[Misc] A cycling/driving/insurance conundrum

Albion in the north · Aug 13, 2019

Hi all.
Not wishing to stoke the flames of the cycling/driving debate (too much) just wanting to get some thoughts from the NSC collective about an incident that has happened today.

The AITN family run a small convenience store in a village in the Pennines. We live above the shop and park our car nearby.
This morning I cycled into the nearest town for a doctors appointment. As I returned an ambulance was just pulling in front of the shop. An old guy had been knocked off of his bike. Unfortunately he has ended up scratching and denting the side of our car when he fell. Fortunately (and really the most important part) he has no broken bones and just a couple of small cuts but is suffering from a bit of shock. His bike is a right off. The car that hit him initially drove off but they returned before the ambulance left and I now have all their details. The cyclist has been taken to hospital for a check up but is expected to be ok.
I dont want to sound too mercenary or uncaring but our thoughts have now turned to who is responsible for paying for the damage to our car.
I reckon the reasonable costs for repairs would be in the region of £400 at a local bodyshop. Probably triple that if it went through insurance.
I am loathed to contact our insurance because as soon as they know we have been "involved" in an accident, bang goes our no claims bonus and as we also insure a van for the business they will soon get their money back from us. (im not a fan of car insurance companies. A neccesary evil)
So who pays? Do we just have to take it on the chin? Do we go through our insurance? Do we go through the small claims court to get the cyclist to pay (or just ask him nicely) explaining that he will be able to claim it back from the car driver? Or should I contact the other driver (Another older guy) and ask him to pay?
Any advice gratefully received. I wont be able to answer straight away as I have to go back to work but will be back on NSC this evening.

Hove Lagoonery · Aug 13, 2019

If I was that cyclist and you asked me to pay I'll tell you to go f*** yourself.

Talk about adding insult to injury!

beorhthelm · Aug 13, 2019

correct procedure seems to claim from the person who did the damage, if they have a claim on others, thats for them to pursue.

or you claim on your fully comp insurance. its a sad state of affairs the first thing we think of is avoiding this, when its the entire point of having it.

blue-shifted · Aug 13, 2019

Err. Surely there is no claim against the cyclist, as although they hit the car, it was in no way their fault. The claim is surely against the car driver. Further damage like this is a natural consequence of the drivers mistake. I'd try and get in contact with them. It's possible they will be happy to keep the insurance companies out of this matter

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wellquickwoody · Aug 13, 2019

You have insurance for a reason. If it benefits you make a claim, end.

nickbrighton · Aug 13, 2019

Insurance is there to be used in cases like this, no point having it if you aren't going to use it!. Your insurance company should pursue the drivers insurance if they were to blame, or you can contact the drivers insurance company directly. The driver may already have given your details to their insurance company as your vehicle was damaged as a result of his accident. Had the situation been other driver hits a car or motorcycle which inturn hits yours then thats what you would do.

Stat Brother · Aug 13, 2019

What was the bike?

Westdene Seagull · Aug 13, 2019

blue-shifted said:
Err. Surely there is no claim against the cyclist, as although they hit the car, it was in no way their fault. The claim is surely against the car driver. Further damage like this is a natural consequence of the drivers mistake. I'd try and get in contact with them. It's possible they will be happy to keep the insurance companies out of this matter

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I'm not sure that's how it works. If you're in a queue of traffic for example, and someone hits you from behind and you therefore shunt into the car in front of you and so on - you have to claim against the person that hit you and the person you shunted into claims against you etc.

MattBackHome · Aug 13, 2019

Albion in the north said:
The AITN family run a small convenience store in a village in the Pennines

Thunder Bolt · Aug 13, 2019

nickbrighton said:
Insurance is there to be used in cases like this, no point having it if you aren't going to use it!. Your insurance company should pursue the drivers insurance if they were to blame, or you can contact the drivers insurance company directly. The driver may already have given your details to their insurance company as your vehicle was damaged as a result of his accident. Had the situation been other driver hits a car or motorcycle which inturn hits yours then thats what you would do.

I agree. The damage to your car was a direct result from the cyclist being hit by that car.

ozzygull · Aug 13, 2019

If the accident wasn’t your fault, your insurance provider will try to recover the costs from the driver who was at fault. In which case, your NCD should be unaffected. That is what I think you anyway.
You should contact you insurance company they will sort it out for you.

pb21 · Aug 13, 2019

What would happen if the car hit you, when you were on your bike, and you then fell off and damaged your own car in the process?

