Car accident , shunted car infront, what happens next and what cost?

apeking

Hey all,

Basically what happened was i was driving to work this morning and traffic was heavy but moving slowly, i was looking at traffic ahead and i turned to change a station on radio and when i looked up the car infront had stopped, and i breaked too late and hit the back of him, i was going about 5mph and i breaked but my car was still going forward and i probably did nt break hard enough.

He had a Peugeot 407 06

Damage done is a dint in my bonnet at the front and a few scrathes on bumper but the front is all pushed in a small bit too(not noticable really, bout 20mm,, and his bumper is scratched, no dints buti cant be sure if its pushed in too. His boot was ok and everything else was.

I got out checked if he was ok and i rang the garda.

We exchanged details before garda came but we still waited, garda came and took our details too.

He wants to report the accident to his insurance company and i said fine but i want to try sort this out withoiut them, i said this to him so he said no problem ill still report it but ill give you a quote for the damage too.

Is this ok? or is it once reported it goes through the insurance,

I got a quote for my damage today for €300, he says he has to strip it all down and pull the front out, seeing as no paint is caracked i dont have to spray bonnet but he says bumper needs to be sprayed.

How mush do you think the peugeot will cost to repair? I Dont think i could afford any more thatn €1500

Am i better off getting this all done through my insurance company if it is cheaper?

Thanks for reading, its a bit long i know!

Btw my nerves are wrecked

BigCon

Without knowing what damage was caused to the Puegeot I'd guess about €2500 (bumper is probably pushed in a bit, maybe parking sensors damaged (if it has them) etc...
Do a cost/benefit analysis of you paying for both cars versus letting both cars go through the insurance (if you have full comp) and put it down to experience whichever way you decide to go...

Wishbone Ash

apeking wrote:

Am i better off getting this all done through my insurance company if it is cheaper?

Sorry for your troubles.

It probably depends on the cost of your annual premium. It may make more sense for a younger driver to fund it themselves but I would go through the insurance - after all, that's what it's for.

apeking

The car didnt have those parking sensors on it ( only good thing)

My insurance is 1400 at moment, anyone know what that might go up to?

Thanks for replies!

colm_mcm

how many years no claims discount have you built up?

apeking

colm_mcm wrote:

how many years no claims discount have you built up?

2 years!

ninty9er

I'd say leave the insurance sort it out, because the grief involved otherwise with arranging payments estimates would probably not be worth the saving.

My grandmother recently did someting similar (slipped off the brake and on the accelerator) hit a Golf and all it needs is a rear bumper, but her focus needed new headlights, bumper, bonnet, 8 airbags and a windscreen. it depends on the car really. some are designed to crumple.

Don't just say yes to whatever is quoted. look for more than 1 quote as your insurer would do this too

ballooba

Sounds like only a few €. I would wait and see how much.

Legally you are obliged to tell your insurance comapny anyway. Don't know if this will have any bearing on your decision.

You will still have an at fault accident on file, but no claims.

deRanged

a mate of mine got a quote of 650 to replace the rear bumper on his 05 407 from a peugeot main dealer.
His doesn't have parking sensors or anything, it's just a standard body coloured bumper, so that's a ballpark figure anyway.

colm_mcm

I'd be afraid of the other driver claiming compo.

DublinWriter

colm_mcm wrote:

I'd be afraid of the other driver claiming compo.

Indeedy, leave it to the insurance companies as the driver you shunted might claim whiplash or other personal injuries.

apeking

Just to fill you people in,

Got a quote today for damage done to his car, €620, i'm happy with this even tho there is only a few scrathes but i was expecting worse tbh.

Rang the insurance company to tell them i was sorting out myself but the girl wanted me to let her sort it out and get the lad i crashed into to sign a form.


She says quinn direct will pay for the damage but then bill me the amount 1 month before i have to renew my premium. If i dont pay it my insurance will increase, if i do pay it my no claims bonus is not afected and she said my premium will not be affected.

Basically she just wants to insure that he cant claim any further with the case.

So am i being foolish letting them sort it out?

Anyone any experience of this?

Is my insurance goin to imcrease do you think(even tho she said it wouldnt) ?

Thanks for all the responses people

Savman

No let insurance co. deal with it, they know yoou don't want to lose your NCB and will usually give you the option to pay the bill if you inform them you're willing to settle it that way.

Worst case scenario would be you do send yer man the dosh, he could say you never paid or worse still claim for compo in November 2009 and it would probably still be a "claim pending" on your policy til then.

Take no chances!

dingding

Agree with above posters as well to let the insurance sort it out. Might not cost that much if you have only 2 years noclaims bonus. Did you have NCB protection.

apeking

Savman wrote:

No let insurance co. deal with it, they know yoou don't want to lose your NCB and will usually give you the option to pay the bill if you inform them you're willing to settle it that way.

Worst case scenario would be you do send yer man the dosh, he could say you never paid or worse still claim for compo in November 2009 and it would probably still be a "claim pending" on your policy til then.

Take no chances!

Ye thanks for the advice,

I've let her sort it out and she is meeting up with him tomor to make sure the damage is worth 620 and that he signs the form.

Overall i am very impressed with Quinndirects response to the problem, cant fault them, yet

I am just hoping that it doesnt increase my premium.

And yep she said i'd be sent the bill 21 days before my renewal date so i either pay it then or my no claims bonus goes

Oilrig

apeking, I think you made the right decision, it's interesting to see your insurer taking a pragmatic approach to the situation too.

As an aside, having yer man sign a disclaimer will not affect his ability to pursue a claim at a later date, he may be discouraged but legally he's quite entitled to pursue it should he feel a tweak in the neck...

TheNog

i was recently involved in a minor accident. I pulled into a petrol station behind another primera. I stopped my car and was about to get out when the primera in front reversed into the front of my car. When i got out i could only see damage to the reg plate but then i noticed she had a towbar fitted to the rear of her car. I inspected the damage more closely and realised my bumper was broken behind the reg plate. Both the woman and the garda took note of it. To get it fixed at a nissan garage has just cost me 700 euro (which of course will go to her insurance). Half of the cost went to parts and the other half to labour.

I was really surprised how high it was!!!!