Liability

My accident saga continues. It looks like I need part of my finger removed/amputated whichever method they choose. But that's a side part...

Got angry as nothing has happened re insurance, so rang third party insurance (I call the lady that hit me 'idiot face') to chase it up. They stated that while idiot face has admitted she was in the wrong, that they (i.e. her insurance) hasn't done their own investigations and may override her admission of liability!!

HOW IN GOD'S NAME CAN THAT HAPPEN!!!??? HOW CAN A COMPANY OVERIDE HER CLAIM DOCUMENTATION??!!

To add fuel to the fire, my insurance company said that cause I only have Third Party, Fire & Theft, that their case is 'closed' with me as it doesn't involve them as I do not have full comprehensive!! That I need to do everything...

HOW IN GOD'S NAME CAN THAT HAPPEN!!!??? WHAT DO I PAY MY YEARLY INSURANCE FOR???!!!

So fed up. At the moment, the grasss is looking so much greener back home

 

Sorry but done see reason for your rant?

It is up to the Insurance Company NOT the Policyholder to admit "fault" ( If fact her admitting liability could negate her claim)
TP= covers damage caused by you or your bike to other people or/and their property.
FT = Fire & Theft cover on your bike.
Had you had Comprehensive then your Insurance would have paid for your damage and saved you having to deal with the other partys insurers.
N.B. Advice for anybody reading...... this NEVER admit Liability for an accident or even say SMIDSY or anything similar

 

My reason for the rant GuzziRob, is in this country the law is backwards from what I know back home.

It is an individual's right to choose their type of insurance coverage. By not having full comprehensive does not mean I should receive less customer service or assistance just because someone else has caused severe injury to a person and admitted it as their error from the start.

On a side note, obviously I am coping very well emotionally with having a partial finger to be amputated. So I appreciated it very much GuzziRob that you use my post to advise other people to deny liability when had an accident rather than provide support or appropriate advice to people in this forum i.e. our biking family.

My opinion of you just skyrocketed...

 

Yappa, I think there are injury lawyers out there that would take up your case on a no cure no pay basis. It's correct that unless you hold Comprehensive, your insurance company will not pursue the case for you.

I don't know any off hand but maybe TC could help and point you in the right direction...

Sorry cant help anymore.

Fuckity f@!k about your finger 8(

 

Sorry to hear of the likely finger loss Yaps but it's only once a claim is made that you find out what your insurers are really like. I too think it stinks when they say not to make admission of guilt but always believed it was the same as those (lowlife, money grabbing) solicitors who advise guilty yobs to make no admission of guilt under interview. It just gives them more opportunity to spin things out ie; make even more money & has little to do with justice.
I agree when you say it's up to the customer to decide what insurance they'll use, but ultimately the higher the level of ins you have (sometimes but not always being the more expensive fully comp) common sense & cynicism says you'd hope they'd look after you better post claim. Lets face it everyone knows ins is a business to make money first & foremost so heels will always be dragged if there's a chance for them to pay out less, if at all.
I'd like to think that if I was obviously to blame, whether someone was injured or not or not, that I too would admit it & stuff the consequences, have in fact on a couple of occasions & all was well... eventually.
Can't comment on Oz law but I'd have thought it would be similar to here.
Rob is right of course about what is covered re damage/injury when insured 3rd p, f&t. However once liability is established, in your case almost immediately by the other party, in a perfect world, all the actions should be by Idiot Face's ins co.
Guess what we need here is an expert insider with recent ins co knowledge.

 

I understand your insurance rant, Yappa, but am far more concerned about your finger.....hope it gets sorted asap

 

What you have to bear in mind is that regardless of whatever level of cover you have insurance wise, because you were injured, your insurers will farm out your case to one of their panel law firms who in turn will no doubt have paid a referral fee to the insurers (or claims managememt firm) and once the case has been passed on, they in affect wash their hands of the whole matter until such time as liability is established and either they have to pay a cheque out to the third party, or liability is established in your favour in which case they stick their hands out for their chunk of the money they may have already paid out.

law firms appointed by the insurers will simply put you onto their conveyor belt system and they will not have any interest in establishing liability fully, many work on the basis that because they are a law firm, and are involved will in itself frighten the other side into conceding liability and give up.

This is why you are always better going to an independent law firm and getting representation under a conditional fee agreement (no win no fee) as you not only get to choose the firm you want to represent you, but they will also fight your corner harder because not only do they have to carry out a proper risk assessment in order to get the after the event insurance in place, if they do not win they do not get paid anything except their disbursments (out of ocket expenses)

You are perfectly entitled to take your case to another firm and it will not cost you anything as the new firm will simply provide an undertaking to pay the old firms reasonable costs on successful completion of the case, and in your case it sounds like that may be an option worth considering given your comments.

There are a couple of law firms in the UK who have specialist motorcycle crash investigators as part of their in house team, which in itself can make life easier in respect of a claim.

 

Thank you TC. Needed to hear that advice. Will definitely find an independant law firm tomorrow. Thank you so much

 

You are certainly welcome to drop me a line or give me a call and I will be happy to have a no obligation chat and see if there is anything I can do to help.

 

Sorry to hear about this Rachelle. Hope your finger and insurance get sorted as soon as possible.

 

'White Dalton' always gets good feedback in the mags.

 

Their reputation has become somewhat tarnished in the past couple of years though. They have dropped cases that might require a fight or investigation, they have seriously undervalued a number of cases (Recommended a rider took £7,500 for a life threatening injury leaving him disabled for life when the real value is over £300,000) and riders have been taking cases away from them because they have acted more like a conveyor belt type panel firm.

 

Not been online for a while, sorry to hear your news Yappa