Car bump, other party now claiming for whiplash?

[boschy]

I (stupidly) reversed my car into a parked car in a car park outside the vets early October. I couldnt see the other car from where I was parked, it was dark grey and parked in very dark shade, everywhere else was bright.

There was a man in the passenger seat, so I asked if he was ok, he said he was, then went in to the vets to find the owner of the car. Obviously I explained what had happened, we exchanged details etc.

There was no damage to either car that I could see but hers was a brand new BMW M1 so I reckoned she would make a claim, and told my insurers so. She was pretty aggressive, but I reckoned you know, some fuckwit backs into your car, you're not going to be all sweetness and light...

ANYWAY, today I have received a copy of their claim form via a solicitors; they are claiming for whiplash and soft tissue injury for the passenger (no medical treatment sought at time, but solicitor's medical advisor thinks some is needed). I think this is perhaps unlikely, given that I was moving no more than 5mph. The form has been copied to my insurers.

Do I just wait now? Or do I need to contact the insurers to say that I think the claim is over-egging the cake?

[ClareMarriott]

There is nothing for you to do . You exchanged details at the time, notified your insurers and they are dealing with a claim brought by the passenger in the other vehicle. Leave it entirely in their hands

[scaredbutexcited]

We have exactly the same problem so will be watching with interest. Very little damage to either vehicle.

In our case the incident happened around 18 months ago and the personal injury claim was only made a couple of months ago.

Can't see how there could possibly have been any injury and if there was, why wait over a year?!

Stressing us out and no idea what to do - no win no fee lawyers have a lot to answer for!

Sorry, no help but you are not the only one at least and I hope there will be some advice on this. Good luck

[FlaminNoraImPregnantPanda]

Can I just give a possible other alternative to them swinging the lead? Because I had a car bump into the back of me a while back. It was the most minor shunt imaginable. Not a mark on either car. But the agony I woke up in the next day is indescribeable. It tooks weeks of physiotherapy and several tonnes of painkillers to sort it out. I felt like a complete wuss, afterall I knew she had barely touched my car and a year earlier someone crashed into the side of me, totally writing off both cars and yet I walked away without a scratch.

[boschy]

Update: my insurers are sending a claims person to get my side of the story, which suggests to me that they are contesting it.

flaming I'm sorry to hear that; but in this case I do suspect they are swinging the lead. hope you are ok now.

[1978andallthat]

Happened to me. Insurers believed me and thought she was lying not least because she claimed whiplash immediately but apparently it doesn't present for a few days. Nothing I could do though. Had to leave it to the insurers and they decided cheaper to settle than contest. Makes me very cross though. She got a nice sum and I now pay more for my insurance. Unfair.

[exexpat]

Happened to me too, years ago - he didn't claim until two years after the accident, I presume triggered by one of the ads for no win, no fee accident compensation ambulance chasers lawyers. Reading the medical report you could see that the doctor thought he was trying it on as well, but the insurance company still settled because it was cheaper to do that than contest it. But it's become so common now, I heard recently that insurance companies are trying to take a tougher stance because the payouts have got out of control.

[bunchamunchycrunchycarrots]

boschy, they'll be looking to take some photos of your car, as well as your statement, to see if there are any grounds to dispute the claim as a low speed impact. It's really important for them to follow this line of enquiry if there is some dubiety over the claim, so it's a good sign that they are doing this and not blindly accepting the claim as presented. Basically, you admit causing the impact, but if there is any 'over-egging' then the main way to try and disprove it is through inspecting your car, and getting your statement. The key thing in your statement is the speed, and your description of how the collision occurred. It's very difficult to disprove a 'whiplash' claim, but it looks as though they are at least going to try.

[1978andallthat]

Even though my insurance company settled in the end they also sent someone to look at car. There was nothing to look at and the whole thing had only been wing mirror to wing mirror. Assessor was adamant he believed me.