to put herself in harm's way).
Within a couple of hours the TP had been down to a repairers (allegedly) and was trying to make us stump up for a new door! I drove down to her house and took many photographs of both her vehicle and ours together with measurements and it was blatantly clear that she was trying it on and making a claim for pre-existing damage to the car door. There was nothing on our car that corresponded with the height of the damage on her car. The road muck was still covering the 'damage'!
I notified both our insurance company and that of the TP of these facts and that the damage was pre-existing. Our insurance company tried to contact the TP to progress the claim and follow up our concerns but the TP went ahead and got the work done to hide the evidence. Now, there's a surprise. Having said that our insurers did very little to try and pursue this further and to have their engineer look at the damage prior to repair.
Many months later, an engineer from our insurer's (Churchill) came and viewed our car (zero damage), looked at the photographs that I had taken and produced a report (I have a copy) stating that in his opinion the damage being claimed for WAS pre-existing.
So our insurance company are not paying hers (Axa).
We received a copy of a letter sent by Axa's solicitor to our insurers stating that unless Churchill pay up within 14 days the full amount then Axa will be taking us to court for the amount.
Is this how it's supposed to work?
Where to next? Axa beating up 'the little man'?
Sorry it's a bit long-winded.
Within a couple of hours the TP had been down to a repairers (allegedly) and was trying to make us stump up for a new door! I drove down to her house and took many photographs of both her vehicle and ours together with measurements and it was blatantly clear that she was trying it on and making a claim for pre-existing damage to the car door. There was nothing on our car that corresponded with the height of the damage on her car. The road muck was still covering the 'damage'!
I notified both our insurance company and that of the TP of these facts and that the damage was pre-existing. Our insurance company tried to contact the TP to progress the claim and follow up our concerns but the TP went ahead and got the work done to hide the evidence. Now, there's a surprise. Having said that our insurers did very little to try and pursue this further and to have their engineer look at the damage prior to repair.
Many months later, an engineer from our insurer's (Churchill) came and viewed our car (zero damage), looked at the photographs that I had taken and produced a report (I have a copy) stating that in his opinion the damage being claimed for WAS pre-existing.
So our insurance company are not paying hers (Axa).
We received a copy of a letter sent by Axa's solicitor to our insurers stating that unless Churchill pay up within 14 days the full amount then Axa will be taking us to court for the amount.
Is this how it's supposed to work?
Where to next? Axa beating up 'the little man'?
Sorry it's a bit long-winded.
