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AIBU?

to feel the police should pay for my car being towed away as nobody asked me if this was ok?

31 replies

MANATEEequineOHARA · 17/04/2009 20:16

Horrid car crash this morning, really horrid experience. My car is at the point of no return.

BUT the police managed to push it off the road so that it was no longer causing an obstruction, and they arranged for a recovery company to collect. They NEVER asked me if I had my own recovery. And actually the driveway opposite where it had been pushed to belongs to a farmer I know, so it could have just gone there until I figured out what to do.

What is worse is that this will cost me £300 minimum, (not fully comp so it is my cost) and obviously that will increase everyday. If it was more like £100, I would not be so totally pissed off, but it seems insane by anyones' standards.

I have since made a complaint and a policeman called me this evening and agreed that there is a 'line' that the police at the scene should have asked, something like 'Do you have your own recovery to avoid paying for ours'. He also agreed that it is excessively expensive, but has to talk to police who were there, and despite making sympathetic noises, he did not suggest it is not my responsibility to pay.

But my car was taken without my consent!!! It was not blocking the road, which is the only time when the police would have to get it recovered. It will HAVE to be paid, to get it out of there and stop the charges (that is complicated in itself), but should I try and claim some/all of this back from the police!? They were the ones that had my car taken away unnecessarily.........

OP posts:

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HecatesTwopenceworth · 17/04/2009 20:19

hope you are ok. Obv not injured so that's good.

dunno where you'd stand but there's nothing to be lost by getting the car out pdq and then trying to get refunded by the police.

chequersmate · 17/04/2009 20:19

Oooh yes, I remember getting shouted at about this a lot when I worked on an incident desk for the police a few years ago.

Happens A LOT.

No one ever got a refund, as far as I remember.

Sorry.

thisisyesterday · 17/04/2009 20:22

hmmm so your car is written off??

I'd ask them what happens if you don't want your car back and are happy for them to keep it TBH!

nigglewiggle · 17/04/2009 20:24

I would pay to get your car out, because the longer they keep it, the more it will cost. Then write to the Chief Constable outlining your position and detailing who you have spoken to etc. The police do sometimes accept liability.

debs40 · 17/04/2009 20:27

If the accident wasn't your fault, can't you arrange for your insurer's to pay the fee? That's what happened when our car was written off in an accident.

chequersmate · 17/04/2009 20:27

Thisisyesterdat, as far as I remember you still have to pay the tow charge, the charge for it being in the pound and then the charge to scrap it.

OP - check your insurance - it might well be covered. Actually maybe not if only 3rd party. Why do you only have 3rd party insurance if you don't mind me asking?

(sympathies about the crash btw)

thisisyesterday · 17/04/2009 20:28

or you could report it to the police as stolen

Peachy · 17/04/2009 20:28

Oh gawd

get ot out NOW

Dh used to work for one of these towing companies.

they will add every conceivable penny they can daily to your bill ntil it becomes incredibly huge

Deffo go to the Police rather than the company owner on the off-chance its same company

debs40 · 17/04/2009 20:29

I should add, they got the car disposed of and gave us a cheque for the write off value.

And they were really crap insurers!

Get a courtesy car from them too and if your claim doesn't cover it,they should refer you to a company which will hire out without charge because they know they will get the charges back when you recover from the other party.

Get on to your insurers!

Thunderduck · 17/04/2009 20:29

Peachy is right. Gravel,extra man, blocks,special lift etc. They aren't daft.

Thunderduck · 17/04/2009 20:31

You'll be lucky to get a courtesy car on tp insurance.

debs40 · 17/04/2009 20:33

You can recover any uninsured losses from the insurers of the party who caused the accident.

There are two things here:

(i) what you can claim from your own insurance company which will depend on your policy

(ii) recoverable damages which are the result of someone's negligent act. These include this type of cost

Go see a local solicitor - keep a list of all expenses and see a GP about any injuries. Whiplash is a nasty thing and can often affect people in the days after a bump

Flibbertyjibbet · 17/04/2009 20:33

Was there another car involved and was the accident their fault? If so even if you are 3rd party you should be able to claim that cost from them/their insurer.
If there was no one else involved, were you there? Did you see a tow truck arrive and say 'no I am just about to phone my own tow truck/ask the farmer if I can leave my car in his field'?
If you weren't there then I do think they have to remove it from the site - how did they know you would arrange to move it at all? a damaged car can be a danger zone for passers by/children, it could be looted/set on fire by passing idiots.
I once had a bump when I was only 3d party insured and ever since then I've made sure I've got fully comp, it doesn't cost that much more and when you ahve incidents like this it actually works out cheaper than having to fork out for everything that you're not insured for.
After all that, hope you are ok you are probably still in shock.

psychomum5 · 17/04/2009 20:35

was the crash your fault???

if not, claim from the other party.

if so, sorry, I think you are stuck.

