car damaged-- who pays??

arthurx1234 · 01-01-2007, 6:20 PM

Hi
just to get the new year off to a great start---my wifes car was parked and due to the high winds and the disrepair of our neighbours wall a 2 metre square section of render was dislodged and crashed onto the cars boot/bumper.
Our neighbour insists its not his problem and slammed the door on my face when i tried to explain that his house insurance company would probably need to be contacted

any ideas where to go from here??
arthur

Steve.EX · 01-01-2007, 6:29 PM

First of all, take some photos ASAP.

johnelf · 01-01-2007, 6:30 PM

The answer is very simple

As he has 'slammed the door in your face', report the accident to your car insurance company and leave it to them.

They will firstly repair your car and contact him for the payment. If he declines, they should pursue it, but then again he may just say it wasnt his wall and then you are knackered!

Life!!

John

newstuart · 01-01-2007, 6:42 PM

His liability with his household insurance should pick it up - as long as he has some

Steve.EX · 01-01-2007, 6:44 PM

Hence, take some photos. If he has no insurance perhaps small claims might be an option?

Pat_C · 01-01-2007, 6:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newstuart

His liability with his household insurance should pick it up - as long as he has some

I think this would be covered by building insurance - which I think is mandatory for anyone who has a mortgage.

lynx · 01-01-2007, 6:59 PM

Try looking from the other side of the fence so to speak. If you had ownership of a wall which you kept well maintained and in a sound condition and someone turned up at your door seeking compensation for damage due to an act of god, what would your reaction be.
There may not be automatic negligence - if the owner can show he took reasonable steps to maintain the walls integrity, you may have to take the hit yourself.Good luck.

Steve.EX · 01-01-2007, 7:04 PM

Yup absolutely. There may well be an issue over whether the wall is in a state of disrepair or an act of god thing.

Goody · 01-01-2007, 9:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat_C

I think this would be covered by building insurance - which I think is mandatory for anyone who has a mortgage.

"IF" there was any liability on his part, it would have to come under his contents cover as that provides cover for liability as occupier of the property; buildings cover gives you liability as owner but the majority of instances where there is negligence and, therefore liability, come under the occupiers' liability heading.

Lynx, however, has hit the nail on the head with his comment - there may be no liability at all and you may just have to "bite the bullet".

Astaroth · 03-01-2007, 9:52 PM

To hold the other party liable you must be able to prove that they were negligent so in this type of incident prove that a reasonable person (not an expert) would have realised that there was an issue with the wall and had reasonable time to fix the problem. If it is simply bad luck (as 99% of these are) then it is an act of god and not negligence and so the third party would not be liable for the damage to your vehicle.

raigraphixs · 03-01-2007, 10:46 PM

'act of god' - is there such a thing?, what if your a non believer.

Can one use that say you get caught speeding,..officer i did not have my hands on the wheel, it was gods work.

I think my caffine intake is too high. Back on topic, sorry.

...

arthurx1234 · 05-01-2007, 6:23 PM

Well i have put an estimate for the repair through this morons door £680 plus photos asking that they be forwarded to his/her building insurance company

no doubt i will be getting a letter from a solicitor saying i am harrassing his client

There are certain companies out there that pursue these type of claims on a no win no fee basis
anyone know of any that are any good?

arthur

Goody · 05-01-2007, 9:44 PM

Asking him to send it to his buildings insurers will only delay matters. It needs to go to his contents insurers.

sjj84 · 05-01-2007, 9:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raigraphixs

'act of god' - is there such a thing?, what if your a non believer.

...

Yes there is such a thing, or there is according to insurance companies at least. I know of one person that had a tree fall on her car and another that had a wall fall on his whilst parked up and both insurance companies said it was an act of god and didn't pay out. It's outrageous what they get away with, might aswell be theft.

DLPMaybe · 05-01-2007, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lynx

....act of god....

Try suing god.

braiden · 05-01-2007, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DLPMaybe

Try suing god.

what, you mean Like Billy Connelly did???

Goody · 06-01-2007, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjj84

Yes there is such a thing, or there is according to insurance companies at least. I know of one person that had a tree fall on her car and another that had a wall fall on his whilst parked up and both insurance companies said it was an act of god and didn't pay out. It's outrageous what they get away with, might aswell be theft.

Well I'm no expert on motror insurance, but they would have been covered if they had fully comp insurance on their vehicles as both incidents would be classed as accidental damage. Nobody would have been liable for these incidents as they were nobody's fault (unless negligence could be proved in allowing the tree or wall to fall) but the motor insurance should have paid (unless they only had third party, fire and theft).

Pat_C · 06-01-2007, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjj84

Yes there is such a thing, or there is according to insurance companies at least. I know of one person that had a tree fall on her car and another that had a wall fall on his whilst parked up and both insurance companies said it was an act of god and didn't pay out. It's outrageous what they get away with, might aswell be theft.

It is indeed outrageous. You could argue that if it was an act of god then it must have been a conspiracy between the father, the son and the holy spirit - and therefore a criminal action (which I think would be covered).

Pat_C · 06-01-2007, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goody

Well I'm no expert on motror insurance, but they would have been covered if they had fully comp insurance on their vehicles as both incidents would be classed as accidental damage.

Yes, but unless you have protected no claims you would still lose out. I believe that losing two years of no claims discount is typical for a claim like this, so it wouldn't be too difficult to calculate whether it is worth claiming.

Goody · 06-01-2007, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat_C

Yes, but unless you have protected no claims you would still lose out. I believe that losing two years of no claims discount is typical for a claim like this, so it wouldn't be too difficult to calculate whether it is worth claiming.

Agreed, but sjj84 indicated they wouldn't pay out at all.

Astaroth · 06-01-2007, 1:34 PM

Firstly it is a "no claims discount" not a no blame discount hence why "acts of god", vandalism and theft etc count against the NCD

Even if you have NCD protection this doesnt mean your premium wont go up but simply that you will still get the X% discount off what ever the premium is calculated to be. So if you have a 60% NCD and your premium went up by £100 due to a claim then you would see only a £40 increase rather than the full increase you would have seen if you had 0 ncd.

If you are trying to work out if it is worth claim or not remember that the increase in premiums can last up to 5 years as some insurers ask for your driving history for this length of time.