little prang

  • 4stroke's Avatar
    Hi, just wondering if anyone has any advice on an accident i had today.

    I was leaving a village going from a 40mph to a 60mph limit behind 2 cars and a slow hgv. As we got to the speed limit change the road becomes straight and i could see far enough ahead to overtake the vehicles since neither of the cars seemed to want to overtake the hgv.
    I had passed the first car and was pretty much exactly level with the 2nd when the 2nd car pulled out and hit me, basically side to side. I had the greater momentum and so ended up in front of the car that hit me, then after a quarter mile we pulled in and exchanged details.

    Any ideas on who was to blame?
  • 22 Replies

  • dazid1's Avatar
    On the face of it you were in the right as it would appear that he did not look or indicate, did he indicate? It could be argued however that overtaking two cars at once was not best practice, what did the conversation after go like?:rolleyes:
  • 4stroke's Avatar
    I couldn't tell if he indicated as i was dead alongside him as he hit me. As i say it was a side to side collision.

    Afterwards he said he didn't want to go through the insurance route as his no claims isn't protected and he would prefer to get quotes for repairs to the 2 cars and split the cost 50/50. He said nothing about blame.
  • shaun3424's Avatar
    I would say and only is my opinion that he is to blame, if he had checked his mirrors correctley they would have seen you. I would also advise definatley going through insurance, it can save a lot of trouble in the future.:)
  • 4stroke's Avatar
    Much appreciated, thanks a lot.
  • 98selitb's Avatar
    I'm going to stick my neck out and say it's good that the person who hit you didn't want to go through insurance. Why would anyone? Not only would it obviously hurt him financially - and you may say that is justified given that it was his fault - but it would also punish you by giving you a claim. Why would anyone in their right mind do that?

    If I ever have an accident - whether it's my fault or not - I would be mightly relieved to hear the other driver saying they don't want to go through the insurance.

    If someone hit me and it was their fault, I would just get a bill and ask them to pay me. I've done nothing wrong so why should I have to spend the next 5 years declaring I've got a claim and putting insurance companies off?
  • shaun3424's Avatar
    I'm going to stick my neck out and say it's good that the person who hit you didn't want to go through insurance. Why would anyone? Not only would it obviously hurt him financially - and you may say that is justified given that it was his fault - but it would also punish you by giving you a claim. Why would anyone in their right mind do that?

    If I ever have an accident - whether it's my fault or not - I would be mightly relieved to hear the other driver saying they don't want to go through the insurance.

    If someone hit me and it was their fault, I would just get a bill and ask them to pay me. I've done nothing wrong so why should I have to spend the next 5 years declaring I've got a claim and putting insurance companies off?


    As far as I am aware if you claim on your insurance and it is not your fault it does not cost you anything and will not affect your premiums because all the cost are recoverd from the other parties policy:)
  • 98selitb's Avatar
    As far as I am aware if you claim on your insurance and it is not your fault it does not cost you anything and will not affect your premiums because all the cost are recoverd from the other parties policy:)

    Yeah, I accept that is usually the case...but some insurance companies ask you if you've had a claim (regardless of blame) and the minute you say "yes", even before they've asked you what it was for, they don't want to have anything to do with you.

    Additionally: although it may not affect the price of your premium, will a non-fault claim lose any no-claims bonus that you've built up? This could happen especially if you switch insurers at the next renewal due to a more competitive quote etc.
  • shaun3424's Avatar
    I have only made 1 claim and that was when my car was stolen a few years back and when I bought another one it did not affect my no claims or my premium, but saying that I have been with the same insurance company for years and never had a problem with them so I can not realy speak for other companies:)
  • Rolebama's Avatar
    I agree that it is best to settle these things without insurance company, just be aware that what he said at the time, and what he says now that he has probably spoken to his friends, could vary somewhat.
  • MrDanno's Avatar
    I couldn't tell if he indicated as i was dead alongside him as he hit me. As i say it was a side to side collision.

    Afterwards he said he didn't want to go through the insurance route as his no claims isn't protected and he would prefer to get quotes for repairs to the 2 cars and split the cost 50/50. He said nothing about blame.

    That sounds to me like his saying "knock for knock" you fix yours and i'll fix mine!

    Personally, I'd just go the insurance route - much easier in the end. Insurance companies won't blame you for a non fault claim and he won't be able to squirm out of it either.
  • lonestranger's Avatar
    Based on the information you've given - it is 100% the other drivers fault.
    From a legal point of view, whether he indicated or not is irrelevant.... an indicator is ONLY a signal of your intention - and is NOT legal and binding.
    Your responsibility is to check and make sure that it is safe to carry out any manouvre before you actually do so.... and likewise, it is the other drivers RESPONSIBILITY to ensure the same.
    Why does he/she not want to involve insurance companys? Have they got something to hide?
    Tread very carefully if you don't utilise the insurance.... It could be more detrimental to you than if you don't.
    If they insist on a cash settlement DON'T "go 50/50", You want cash up-front before any work is carried out.
    Best of luck with this one...... If in any doubt, don't be afraid to do the insurance thing as a non-fault claim does NOT count against you.
  • Snowball's Avatar
    I agree with lonestranger. And I hope you still requested, and obtained, the other driver's insurance details, along with the names and addresses of any witnesses.
    Never do anything based on trust; always keep it formal.
  • Snowball's Avatar
    If a driver involved in an accident with you is unable to provide his/her insurance details at the time, then you do have to consider whether or not you believe that driver is, in fact, insured. If the accident is such that the police attend, then they have the facility to check that on the spot.

