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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To get my neighbour to repair my car through her insurance?

57 replies

JillBob · 21/03/2022 17:40

Long story short, my elderly neighbour has managed to crash into the side of my parked car and taken off the wing mirror and scratched the driver side door and wing.

She came around to apologise with her son in tow and when I asked if it was going through insurance she said she would rather pay for the damage.

Before she came round I was adamant that it would go through her insurance but on hearing her explanation it sounds like her husband is currently in hospital and she was rushing there. Hence the crash…

I’ve wasted all today trying to get quotes with very little success other than one from a BMW dealership for at least £1500. I can’t drive the car anywhere as it has no wing mirror and if I’m honest I haven’t got the time to be running around trying to get my car fixed when trying to hold down a full time job and sorting kids.

I also need a car to get me to and from work which I obviously won’t have if it doesn’t go through the insurance.

AIBU to go round and tell her it needs to go through her insurance?

OP posts:
Jumpingintomenopause · 21/03/2022 17:44

I would simply offer them two options.

A. Go through insurance
B. BMW quote plus the cost of a hire car and temporary insurance.

SamphiretheStickerist · 21/03/2022 17:46

You have to tell your insurers regardless. It could possibly invalidate it otherwise.

And it would be less hassle for her to go through insurance anyway, wouldn't it?

Totalwasteofpaper · 21/03/2022 17:48

@Jumpingintomenopause

I would simply offer them two options.

A. Go through insurance
B. BMW quote plus the cost of a hire car and temporary insurance.

This. And tell her you need an answer in 24 hours as you currently cannot drive and have no car due to her actions.
dementedpixie · 21/03/2022 17:48

Even if you didn't claim on insurance then you'd still have to declare the incident to your insurance company.

NorthSouthcatlady · 21/03/2022 17:48

Another vote for insurers. I’ve heard too many dodgy stories when people swear blind they will pay for the repairs themselves. But then just don’t!

AchillesPoirot · 21/03/2022 17:48

Just go through insurance.

Dillydollydingdong · 21/03/2022 17:48

You ring your insurance company and tell them what's happened. Hopefully you've got comprehensive insurance and they'll arrange for repairs, apart from your excess which you pay yourself. Your insurance company will then claim from HERS.

Nicknacky · 21/03/2022 17:49

Is it driver or passenger mirror?

Original poster
JillBob · 21/03/2022 17:50

@Nicknacky driver mirror that’s gone

OP posts:
curlii103 · 21/03/2022 17:51

I hit a parked car! I was going to pay directly but the quote was too high. One call to the insurance and they dealt with everything, my premium didnt even go up by much so even being on the opposite side it was sooo much less stress going through insurance!

Nicknacky · 21/03/2022 17:51

Apologise, I missed that she struck your driver door.

ZaraSizeMedium · 21/03/2022 17:52

Is she going to pay upfront?

What if, after you’ve had the work done, she doesn’t pay, or doesn’t pay for it all?

Nope. Go through insurance.

LampLighter414 · 21/03/2022 17:57

Doesn't matter what happened. She's still liable. Give her the info on the quote and ask if it's okay. Otherwise it's insurance time

Saz12 · 21/03/2022 17:58

Go tell her what you’ve done to get quotes, and how much dealership are quoting. Explain you need your car for work.
Ask her what she wants to do - pay for the dealership repair, go through insurance, or what?

Original poster
JillBob · 21/03/2022 17:58

@ZaraSizeMedium my thoughts also after letting it all sink in and having a complete nightmare today…

OP posts:
Prettynails · 21/03/2022 18:00

@NorthSouthcatlady

Another vote for insurers. I’ve heard too many dodgy stories when people swear blind they will pay for the repairs themselves. But then just don’t!
This
BattledoreAndShuttlecock · 21/03/2022 18:04

The fact that she's elderly and she as visiting her husband in hospital has no bearing whatsoever on whether you should go through insurance. It should be much easier and less stress for her to go through insurance, and once she realises how much it's going to cost she should realise that.

pawpaws2022 · 21/03/2022 18:05

Insurance
I wrote my neighbours car off Blush and did about 3k worth of damage to mine
Knocking and waking them at 7am was NOT FUN Blush but luckily we had the same insurers and it was sorted swiftly

Speakuptomakeyourselfheard · 21/03/2022 18:08

Please go through insurance OP, we got caught out like this once, the guy hit us crossing a bridge, said he didn't want to go through insurance, gave us his name address etc, and said to send him the bill. Needless to say, he didn't pay, and we ended up out of pocket, never again!

Auntieobem · 21/03/2022 18:08

Go through insurance- no question. Been on the end of someone refusing to pay after they received my quote amd changing their story with insurance, trying to say accident was my fault.

Fluffycloudland77 · 21/03/2022 18:11

Insurance every time. Especially if it’s a car on finance and the repairs shit they’ll charge you for putting it right.

MrsAvocet · 21/03/2022 18:15

I would have thought it would be easier, and probably a lot cheaper for her to go through her insurance.People often think something like a bit of body work and a wing mirror will be less than the increase on their insurance but that's very unlikely. A replacement for the driver's wing mirror on my car would be nearly £5k! Noawadays with things like automatic adjustment, blind spot detection etc a wing mirror is a lot more tgan a piece of glass. She probably has no idea ofvtge cost and has heard horror stories about insurance costs rocketing after a claim.
Unless of course, and I guess it is possinle, she isn't insured.

Mummyoflittledragon · 21/03/2022 18:17

I’d give her the quote and say it’s far to expensive for her and you’ve had no luck getting another so you’ll be going through insurance. No choice.

Orangesox · 21/03/2022 18:20

Just go through insurance; honestly it'll be far cheaper for her in the long run, and you should get a hire car etc. An old neighbours of ours promised to pay for body work to be done after she reversed down the side of my car... the work was done at a shit garage of her choosing (who made a total hash of it) and then she refused to cough up stating that it was "private land" and that it wasn't her problem. 16 years later (and a good decade since some other drunk prick wrote that car off) I've still not forgiven her!

Puzzledandpissedoff · 21/03/2022 18:25

The fact that she's elderly and she as visiting her husband in hospital has no bearing whatsoever on whether you should go through insurance

You're right it doesn't - but it could just be the start of a reluctance to pay, so I'd also vote for using insurance

In many ways I'm surprised she doesn't want to (unless she's had a lot of claims and is worried one more will lead to no cover at all?)