Need some quick advice from insurance types.

Summary details: Fiesta 1.25 1998 vgc 27K miles

* Guy drives into back of our car (10-20mph) and accepts full responsibility.
* Damage to car only slight crease and scratches to the bumper and a broken number plate
* Admiral (Albany) say Total Loss as car is £750 and repair £650.
* Admiral say as Total Loss Write Off insurance pulled in 24 hours
* Agree with valuation but costs to repair seem high for a new bumper and number plate. If less than 65% or so not total loss.
* Now written off so, no insurance, and no car even though it's only a cosmetic write off and perfectly drivable (has been for 2 weeks).
* Admiral say we must MOT to prove it's OK but with no insurance can't get it to garage.
* Albany say if we can prove less than £550 to repair may with draw Write Off but as Admiral are pulling the insurance again we can't get it to a garage for a quote.
* No hire care either as only 3PFT

Wish I'd just screwed a number plate on and not bothered :-(.

What can we do??


[Edited on 18/5/11 by pajsh]

My corsa was written off for the same reason - only visible damage was (and still is....) a crack on the rear bumper .
When it came to the estimate , they wanted to take the car away for it , and I refused , saying I would take it there myself so as to not lose my car............... It worked - I am still driving the same car , and I've been payed market value less the salvage .

Did your insurers take the car away for the estimate ? If not , I cant quite figure out what they are up to ?

Have you bad your own estimate done, ask the insurers for an engineers report, don't usually write cars off on the back of a repair estimate.... I am a fleet manager with this sort of experience. You are still the owner and if the car is still safe and road worthy they can not disable your cover....good luck

insurers are always eager to call something a writeoff specifically so the policy can be cancelled. That said, esure wrote off my car and said the policy was still valid for transfer.

Looks like they are trying to shaft you. Id tell your own insuance company to wee off, tell them you'll claim yourself off the other drivers policy. Call them, tell them you're going to hire a car and send them the bill - they cannot argue here as you are carless due to their drivers error. Mention personal injury and im sure they will soon be talking. Then hit them for your own estimate of the repair bill, mentioning that your own insurers thinks its a write off. Id push for £500, and not bother fixing it.

Whatever you choose to do, you are going to have to be determined and stubbornly fight your corner, as insurance companies are slippery buggers. Dont stand for being bent over!

Thanks for the feedback.

Direct Line (3rd party) did offer to take up the claim and I wish I'd let them now. Admiral are complete to55ers.

Yesterday I got a letter saying they had determined it was our fault and so we'ed loose our no claims.

I called up and got some crap about they were passing it to the legal team who would look at the case.

When I then told them the guy and Direct Line had fully accepted the blame they admitted they had had a letter from them accepting responsibility and it was an error!!

I've told Admiral I don't accept it's a write off and they are just hiding behind what Albany are saying and telling me as they (Albany) have written it off the insurance is automatically pulled.

They didn't even know the valuation and repair costs.

[Edited on 18/5/11 by pajsh]