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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

I'm in trouble

324 replies

drintrouble · 13/01/2023 11:15

Changed name as don't want to be found out.
I'm in trouble. Can anyone give me some encouragement/advice how to go about it.
Last winter I have passed my driving test. And 2 weeks later crashed my car into somebody else- totally my fault. Came out, gave the other driver, a woman, my details, all the info. She did not give me anything of hers, except, her husband's telephone number. I took a video and few pictures of her car. The only damage that I could see was broken plastic on the taillight. Rang her husband same evening, we spoke about the damage, but, strangely, he kept repeating that he was driving at the time of the accident! There were no other people in the car, just the woman driver. In the phone conversation the man said that the damage was not bad, he could buy light on ebay and, if I gave him the money, we could do it privately. I wasn't sure about it, but agreed. He rang me next morning and demanded £4,000. I was absolutely certain that that was over the top and asked if he could take his car to my mechanic. He refused. Then I said I prefer to go through my insurance.
When I checked my insurance documents, I found out it ran out literally 2 days before the accident. Totally my fault, but because if lockdowns and instructor shortages and tests not being available for months, I have bought insurance just for a month before my test, and completely forgot about it.
I have panicked, rang the man, told him that I am refusing to pay £4k and asked him to come with realistic price. Never told him that I did not have insurance.
Nothing happened for a year and yesterday my husband, who is registered on this car, have received a letter from an insurance company asking him to answer questions about the accident, mentioning the female driver- me.
I know I am in trouble BIG TIME, but how would you act? Tell the truth, but insist that the other car was driven by the female- letter doesn't say who the other driver was. I know that something dodgy is going on (from my side as well!), but what to do now? I have a female driver after the accident on a video, when she was talking to her husband. She couldn't leave the site of the accident fast enough.
Please, don't kick me for what I did, but I have thought £4k is excessive and have panicked about the insurance.
What would you do?

OP posts:
MzHz · 13/01/2023 16:44

I think you put yourself on his insurance for a month, right? So this was the bit that expired, not the entire insurance?

sounds like the woman who was driving the car wasn’t supposed to be and almost definitely isn’t insured.

I reckon this is a potential no win no fee insurance thing. I say do nothing as it’s not your insurance company asking. The people you hit would need to provide their insurance company with your insurance information and it would go through them.

1stTimeTTC · 13/01/2023 16:46

TimeForMeToF1y · 13/01/2023 16:42

You can buy insurance for pretty much anything, someone is talking BS, might not be the OP

Show quote history

I've been on temporary car insurance. I haven't read the rest of the posts but just saying it's possible 👍🏼

SoupDragon · 13/01/2023 16:50

Any suspected wrong doings of the other driver seem irrelevant given the car was stationary and vacant at the time of the accident

No it wasn't. It had a female driver and her male partner kept insisting he was driving.

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 16:51

SoupDragon · 13/01/2023 16:50

Any suspected wrong doings of the other driver seem irrelevant given the car was stationary and vacant at the time of the accident

No it wasn't. It had a female driver and her male partner kept insisting he was driving.

It had NO driver. The woman was in a shop

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 16:52

The op also said the woman was driving as a way of saying she was with the vehicle so it's not clear that he actually is saying he was in the car at the time

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:54

It had NO driver. The woman was in a shop

I'm the OP it said the woman was in the car

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 16:56

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:54

It had NO driver. The woman was in a shop

I'm the OP it said the woman was in the car

She wasn't in a car when I crashed into her- she came out of the shop afterwards.

In the second post she states this

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:56

I think you put yourself on his insurance for a month, right? So this was the bit that expired, not the entire insurance?

The insurance ended when OP passed her test. She would have been insured on a provisional licence and when she passed her test needed to update that fundamental detail. I know insurance works on probabilities but one absolute basic fact is that they insure you as a learner OR a full licence holder.

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:57

@liveforsummer

I know.

It can't be both, so OP is not being truthful.

