I had a minor incident with a 2009 Vauxhall Corsa, resulting in some scratches. It's valued at around £1200, and since my Benz has a high insurance excess, I decided to handle the repairs myself with an off-market solution. Initially, the other party didn't want to involve insurance, so we agreed to handle it privately.
However, when I informed my insurer, Marshmallow, they assumed fault without seeing evidence and immediately contacted the other party(while put me on hold) without consulting me. They arranged a replacement vehicle and repair, but things escalated when the other party accused me of a hit and run later on. Now, repair quotes for the other party range from £300 to £600, much less than the car's value, yet they continue to claim for a credit hire car, costing me an estimated £3500 or more.
Here are my questions:
- Why did Marshmallow skip involving the third-party insurance and admit fault on my behalf? Was there any benefit involved, such as referral commissions, or will it just affect their underwriters?
- Was the Marshmallow customer service rep who took my first call not experienced enough to handle the situation?
- My no claims are protected, but Marshmallow allowed the third party to claim directly through my policy without affecting their no claims. Is this fair? Can I take any action legally?
- All my evidence needs to go through Marshmallow's initial contact point, who seems to have already made up their mind before I even shared the data. Now, I'm trying to persuade Marshmallow to reconsider their decision.