Would you have to claim for the damage done to your car, from you being hit onto it by another car, from yourself?

That doesn't make sense to me.

Car driver is ultimately responsible and IMO should be the only person involved in the claims.

virtual22 · Aug 13, 2019

Albion in the north said:
Hi all.

I am loathed to contact our insurance because as soon as they know we have been "involved" in an accident, bang goes our no claims bonus and as we also insure a van for the business they will soon get their money back from us. (im not a fan of car insurance companies. A neccesary evil).

Sadly you will have to tell them at renewal if any insurance company is involved as the questions will be along the lines of have you had any accidents or claims (whether your fault or not) in the last six years.... or something to that effect. Everything is logged now and shared between the companies so if you say no, then have a subsequent claim, there's the possibility that the insurance company will then check the database and invalidate your insurance.

And yes, it's likely you will now pay more for the next six years even though it's not your fault as you are seen as a higher risk. Happened to me, got hit by someone else, no fault claim but have had higher premiums since.

phoenix · Aug 13, 2019

I would claim against the car driver, it should be no problem , especially if they admitted fault. I just couldn't claim against the old fella.I just wouldn't be able to live with that knowing he was basically pushed into your car. Good luck !!

Hamilton · Aug 13, 2019

blue-shifted said:
Err. Surely there is no claim against the cyclist, as although they hit the car, it was in no way their fault. The claim is surely against the car driver. Further damage like this is a natural consequence of the drivers mistake. I'd try and get in contact with them. It's possible they will be happy to keep the insurance companies out of this matter

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That's true, but I think the cyclist needs to claim against the motorist so that it goes through the chain. That's what I'd assume. However, the chances are that the excess on the insurance means making the claim is pointless.

studio150 · Aug 13, 2019

Don't overlook that your motor policy will contain a General Policy Condition along the lines of:

You must report any accident, injury, loss or damage to us as soon as possible.

Failure to do so may lead to serious consequences later on.

In this instance it is particularly important, as given the cyclist was taken away in an ambulance, the driver of the vehicle which hit the cyclist will be needing to advise their insurers given that a large personal injury claim is likely to follow from the cyclist.

In their statement to their Insurers they will no doubt comment that that the cyclist while falling to the ground, came into contact with you vehicle.

You may well therefore receive communication on the accident both from the driver and the cyclist which would be prudent to pass to your Insurer, and it is better than they are aware of the incident before this happens.

While this is clearly a non fault incident and your no claim discount should not be affected , the discount is applied at vehicle level and not policy level, so there would be no impact on the discount level on your van.

Blue Valkyrie · Aug 13, 2019

blue-shifted said:
Err. Surely there is no claim against the cyclist, as although they hit the car, it was in no way their fault. The claim is surely against the car driver. Further damage like this is a natural consequence of the drivers mistake. I'd try and get in contact with them. It's possible they will be happy to keep the insurance companies out of this matter

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The other driver would have to be an absolute loon to try and do this without their insurance company as they could be liable for a big personal injury claim down the line, couldn't they ?

Albion in the north · Aug 13, 2019

MattBackHome said:

Hahaha... Not the first time thats been mentioned. However that was set in the High Peaks of Derbyshire.

Albion in the north · Aug 13, 2019

virtual22 said:
Sadly you will have to tell them at renewal if any insurance company is involved as the questions will be along the lines of have you had any accidents or claims (whether your fault or not) in the last six years.... or something to that effect. Everything is logged now and shared between the companies so if you say no, then have a subsequent claim, there's the possibility that the insurance company will then check the database and invalidate your insurance.

And yes, it's likely you will now pay more for the next six years even though it's not your fault as you are seen as a higher risk. Happened to me, got hit by someone else, no fault claim but have had higher premiums since.

Thats pretty much how I see it.

Albion in the north · Aug 13, 2019

ozzygull said:
If the accident wasn’t your fault, your insurance provider will try to recover the costs from the driver who was at fault. In which case, your NCD should be unaffected. That is what I think you anyway.
You should contact you insurance company they will sort it out for you.

Thanks although IMHO I think you are being a touch naive to think that they wont get their money back from me.

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[Misc] A cycling/driving/insurance conundrum

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