At 10am this morning I had the pleasure of watching someone ding my car in a hospital car park as he nose dived head first into the space beside my car.
His old Honda CRV had a “horn” type headlamp washer sticking up on the front corner of the bumper and it caught my wheel arch and marked 700mm along the LH wing and passenger door. Pretty minor stuff. Panels are dented. Some of the paint might’ve polished out.
After my very minor Blow Off, we swapped details and went about our business.
Around 1pm I popped in to a local body shop and came away with the Cheapest Quotation for a direct repair. Over £500. 3 days worth.
Around 5pm I rocked up to the gent’s door to discuss the way forward.
All very pleasant with each other (and his good lady).
Not surprisingly, the old chap wasn’t interested in forking out some hard cash, so we agreed he’d call his insurance company. I had both our details all neatly typed up this time. I expected him to call tomorrow, but he must have called right away.
7pm and I’d just started scoffing my tea, when I received an SMS from his insurance company, fully admitting liability and ready to “minimise my inconvenience”. Including a link to a 5 page letter containing both parties details and emphasising how easy this will be for me. NCD unaffected. No XS payment. Keeping me mobile if needed.
Closely followed by a phone call from a nice young lady wanting to get things wrapped up pronto, without involving my insurance company at all. And I can choose my own repair shop, that his insurance company has to authorise if I don’t want them to take my car away to their chosen repairer.
This all sounded So Easy that my alarm bells started ringing, so I stalled her request for more details so I could sleep on it - and go finish my meal. I will receive another call tomorrow morning after 10am.
The Culprit’s insurance company is Age Co Insurance Services (age co) or Ageas UK.
It’s a long time since I’ve needed to use a vehicle insurance company and it was never this easy. Have things improved so much in the 21st century?
Or would I find myself on thin ice by NOT contacting my insurance company?
His old Honda CRV had a “horn” type headlamp washer sticking up on the front corner of the bumper and it caught my wheel arch and marked 700mm along the LH wing and passenger door. Pretty minor stuff. Panels are dented. Some of the paint might’ve polished out.
After my very minor Blow Off, we swapped details and went about our business.
Around 1pm I popped in to a local body shop and came away with the Cheapest Quotation for a direct repair. Over £500. 3 days worth.
Around 5pm I rocked up to the gent’s door to discuss the way forward.
All very pleasant with each other (and his good lady).
Not surprisingly, the old chap wasn’t interested in forking out some hard cash, so we agreed he’d call his insurance company. I had both our details all neatly typed up this time. I expected him to call tomorrow, but he must have called right away.
7pm and I’d just started scoffing my tea, when I received an SMS from his insurance company, fully admitting liability and ready to “minimise my inconvenience”. Including a link to a 5 page letter containing both parties details and emphasising how easy this will be for me. NCD unaffected. No XS payment. Keeping me mobile if needed.
Closely followed by a phone call from a nice young lady wanting to get things wrapped up pronto, without involving my insurance company at all. And I can choose my own repair shop, that his insurance company has to authorise if I don’t want them to take my car away to their chosen repairer.
This all sounded So Easy that my alarm bells started ringing, so I stalled her request for more details so I could sleep on it - and go finish my meal. I will receive another call tomorrow morning after 10am.
The Culprit’s insurance company is Age Co Insurance Services (age co) or Ageas UK.
It’s a long time since I’ve needed to use a vehicle insurance company and it was never this easy. Have things improved so much in the 21st century?
Or would I find myself on thin ice by NOT contacting my insurance company?