Car Insurance Claim - No Driver Is Taking Responsibility

LAxytrix on 25/10/2018 - 13:22
Last edited 25/10/2018 - 13:46

How does it work when two drivers don’t take responsibility for a car accident?

My partner was in a car accident last week and unfortunately there was no Red Light camera, no Dash Cam or Witnesses who stopped. She’s OK, car is a little beaten up however, problem is the driver of the red light is not taking responsibility. My question is: who pays, and if we feel very strongly that she wasn’t in the wrong - what power do we have to ensure we’re not paying the excess?

Screenshot of the intersection for further understanding: https://imgur.com/a/C9LLk1i

Appreciate any and all advises!

EDIT TO INCLUDE:

She has been in contact with Insurance (at the scene) they quoted: "We're 85% sure you're in the right, however as we're not 100% due to lack of concrete evidence we have to charge you the excess and if proof arrives we will refund you the excess". We have comprehensive and therefore covered either way, however would obviously prefer not to pay + the increased cost of premium in years to come..

Automotive Car Insurance Insurance

Comments

  • Tech5 on 25/10/2018 - 13:30
    +9

    MS Paint has certainly upgraded their graphics

  • [Deactivated] on 25/10/2018 - 13:31
    +3

    She has let her insurance know right? If you let them know (immediately) and give them the details they'll fight for you. If you've waited until now to tell them they may not believe you.

    • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 13:36

      Yes we've been in contact with Insurance, at the scene, they quote "We're 85% sure you're in the right, however as we're not 100% due to lack of concrete evidence we have to charge you the excess and if proof arrives we will refund you the excess".

      We have comprehensive and therefore covered either way, however would obviously prefer not to pay + the increased cost of premium in years to come..

  • HighAndDry on 25/10/2018 - 13:33

    This is why you need insurance - you make a claim with your insurance, they work it out with the driver of the other car or their insurance.

    what power do we have to ensure we’re not paying the excess?

    None, unless you have evidence showing you weren't in the wrong. Strong feelings aren't enough unfortunately.

  • Ryanek on 25/10/2018 - 13:33
    +3

    Nothing. Leave it to your insurer.

  • Hellfire on 25/10/2018 - 13:40
    +1

    If your insurer doesn't accept that you are not at fault then your only option is to fight it alone.

    This means sending a letter of demand to the other party and taking them to court when they don't pay up.

    Assuming you win you'll probably still be worse off than paying an excess because you won't get all your court costs reimbursed.

  • John Kimble on 25/10/2018 - 13:40

    Not that it matters, but who is who in the photo?

    • dcep on 25/10/2018 - 13:45
      +2

      green light vs red light

      • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 13:47

        That's correct.

      • John Kimble on 25/10/2018 - 13:48
        +1

        Not that I'm blaming the green car for the accident, but why didn't green light stop to avoid the accident then? Just from the photo there appears to be good vision and time to see the car running the red on the left.

        I know there could be lots of reasons why eg because you are not expecting a car to run a red and therefore don't have time to react etc

        • HighAndDry on 25/10/2018 - 13:54

          Also, if the lights had just changed, maybe RED actually entered the intersection before their light actually turned red, and was just slow to finish crossing the intersection.

        • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 13:56
          +9

          Fair observation, I asked my partner this that day and didn't get a very kind response..

        • Mike88 on 25/10/2018 - 14:01

          People are dumb and don’t drive defensively assuming the other driver will stop. Problem occurs when both drivers do this.

        • brendanm on 25/10/2018 - 17:19
          +1

          Have to agree with this and highanddry above. Unless the "red light" car was doing more than double the limit, seems like there was absolutely zero defensive driving occuring by either party. Doubt you'll get out of the excess looking at that picture.

  • ausdday on 25/10/2018 - 13:42
    +2

    https://www.facebook.com/pg/DashCamOwnersAustralia/community…

    Dash cam owners australia facebook page. Maybe someone was around that area when the accident happened. You can post and ask. No harm trying.

    • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 13:47

      This is a great idea, I'll give it a crack!

  • toniyellow on 25/10/2018 - 13:43
    +1

    Leave it to your insurer. If you end up disagreeing with the decision they come to, there are resources here http://mva.financialrights.org.au/ and http://mva.financialrights.org.au/sample-letter/ if you want to raise a dispute with them.

    • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 14:06

      I'm certainly favouring the 'leave it to insurer' approach as I know how much wasted time goes into these things.. I'm probable that they'll come back to us with a decision we'll disagree with. I'll check out those resources! Greatly appreciated!

  • HighAndDry on 25/10/2018 - 13:51
    +1

    She has been in contact with Insurance (at the scene) they quoted: "We're 85% sure you're in the right, however as we're not 100% due to lack of concrete evidence we have to charge you the excess and if proof arrives we will refund you the excess". We have comprehensive and therefore covered either way, however would obviously prefer not to pay + the increased cost of premium in years to come..

    Yeah, unfortunately (ignoring the percentages because they're meaningless) that's how it works, because they're only able to claim the excess from the other side (or their insurance) if they're able to prove that it was the other party's fault.

  • John Kimble on 25/10/2018 - 14:01
    +2

    In lieu of all the stuff you mention, your partner just needs to provide as much detail as possible about the accident to their insurer. Eg photos of damage on both cars, detailed diagrams…perhaps try and even go back to the scene and take photos of the road if there are brake/skid lines maybe?

    They will review/reconstruct and come to a decision on who is at fault and fight for you if you are not at fault.

    • Axytrix on 25/10/2018 - 14:08

      I had a friend recommend this same thing - I'm gonna get all the coloured texters out!!! xD Thanks John!

  • Godric on 25/10/2018 - 14:58
    +1

    OzTrafficCops

  • WhatWhoWhyUsername on 25/10/2018 - 16:33

    This is why you should have a dash cam.
    Not worth the hassle trying to prove you weren't in the wrong.

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