Was this lady classed as a pedestrian? (car incident)

[didhedidhe]

I was parked up when a lady pulled up and parked in front of me and got out and opened her boot and tried to pull her pram and the folded wheels out at the same time, while doing this the pram wheels opened and scraped across my bonnet leaving a significant scrape and dent in it.
While she put the pram together and got her little one out and in the pram I got out to see the damage.
I asked for her details and she said she was a pedestrian as she wasn’t actually driving her car and said there’s nothing I can do.
Is she right? Is there no point trying to claim on her insurance?

I have the number plate and dash cam footage but not sure where I stand.

Could be, but I don't know how it would work if the insurance doesn't cover it - presumably the police would need to be involved.

If it happened in the act of unloading from the vehicle then you should be able to claim from her vehicle insurers.

Can get the insurance details from MID via your insurers

That's a proximal cause, and absolutely claimable. Sounds like the insurance company fobbed your dad off so he'd go away. Had he claimed on his own car insurance, they would have been paid and re-claimed from the other driver's insurance under proximal cause.

The issue of criminal damage is largely irrelevant here. It would be difficult to prove, and it's not necessary as there was clear negligence, which is enough to establish liability. The criminal court does not have power to order full compensation for the damage to the car anyway, OP would still have to make a civil claim through the County Court.

Just adding to this that if the accident was within the last 6 years your father could still claim.

Her car insurance will not cover it. But the OP's car insurance can cover it and using the evidence provided pursue her for their costs.

Yeah because it's perfectly reasonable for pedestrians to smash up strangers cars. It's only illegal to damage a car with another car?! Yeah right. God knows what planet she's on.

If she was just driving the car she got the pram out of then the insurance for that vehicle is responsible. It's not like she was exiting a taxi? Either that or she'll be found guilty of criminal damage.

Pass it to your insurance company, she will soon decide she’s not personally liable when faced with the bill!

That's not true.

No, this would be a civil claim within the county courts, assuming the woman could be traced - which might well be possible if OP has the reg number of the car. Any judgment debt could be enforced by various means including, potentially, distraining against the car if it belongs to the woman responsible.

Any danger of explaining why you think this is not true?

Thanks, that is good to know.

Criminal courts have and frequently use their powers to order compensation to repair damage in matters like criminal damage.

But the powers of Magistrates' courts are capped, and they don't have the mechanism to sort out full compensation for all aspects of loss; their powers of enforcement are also limited.

Being on foot doesn't mean she's allowed to scratch or damage another car. Mad.

This is a civil claim in the small claims court.

As said it's motor if in the process of unloading or public liability if occurred after the unloading had finished.

Home content insurance policies normally cover public liability.

No she’s not a pedestrian. Report and claim through your insurance who will claim off her insurance if you have the details. She was negligent and you have suffered a loss. . It’s not vandalism as it presumably wasn’t intentional. She doesn’t have to be driving the car. She’s trying to fob you off.

Only on MN would I read about negligent and reckless pram unloading.

@didhedidhe ,where were you parked?

Did the car have Tax & MoT?

It can be checked on line

Whilst true, should be sufficient for relatively small damage like this.

See @Fortuity above a letter from your solicitor with quote and evidence of the dashcam would show you were serious. She would probably give in.
We had someone pay for damage when they ran into us in slow traffic.

Because it was

I don't think it would meet the criteria of criminal damage. I understand the test for criminal damage is a deliberate or reckless act. Recklessness and negligence are different things (recklesness means an awareness of the consequences risk and taking it anyway; negligence means the risk should have been foreseen but the person overlooked it i.e. it's careless rather than conscious risk taking). I'm a solicitor but not a criminal one I hasten to add.

It sounds like she was negligent but not reckless (or at least the evidence wouldn't support that). Common law negligence is a civil offence so the police wouldn't pursue it. Motor insurance wouldn't usually cover her as not driving, although her policy might include additional coverage for this type of this party damage.

Here's what I would do.
A. Report to police anyway and allege criminal damage. Unlikely to pursue but they'll probably pay her a visit and this may make her wary and more inclined to cooperate with a civil claim.
B. Report to her insurers. Even if the policy doesn't cover her, you find out her name/ contact details.
C. Write to her notifying a civil claim and asking her to admit liability, pay the damage cost or make a best offer. If you don't hear within 21 days you will start a small claim at county court (this is for claim value under 10k and the process is designed for use without legal representatives). The dash can footage will be good evidence so make sure you save it.

I'm assuming you don't want to involve your insurers but if you do then it's more up to them, particularly steps B and C. They probably won't bother with C unless she has non-driving third party liability insurance on her motor or home insurance policy.

This is why the insurance system on the continent is so much better. Everyone has third party liability insurance (added as standard to home insurance or tenant's insurance) so in these cases you just exchange insurance details and the insurances take care of it.

Makes life a lot easier.

Liability during loading and unloading is only usually insured by motor policies that specifically insure Good In Transit vehicles, which won't tend to apply to Mrs Bloggs getting her baby out of the family car.