Uninsured driver hit my parked car. What to do?

Inform your insurance company, give them the incident number from the Gardai.

Hopefully the insurance company will pursue the costs of the damage from the owner of the vehicle which struck yours.


If not you're going down the road of a civil case, sue the drivers parents in court..

seagull wrote: »

How much will it cost to repair? That looks like some significant damage, and I'd be worried the insurance will be looking to write it off.

Insurance company may well go down the line of declaring it a write off--

Looks like new door, side skirt, alloy repair, rear arch body panel repair, respray, €2000?

If he's 17 he'd be entitled to be considered for a juvenile caution, therefore no insurance.your insurer might be reluctant to take civil action against a teenager in which case you'd have to go via motor insurers bureau. If parents say he took car without permission they wouldn't be liable to you, he would. If there's a possibility they'd pay for the damage it might be the way to go?

Calibos wrote: »

How does a write off work? Insurance pays me what they asses is the value of the car? Can I use that to repair the car and keep it on the road. Does a written off car affect my ability to re-insure the car myself at next renewal? Affect re-sale? (Not that I'll ever part with it if I don't have to) Its just, I'll never get a replacement in that price range with a barely run in engine like mine LOL. My plan was to keep running this car as long as financially viable until EV's are mainstream, better and cheaper where I might finally end up replacing it with a 2027 Tesla. LOL

ie. Is keeping insurance out of it and letting the kids parents pay for the damage better for me in terms if not having a write-off logged against the car and for insurance purposes etc.

All of the damage is repairable / replaceable. From the pic, its all "surface" damage and a reputable panel beater will confirm that for you. If you really want to keep it, then take it to directly to a reputable Panel beating business, and get a quotation ( get more than one,if you like ) why would you involve Main Dealers ??... they are only adding to the cost. Forget them. Get your Quotations, have chat with the boys Father, and ask him if he want's it to go through his insurance ( very unlikely ) or to pay up front for the repair's. In terms of depreciation, that usually works out at 10% of the estimate. As for trading it in at some future date...keep the pic. Most cars get scuffs / scrape's during their life times, and get them repaired / sprayed. This is pure cosmetic work, and not to be compared with serious structural repair's, Chassis replacement / repairing etc. with possible steering / suspension problems afterward's.

This is how it works

When there is property damage only, caused by an uninsured driver, your insurer handles the matter under the MIBI protocol providing you have comprehensive insurance. Your insurer CANNOT impact your NCB or future premiums. Check the MIBI website for precise details.

If you do not have comprehensive insurance, you must apply directly to the MIBI for compensation, which can take time.

bladespin wrote: »

Wouldn't go to anyone else, let them organise the proper repair and pass the costs on to the responsible party.

You do realize that it's the body shop who will do the assessment and the work? All the dealership will do take a slice of the action....and if the kids Dad has to pay up front, that's just an additional cost. Is that what you would want if you were in the Fathers position? They have enough trouble as it is. If the car is restored to its pre-accident condition, that seems to be what the owner wants. Unless I'm missing something in his post's. Don't get me wrong, I'm not condoning the kids activity..he made a mistake, something we have all done...no one was injured. Now if that had been a joy rider in a stolen car, it would be a different case .

jmreire wrote: »

Now if that had been a joy rider in a stolen car, it would be a different case .

How is the kid taking his dads car out for a bit of a show off spin NOT joyriding? He hit a parked car and drove away!!

Just cos he wasn’t haring around town with his hair on fire doing doughnuts in the local Main Street doesn’t mean he wasn’t joyriding.

He took the car without permission. Let the little sod learn a lesson. Either through his parents or through the law.

It is quite possibly a write off, all the panels damaged are alloy (70% of the body is alloy) so replacements if they choose to replace panels will be expensive from audi.
As you mentioned the rear wheel does look like it has been pushed forward

Calibos wrote: »

I understand. I just wasnt sure if a panel beater was qualified to assess whether there was any mechanical damage in addition to the bodywork/chassis damage.

He / She would be, it'a part of the job. I know, because I used to do it. A proper panel beating business will have all the alignment / jig equipment to restore a car to it's original specification.

That damage via main dealer could cost well over 2K . A friend of mine did damage to my car into only one door on a frosty morning. Main dealer was delighted ...drew up an invoice for about €2,500 to replace door, window motor etc. Got it done by a local garage for €450, using 2nd hand parts and a respray -did an amazing job. And my friend wasn't much out of pocket.

What I'd reccomend
1. Have the car looked at by a mechanic to check for any hidden structural damage. Id go to a main dealer (if driveable) & a regular reputable garage -get two quotes at least. (Generally you'll get a big and smaller estimate). Some Garages do bodywork repairs also.
2. I presume you've let your insurer know.
3. If the damage is purely cosmetic, get an estimate from panel beater -the main companies can be expensive, smaller setups significantly cheaper -good to have 2 quotes.
4. Having a chat with the father/mother of the boy will give a clearer idea of what route to take (in a sense of goodwill). But should you choose, you don't have to deal with them directly and your insurance company can look after everything -even though caused by an uninsured driver.

Young driver could face a lot of trouble.
If your car is not driveable, your insurance should cover you for a temporary replacement car. Always best to give them a ring -to get best advice and at least you've the case logged.

The little prick could have hit several cars on his little caper around town. Are the parents going to be able to afford to pay for all of them should any more appear?

I'd go through the insurance if possible and avoid most of the hassle / worry. Not your fault the little ****er took his father's car.

Just thought I'd chime in and say going the main dealer route does not guarantee a perfect repair. I've seen some main dealers produce/sign off on some pretty sub standard body repairs over the years.