    If you have to go your separate ways without the insurance details, then it is advisable to make a note of everything you can, including full description of vehicle and driver. Do not accept any "I am in a hurry" excuses.

    Later, although technically naughty, you can do an insurance check via your computer.
    On the website www.askmid.com you can enter, quite legally, your registration number to check if it is recorded as being insured. This is a legal obligation on the part of your insurance company, and you are legally obliged to tell them if it isn't there.

    Now comes the naughty bit. You put the other person's reg. number in the box, and you have to tick another box to confirm you are the owner/keeper, etc. There is a warning that you are liable to prosecution if you are unable to show good reason for this action. But, under the law, you are entitled to that person's insurance details, therefore you are entitled to know if he/she is insured, so how can you not have good reason?

    If push came to shove, I would do it.
  • 4stroke's Avatar
    That's a real help, thanks.

    It's slightly awkward 'cause as it happens we work at the same place (!) but at least he can't run away from the situation. I'm going to check the cost of repairs and if it's as high as i think it's going to be i'll insist on the insurance route.

    Thanks again, really useful forum.
  • saloon drifter's Avatar
    Someone once ran into the back of my ex wife and then argued that she had reversed into them, i insisted that i wanted their insurance details it then came out they did not have any. I made them pay up for the repairs then told the police.On another occasion my car was hit whilst parked outside my house luckily a neighbour saw it and knew the driver, turns out she was not insured so i went through my insurance company, they fixed my car and tried unsucsessfully to recover the money, but it did not cost me a penny and i didn't loose my no claims bonus.

    But anyway back to the question, i would say it was his fault for not checking it was safe to pull out, and i would think he has got something to hide, if it is not your fault why should you pay.
  • ficklejade's Avatar
    Hi, this happened to my hubby and me nearly 20 years ago. We were partially ahead of the driver who pulled out on us when we were overtaking - he hit us just before front of passenger door. It wasn't a nice battle, but we won because of where the driver who pulled out hit us and that despite four separate witnesses on our side. I'm afraid it's the luck of the draw.
  • Snowball's Avatar
    If you feel the insurance company is wrongly penalising you, you can always take it to the Ombudsman. If you have a valid argument, the insurer will probably cave in when they know you are going down this route.
  • smudger's Avatar
    The great thing about these modern mobile phones is, that most of them have cameras. Which you can use to take pictures at the scene of an accident, this gives the position of the cars involved, and you could also take a picture of the damage done, (and one of the other cars number plate would be a good idea);)
    Cheers, Smudger.
  • Snowball's Avatar
    The great thing about these modern mobile phones is, that most of them have cameras. Which you can use to take pictures at the scene of an accident, this gives the position of the cars involved, and you could also take a picture of the damage done, (and one of the other cars number plate would be a good idea);)
    Cheers, Smudger.

    Good idea, if you have such a phone. Not having the need of one, I do not feel inclined to upgrade at considerable expense just in case of an accident.
    However, I do have a pocket-sized digital camera which came as a "free gift" in another package, and I think putting this in the glove compartment would be sensible.
  • davey_g's Avatar
    Good idea, if you have such a phone. Not having the need of one, I do not feel inclined to upgrade at considerable expense just in case of an accident.
    However, I do have a pocket-sized digital camera which came as a "free gift" in another package, and I think putting this in the glove compartment would be sensible.

    Along with a spare pack of (unused) batteries!
  • ficklejade's Avatar
    As a rally marshal, I carry a disposable camera. Not very environmentally friendly, but I can hand this to the appropriate official in the event of a serious incident. Unless you have a very expensive good quality mobile, the picture quality of one of these cheapos is better and at £1.99 for 24 shots, not too bad a bargain and provides enough shots for odd details to be included. The Police give you a receipt and providing you note in writing you are wishing a set of photos from it and are prepared to pay (about £6 for a roll), you will get them - useful if you might be in any way considered to be at fault - because you bought the camera and film. The snag with digital cameras is that they can be altered (including dates) and are therefore less reliable as evidence, unless the memory stick is handed over at the time and you might just have some personal photos on it you won't want to lose or have bandied around!!! ;)

  • Snowball's Avatar
    The spare, pocket-sized camera that I have does not have a removable memory. It can only be downloaded to a computer, and the pictures on its memory cannot be tampered with.