Accident - car pulls to one side

[DurhamBushcrafter]

most likeley a bent lower wishbone or worse case scenario the chassis is out of alignment....... Get it checked. let em pay, its what they pay their insurance for.
take to a reputable garage, not a back street greasy joe.

good luck

 

[forrestdweller]

And what punishment should it be for making a mistake?

He was honest and owned up to the accident right away so the OP isn't out of pocket or anything.

from what i understand he took his chance trying to squeeze through rather then asking if the car could be moved (which is now in a rather bad state).... ?!

maybe british truckies are different, but i had enough unpleasant incidents with them in other countries (in one incident i found myself in a ""ford festiva"" between a concrete barrier on one side and a road train overtaking me that close on the other side that he smashed my side mirror..) ; not to mention the fact that (in a certain european cuntry) some cowards tried deliberately to run me over (i was cycling) by car in broad daylight... sorry for ranting- i'm just a bit touchy about this subject- no offence intendet!

 

[santaman2000]

Paul, it sounds as though all parties (you, the offending company, and the various repair shops consulted) are working together and congenial, and that the damage is less than originally thought. If all that's the case you should get it sorted with only a reasonable amount of bother. Again, good luck.

 

[Paul_B]

Paul, it sounds as though all parties (you, the offending company, and the various repair shops consulted) are working together and congenial, and that the damage is less than originally thought. If all that's the case you should get it sorted with only a reasonable amount of bother. Again, good luck.

Thanks for that.

So far they are but I am just wondering when it comes to the crunch of paying up. Also when we ask for a courtesy car. I have a toddler and TBH I can only reasonably get to one town from home by public transport so it is a bit of a bind without a car. We need a car so have to ask about courtesy car at which point I suspect the barriers come down.

BTW it was the branch manager or deputy who was directing the driver around the bend. Think that might mean they are using some slush fund to keep it on the down low. If it gets too much then they will have to involve their insurers and probably someone higher up gets involved. Not our problem and we are telling our insurers about it but telling them that the other party are saying they will pay. If not then our insurance can then step in i think but that is messy.

 

[DurhamBushcrafter]

If not then our insurance can then step in i think but that is messy.

Thats what you pay your premiums for, and the legal aid!

 

[Gray]

Probably bent the track rod, i'd go through your insurance as advised here simply because the repairs might not be up to scratch

 

[PeterH]

I really do not understand why you have not informed your insurance company, read your policy as it probably states they must be informed of incidents not just informed if you wish to make a claim. They deal with this type of event every day, likewise the commercial vehicle operator if a large fleet. The operator will admit liability and in all likelihood settle in cash with your insurer as their excess will be substantial, £5000 in the case of the guy who hit my sons parked car. No "slush fund coverup" it is just business.

This was not your fault so stop doing the other party favours and let your insurers deal with it.



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[bushwacker bob]

Couldn't you just tell her to drive a circular route?

 

[Paul_B]

The operator will admit liability

This was not your fault so stop doing the other party favours and let your insurers deal with it.

Two truths right there. It did sound like the manager covering up for his deputy and trying to clear it up cheaply using a local body shop. As soon as it came down to courtesy car and the work being more than a simple touch up they said go through insurance. We did that and our insurer called the company got the story from them and within a couple of hours it had been arranged to get the car collected and a replacement car of the equivalent or better standard. Got a crossover fake 4x4 in the end.

The company or their insurers accepted liability and there was no hassle. We even got an excess waiver too so it really is not costing us anything more than the time to sort the car swap over. We now have a sub 1000 mile brand new car to try out for a couple of weeks. Man are we going to rack up those miles at the weekends (we do not use the car much in the week). It seems to be more economical on fuel than our car just handles more like a dog than our car.

As far as informing the insurers i have always done it in the past when it is not my fault and the person is offering to pay up. i was just leaving it a bit to see what was going to happen. Basically if they were going to sort it out to our satisfaction quickly then i was going to leave off telling the insurers until further down the line and it is being settled. Not sure why just worried i guess that they might be awkward. At least there was no way it wasn't their fault so I would have ended up with it being fully settled in my favour sooner or more likely later. it just looks like Peter H is right, they just settle in these cases.

End of the day we live and learn. I will bear that in mind next time it happens. Joking, I think the house getting the deliveries is nearly finished but if they do ever deliver down past our house I am sure another hit is a distinct possibility. Turns out our two neighbours had hits recently, one a car the other a moped rider. In all the decade plus I have lived there I have never seen a car being hit on that part of the road before but in the space of a month 3 hits. We're parking along the road from now i think. There has been a lot more vehicles along the road parking. Incomers with vans are a real problem plus more cars (think some have 2 cars down this road without the space for them).

Thanks for all your comments.

 

[jason83]

Track rod and linking arms could be bent or as previously said the wishbone could be bent. I wouldn't drive it if I'm honest due to possibility of whatever is gone could give way or snap, the wheel could be buckled as well or worse the spokes could of cracked weakening them dramatically.

 

[Coldfeet]

In my humble opinion:

The car should not be driven, but recovered (at the other parties' expense) to an agreed repairers for assessment and estimates.
I would only inform the insurers if I was going to claim on the insurance, otherwise why bother? As far as I'm aware there is no legal or moral obligation to do so.
As long as the work is carried out to your satisfaction, in a timescale satisfactory to you, then I really wouldn't worry about anything else.

You shouldn't be out of pocket because of this event, and you shouldn't have a vehicle in a lesser condition than prior to it; Everything else is irrelevant.

I hope you get this sorted soon.

 

[MertzMan]

In my humble opinion:

The car should not be driven, but recovered (at the other parties' expense) to an agreed repairers for assessment and estimates.
I would only inform the insurers if I was going to claim on the insurance, otherwise why bother? As far as I'm aware there is no legal or moral obligation to do so.
As long as the work is carried out to your satisfaction, in a timescale satisfactory to you, then I really wouldn't worry about anything else.

You shouldn't be out of pocket because of this event, and you shouldn't have a vehicle in a lesser condition than prior to it; Everything else is irrelevant.

I hope you get this sorted soon.

The T&C's say you have to report anything.