Bingobangodrinkacanoftango · 13/01/2023 16:57

SoupDragon · 13/01/2023 16:50

Any suspected wrong doings of the other driver seem irrelevant given the car was stationary and vacant at the time of the accident

No it wasn't. It had a female driver and her male partner kept insisting he was driving.

OP commented saying the car was vacant and the woman came out to see it had been hit. It was vacant and stationary.

I GUESS you could argue that if the woman driver wasn’t insured on the car and the male driver was aware she was using it whilst not insured, it technically wouldn’t be covered by HIS insurance. It would be incredibly difficult to prove though and OP hasn’t mentioned video evidence of the woman driving away. What is provable is that OP hit someone whilst uninsured. Their insurance status is a separate issue, even if they could prove the other party wasn’t insured/were committing some sort of fraud, it doesn’t make OP driving without insured any more legal.

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 16:58

Two things jump out at me. One, she obviously had no licence and two, they are fraudsters. So you're dealing with dodgy people which changes how i would deal with the situation. Their car had minimal damage so tell them you know that and offer to pay what you think is fair. If they refuse, let them know you are aware that they are lying about who was driving. Play them at their own game.

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:58

@Bingobangodrinkacanoftango

From the OP...

There were no other people in the car, just the woman driver.

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:59

Two things jump out at me. One, she obviously had no licence and two, they are fraudsters.

What part of Op post tells you this woman had no licence? For a parked car Confused

Bingobangodrinkacanoftango · 13/01/2023 16:59

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:58

@Bingobangodrinkacanoftango

From the OP...

There were no other people in the car, just the woman driver.

In her second post she clarifies the lady wasn’t in the vehicle.

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 16:59

the fact that they are lying about her driving. Simples......

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 17:00

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 16:58

@Bingobangodrinkacanoftango

From the OP...

There were no other people in the car, just the woman driver.

I presume she meant had been in the car. The insurance company is only interested who was in control of the car at the time of the accident and that was no one so the car was not uninsured at the time of the accident regardless of who had walked up to it afterwards

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 17:00

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 16:59

the fact that they are lying about her driving. Simples......

Not that simple when OP said it was a parked car

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 17:02

I presume she meant had been in the car

No, she just don't get her story straight Hmm

Bingobangodrinkacanoftango · 13/01/2023 17:02

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 17:00

I presume she meant had been in the car. The insurance company is only interested who was in control of the car at the time of the accident and that was no one so the car was not uninsured at the time of the accident regardless of who had walked up to it afterwards

Show quote history

Yep, absolutely. That’s what I’ve said, the insurance company will care about the facts.

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 17:02

She was in the drivers eat though no ? There is no other reason for them to lie. She was clearly either not insured or without a licence. So play them at their own game and see if they back down. They are pulling a fast one

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 17:02
  • seat
Daddydog · 13/01/2023 17:02

What was the date they are claiming the accedent happened? I know from experience most policies give you a specific time frame you can claim. This is important - if they were going to do it privately, obiously not informing their insurer and then came up with some silly amount - the only way they could log a claim is by saying the incedent happened on a different date and time to make it valid. Otherwise you could be in an accedent, swap details - not say anything for 3 weeks - wrap your car around a lamp-post and then claim the damage from what happened weeks ago from the other party. Most policies, it's a max of 2 weeks! Ours was less then this, if remember correctly - meaning we couldn't claim. It's different though if the other party admits fault after that period, I think it may still be claimable.

keepareaclean · 13/01/2023 17:02

Yep, absolutely. That’s what I’ve said, the insurance company will care about the facts.

OP better sort them out then

liveforsummer · 13/01/2023 17:04

Nameneeded · 13/01/2023 17:02

She was in the drivers eat though no ? There is no other reason for them to lie. She was clearly either not insured or without a licence. So play them at their own game and see if they back down. They are pulling a fast one

No she wasn't - she was in the shop!

EarringsandLipstick · 13/01/2023 17:05

@Ursuala

Not necessarily.

I've just had reason to add someone to a policy temporarily. No further notification thereafter.