A theoretical legal question for you clever swaggers

[Barry G]

But I bet you could find a lawyer who would tell you that you have a very good case and a good chance of winning ... As they always so.
the lawyers never lose.

Oh yeah!
When I bingles the tail of an old Magna a couple of years ago with the nose of the Subi I received letters of demand and court summons from the young blokes lawyer.  Wanted thousands for use of a hire car while his was repaired, etc.
My insurer told him to fek off.

[Barry G]

DaveR,
All of us with older cars with 'extras' such as bars, racks, storage draws, etc have a real interest in this issue, as:
1/.  Most of our mods aren't reflected in an increased market value - may even reduce 'value' according to the whim of some assessors;
2/.  Repair assessments are often deemed to be more expensive for older cars because new parts for them can carry a premium, as they can be rarer, and repairs are 'assessed' at new parts prices;
3/.  VicRoads, where I am, can't speak for other states, deem it compulsory to write off the vehicle if repair costs approach 'market value' - I.e. Glass's Guide value.  Given cost of parts and labour it is doesn't take much for a $9000 vehicle to approach that figure, even for minor damage.

Wen I was in this position the assessing centre allowed me to remove my extras and swap out my new wheels and rubber for the old ones.  If I hadn't had the old wheels I would've lost 5 road wheels with tyres that had only done about 5000 km!

If you want to keep your written off vehicle make sure your insurer allows you first right of refusal for salvage purposes.

[Patr80l]

If the Third Party vehicle has Insurance, you don't necessarily need to involve you're own Insurer. You can "claim" straight through the Third Party. No excess to pay and it's not recorded as a claim against yourself. Therefore, it CAN go towards having a cheaper premium the following renewal. It's a gamble though, because an Insurer of Third Party has the right to do two things when settling your claim:

1. Not pay a cent to you until their Client has paid their excess.
2. Settle your claim, less their Client's excess. The only way to recouple that lost $400 excess or what ever, is to pursue the Third Party directly.


Insurance would only pay the Agreed Value if you pay for it on the Policy. Some will do Market or Agreed Value which ever is higher also.

Every insurer I have used wont charge you the excess and it won't effect your no-claim bonus if you can identify the at-fault driver.   Claim against your policy and let the insurance company deal with the hassles.   Who do you think the other driver's insurance company is going to be more civil with?   You or another insurance company?
My wife's car was run into in a car park.   The other driver was uninsured but she had a friend who was a panel beater.   No Way José!   GIO dealt with them and the car was repaired at our chosen repairer.   No excess, no loss of NCB.

[evans52]

Every insurer I have used wont charge you the excess and it won't effect your no-claim bonus if you can identify the at-fault driver.   Claim against your policy and let the insurance company deal with the hassles.   Who do you think the other driver's insurance company is going to be more civil with?   You or another insurance company?
My wife's car was run into in a car park.   The other driver was uninsured but she had a friend who was a panel beater.   No Way José!   GIO dealt with them and the car was repaired at our chosen repairer.   No excess, no loss of NCB.

Correct. No excess with usually, name, address and rego. Yes the NCB isn't effected.

However, simply lodging the claim will likely go towards increasing the premium at the policy end.

Use this example if the vehicle is written off and you claim through own Insurer 6 months into your policy with no excess and no change to NCB:

Value agreed on $10,000
less $320 (6 months worth of premium if you pay monthly)
less $400 (rego, CTP if it's registered for another 6 months, because you can cancel this with the relevant folk and get it back in your hand)
= total payout of $9,280.00 but $9,680.00 after you cancel rego and CTP and get it back.

Bare in mind by, with going through your own Insurer you PAY the premium in full in order for the Policy/Contract to be finalised. THEN, you pay from that date onwards to Insure the replacement vehicle, so you've paid 2 x 6 months worth of Premium. 1 x 6 months for a vehicle you don't have 1 x 6 months for the replacement vehicle. Then in the background, the companies Underwriters/computer allow for the fact you have lodged a claim and add $x's for the processing of you claim and add that to your next renewal - most likely.

Now go through the Third Party Insurer:
Value agreed on $10,000
plus $320 (6 months worth of premium if you pay monthly, but you cancel that with your Insurer. If you pay yearly, you get a refund of $320)
plus $400 (rego and CTP if it's registered for another 6 months, but you cancel that with the relevant folk)
= total payout of $10,720.00

So when you Insurer your replacement vehicle, you're only paying 1 x 6 months worth of premium. Then in background your Insurer's Underwriters/computer have no idea you've lodged a claim, therefore, it doesn't go towards the increase of your premium at renewal or new Policy. By going through the TP's Insurer, you can save yourself $320. If you're lucky, the TP's Insurer won't deduct your Rego and you get it back twice.

For me, if I was confident the TP was going to or had lodged a claim, I'd go through them.

[Barry G]

Evans52,
In my experience your insurer 'owns' the balance of your rego.
In my case I wrote my Monterey off about 2 weeks after paying the rego, so lost the bloody lot!
GRRRRR

 

[DaveR]

If it was a Nissan why would you want to seize his vehicle ? 

Yep, the broken Jackaroo would have more value, so I got that wrong to.