The op should ask around locally or indeed on here as to who would be the best crash repair/panel beater reasonably local to them. It may well transpire that the main dealer route is the best course of action but it's definitely not something that should be assumed.

As far as I understand, you are not at fault for the damage done.
In that case, the other party / insurance company is liable for the damage costs (under that policy).
If the car were a write off, you'd be insured for the current market value. (but my guess is that the repairs could come in at less than that). It can depend on where/how its done.
I'd expect this incident should have no effect on your motor premium / no claims bonus etc. if the other party is paying the full costs costs.

-Actually, come to think of it, - you should get a record of the insurance details of the other motor vehicle.

Now, the tricky part is that the other driver is uninsured. - So, a claim could go through Motor Insurer's Bureau if Ireland (MIBI). https://www.mibi.ie/making-a-claim/are-you-entitled-to-claim-from-the-mibi.1612.html

There are a couple of things that come up
-the Owner of the other car - how this might affect his policy.
-the Gardaí are involved (so technically a criminal matter?)
-the driver of the other car - possibly facing a court conviction

Main thing - you're in the clear. Ring your insurer - they are there to advise you and will be very helpful, will clear up a lot of confusion and you'll be very clear on where you stand. Definately give them a ring.

Calibos wrote: »

Its not necessarily straightforwards. I was looking into the ins and outs of write offs. If its repairable and safe to put back on the road but the cost of repair is close to or exceeds the value of the car its a CAT D write off. If I wanted the car back from the insurance company to repair I’d get paid the insurers low ball Assesment of the value minus 10-30% of that value to get the car back. Theres also the very real possibility my insurance premiums go up because of the write-off even a CAT D one on the car. Given all that, theres the potential for me to be out of pocket for repairs and higher insurance premiums should I want to keep the car and keep it on the road....which I do....because I will never find another 2007 TT in my cars otherwise great condition and ultra low mileage. The decision would be much easier if mine was another 140,000km 2007 TT like all the others of similar vintage. So me being the only careful owner and trusting my own cars 40,000km makes the car worth repairing.....to me....but going through insurance might ironically mean I am out of pocket For the reasons outlined above despite this being entirely someone elses fault.

EG. Insurance value car at €5000. Repairs will cost €5000 so they want a Cat D write off. They’ll sell the car back to me for €1000. ie. I get car back and €4000 cash....but the repairs are €5000 in this hypothetical example remember. I’m down a grand and my annual i surance premium potentially goes up too. All because I went through insurance. So ot turns out, it could be in both parties interest that we settle this privately rather than through insurance.

I didnt need this stress and hassle right now. The little Bollix! LOL.

Thankfully I dont commute with this car so it being undrivable for a few weeks isnt actually too much of an inconvenience. Thats actually the reason for its low mileage. A year after buying it I moved next door to my place of work so my commute is a 10 second walk. LOL.

Calibos.....go to a reputable panel beating business (or 3). Get a quote ( or 3) everything in writing. Go to the Kid's Father, present him with the quote most acceptable to you ( you are the boss in where it goes for repairs ) And tell him that you want your car back in pre-accident condition, and this is the cost, Regardless of how high the cost will be...My guess is that he will pay it, even if it mean's getting a loan to do it. But I understand from your post that the Father is working abroad but when at home he is driving an Audi, the Mother has her own car, so I would not classify them as unemployed and of poor means. This will be the very best result for you, and to be truth full, I think that is all you want...your car back and no more hassle.
Involving insurance opens up a whole can of worms for you, as has been mentioned by various posters here on the forum. Don't worry about the legal ramifications for the kid and his Family.....that's their business, and in the case of a prosecution, they will want to be able to say in mitigation that all damages have been paid for,
Good Luck with it.

Wouldn't worry about contacting your insurance comapny when you're not at all at fault. You can opt to go through insurance / not even after contacting them. Have all details to hand (date, time, etc), but best not to leave it too long. You've nothing to lose.

Secondly : Re. No claim bonus etc: (From an Insurance Company Website):

"If you make a claim on your policy where your insurer pays out, you’ll generally lose some, or all, of your no-claims bonus.

But if you’re hit by another car and it’s agreed that you weren’t at fault, your insurer may be able to reclaim the payout from the other car’s insurer and your NCB may not be affected.

In cases where fault can’t be agreed on, insurers may split the cost of the claims and both drivers’ NCB could be affected. This includes if your car is stolen or damaged by bad weather." (not the case with you).


...So you're in a good position.

When I had my car damaged - I got a really good repair done on it. When vehicles are scrapped everything is dissembled and these (2nd-Hand parts can be perfectly used and WAY cheaper) -I'm talking doors here, but shocks etc , you're better off with new. Main dealers can often push that you use new parts but if a door needs replacing ...not a big deal. Panel beaters can do an amazing job, but sometimes it's just cheaper to replace a whole panel if theres going to be too much labor involved. You could Google panel beaters in your area and check reviews. By not going to a main dealer I paid 1/6 of the repair price a main dealer quoted & if you go solo, you decide where you want it repaired.

So
1. Let your insurer know
2. Get the damage checked & costed by a main dealer & different garage (at least 2 quotes), and query pre-owned parts being used
3. If mechanic finds no major faults then ...Panel beater and do the same.
4. Whatever happens, its the other party that will pay the damage, - if they are able to, perhaps well and good, otherwise it'll go through either their insurance or MIBI (in which case it would be important that you already let your insurance company know of the collision).

Fishdoodle wrote: »

Ouch ...looked at the pics. and rear axel looks damaged.

It's going to be anti roll bar and bottom arm and few other bits it won't write it off.

Had worse on my Octavia and they didn't write it off.

Please read the MIBI protocol

https://www.mibi.ie/making-a-claim/uninsured-vehicles.1752.html