I had a bad crash 1.5yrs ago, and the plice recovered our vehicles. they did need to tho as they were blocking the road, and I (and the 7 children in the car with me) were carted off to hospital so no-one was able to deal with it....obviously DH rushed to the hospital to be with his family!

oh, and the man that hit me was unble to do much with his car due to the previa-size hole in it!

we claimed our fees back from the other mans insurance.

he however sent the baliffs around to us to claim his fees back....!!!

suffice to say, when we provided proof to the baliffs that the other man was a wanker, they went away.

anyway............HUGE sympathies to you for the crash. I hope you are ok and reletively uninjured, and that it gets sorted as the police are really a tad out of order here as they should have asked.

Thunderduck · 17/04/2009 20:36

Do speak to the ins co if you haven't done so already, about the charges.

Thunderduck · 17/04/2009 20:37

And yes get it out now. It'll be clocking up storage charges which are often 20 or so per day.

MANATEEequineOHARA · 17/04/2009 21:17

The garage are evil! When they first told me the tow charge, I asked it soem of that would be offset against me letting them have the car as scrap, and they said no, they would charge me £75 plus VAT to scrap the car! So I have arranged for a scrap yard to collect it and they will pay me!

The blame thing is not straighforward, probably both at fault to an extent (him for going too fast, me for not taking enough care, although I did look!), and also the weather, for the way the shadows were falling on the road between patches of bright light did not help me judge the whole thing very well.

I wont hold out much hope of getting anything sorted, from what Chequersmate said!

OP posts:

psychomum5 · 17/04/2009 21:50

do not admit blame then, in any event.

pay the fee for now, write your letter to the police (as it was unfair and very very expensive), and then hold out hope for claiming back.

if it is held as a 'no-fault' claim, your fees should be paid.

that said, I state that from a fully-comp point of view.

good luck, and again, I hope you are ok.

MANATEEequineOHARA · 17/04/2009 21:52

Thanks, that does sound like a sensible course of action that MAY result in fees getting paid.
Feeling very bruised around my ribs, but ok in a just-crashed-but-still-alive kind of way!

OP posts:

psychomum5 · 17/04/2009 21:54

ouch for the ribs.

and from a veteran of car crashes (three so far, none my fault), tomorrow will be 'feeling like hell day'. not least cos shock and bruising starts coming out, and stiffness, and achyness, and tears.

themoon66 · 17/04/2009 21:54

Robbing bastards!!!

Stories like this really make me cross

psychomum5 · 17/04/2009 21:56

that said, yay for being alive is a good feeling

muppetgirl · 17/04/2009 22:11

so sorry you had a crash...

We were away one christmas and my neighbour was worried she;d not heard from us and called the police. Upshot they broke into our house by smashing our dinning room window. They then found our phone book and phone IL's -where we were!- to discuss we were okay,

They organised a company to come and board up our window and left.

2 weeks later we recieved a bill for the cotst of the bording up -£75.

We thought this a bit rich as our neighbour (behind us) told the poilce she saw us packing up the car and taking our dogs with us before christmas. (The police were obvioulsy bored as they didn't listen but also summoned help and altogether there were 3 cars and a van outside our house when they brokje in and wouldn't give any information to the rest of the neighbours in the street)

We phoned and were given another number to ring that delt with the bills sent out. At first we were told we had to pay as it was a false emergency call out. We said but we didn't call you out!!!! They said tough we had to pay. Then one final call we were put through to somone else and they said that a bill is autmatically sent out and unless you complain you will be expected to pay as most people do as it is from the police.

We didn't have to pay the bording up bill but we did have to pay for a new pane of double glazing...

tattifer · 17/04/2009 23:51

Hope you're not too stiff tomorrow - I can provide drugs if you need them!!!

Methinks police should ask if someone has their own recovery or want us to arrange. No matter how nice the officers were at the time, you may have to complain just to make sure your point about not having been asked (or given any information at the time) is actually made officially.

MANATEEequineOHARA · 18/04/2009 09:48

I am extra stiff and achey this morning, and had lots of bizarre dreams last night. (That said, that is not entirely unusual!) More drugs would be great

I am mad at myself for even driving down that road, but trying to see the positives (this is proving somewhat difficult!)

Thanks for the advice all, it is good to know I am not over reacting.

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