This thread is proof, you shouldn't partake in strong drink whilst in charge of your car keys or keyboard.

Joke for ya.....

How do ya stop DaveR from drowning in his pool?

Ya take ya foot off his head.....  Just joking, honest.

Lost, get ya foot of his head.

Good luck with that one, love to see ya try...

As I said, it was a discussion that became heated at the time, but there is relevance to it for owners of older cars.
Way I see it, I want to be reimbursed for $750 rego that is 3 weeks old, new tyres, even the new ECM that went in at a cost of $2,000. bla bla, that list could go on.
I recon I should be able claim against the guilty drivers insurance for more than just the cost of what someone thinks my car may or may not be worth. Plus my lost time for mucking about to get a replacement vehicle.
This is in the case of a right off, not busted light of course.

[Barry G]

Stop it Dave, now you reminded me I had just fitted a refurbished ABS unit as well!
    

[evans52]

Evans52,
In my experience your insurer 'owns' the balance of your rego.
In my case I wrote my Monterey off about 2 weeks after paying the rego, so lost the bloody lot!
GRRRRR

 

Not true - at not here in SA anyway. The reason it's deducted from the settlement is because you can cancel it and get a refund. Otherwise, you'd be getting it back twice. Your Insurer + place of rego.

Ahhhh....maybe that's what you mean. Here in SA we pay Rego, Admin, CTP and Taxes all in the one payment to Services SA (RTA/Vic Roads type place). We cancel it there and get the balance back. Are you meaning you lose the CTP or other part of it?

Also, you can request your Insurer to chase other forms of compensation for you ie Hire Car or loss of wages etc. Most Insurers, if you can prove it's justified, won't have a problem in the end paying for loss of wages or Hire Car etc. Sometimes the full cost, sometimes part of. All depends. But some will tell you to get stuffed and chase it yourself.

[Barry G]

Not true - at not here in SA anyway. The reason it's deducted from the settlement is because you can cancel it and get a refund. Otherwise, you'd be getting it back twice. Your Insurer + place of rego.

Ahhhh....maybe that's what you mean. Here in SA we pay Rego, Admin, CTP and Taxes all in the one payment to Services SA (RTA/Vic Roads type place). We cancel it there and get the balance back. Are you meaning you lose the CTP or other part of it?

Also, you can request your Insurer to chase other forms of compensation for you ie Hire Car or loss of wages etc. Most Insurers, if you can prove it's justified, won't have a problem in the end paying for loss of wages or Hire Car etc. Sometimes the full cost, sometimes part of. All depends. But some will tell you to get stuffed and chase it yourself.

Nope, unfortunately it is the entire shebang in Vic, or at least it was with GIO.

[chester ver2.0]

If you are going through insurance the pay out or not payout is an agreement between the 2 insurance companies so no you could not take the other persons vehicle for security as they have no influence over the outcome

If the bloke in the landcruiser somhow did agree to your origional point i would then argue that he was under duress due to emotional stress as this agreement was made immediatly after the accident therefore the contract is frustrated, and he would get his vehicle back

It is reasons like this i personally after being stung will never agree to private settlments and even if the damage to either vehicle is below the excess threshold will simply ask the other driver if they need and ambulance and if not i will then photgraph their rego plate, vin number, licence details and a couple shots of the damage, provide them with the same details and then drive off or wait on the other side of the road for the tow truck.

In my own personal case agreeing to pay for minor damage to a passager door all of a sudden turned into letters of demand for whiplash and stress and other compensation matters and then personal threats when i politly then gave my insurance details.....Never again

[Patr80l]

In my own personal case agreeing to pay for minor damage to a passager door all of a sudden turned into letters of demand for whiplash and stress and other compensation matters and then personal threats when i politly then gave my insurance details.....Never again

To be fair, soft tissue injuries like whiplash may not be evident at the roadside but might cause trouble a day or so later.   Also, personal injuries are covered by TAC (In Victoria) and it is a no-fault system.

But I agree (and mentioned it in an earlier post); Let your insurance company take care of the hassles.

[evans52]

Nope, unfortunately it is the entire shebang in Vic, or at least it was with GIO.

Surely you could have handed in the plates or Rego certificate to Vic Roads and got a refund on the Rego?? If not, that's crap!

[evans52]

Surely you could have handed in the plates or Rego certificate to Vic Roads and got a refund on the Rego?? If not, that's crap!

Unless there's a time limit, I think you should follow it up B&B.

I probably sound like a twat for going on about it, but I think you've been stiffed and you're entitled to your rego back. Maybe innocently by GIO, but nothing worse than being ripped off. A reason I left Insurance.

I checked my Cousin in Vic and when he had a Total Loss he handed his plates in and got a refund while his Insurer kept the rego, so he lost nothing.

I've found this for VicRoads:

http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/Home/Registration/RenewCancelOrUpdateRegistration/CancelRegistration/Cancelregistrationandapplyforarefund.htm
http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/NR/rdonlyres/07F5D8D1-11F1-42F6-B860-FF37505408D4/0/RefundForm_0613_WEB.pdf

[oldmate]

Gee this would suck if it really did happen.