Can anyone with knowledge help please? Insurance/ bike accident.

ZeroFuchsGiven · 2021-12-09T20:42:15+00:00

Hi, Thank you so much whoever reads this but I'm a bit a lost. So from the beginning, My Son was on his way home from work on Tuesday evening and there was a tree in the middle of the road, it was dark, raining heavy and very windy. He seen the tree last minute and tried to go round it but caught his moped on a branch sticking out and it tore all the plastic bodywork off also sending him flying. We have just retrieved the bike back today. Now he was only 3rd party so his insurance will not pay out even though it was not his fault. However, We have been told by the police, his insurance etc to claim from the peoples house insurance whose tree it was in the road. When we went back today to collect the bike, the person who had it in their shed (across the road from the tree people, who actually took my son in and made him a cuppa till my dp got there) have told us no way will they pay anything, they have made comments about him 'learning a valuable lesson' to watch where he is going ... My question is, can he claim of their House insurance? I will be calling them tomorrow and if they say no to handing over their insurance details is there anything I can do? Other info is they reported it a few hours earlier and none came out till my sons accident when the police and highways turned up

Original poster

ZeroFuchsGiven · 09/12/2021 20:43

Just to add, He can't work right now because of his bruising , he's very sore

OP posts:

Nomoreusernames1244 · 09/12/2021 20:51

When we went back today to collect the bike, the person who had it in their shed (across the road from the tree people, who actually took my son in and made him a cuppa till my dp got there) have told us no way will they pay anything, they have made comments about him 'learning a valuable lesson' to watch where he is going ..

This doesn’t make sense. So the people who the tree “belonged to” took him in after the accident, but today you spoke to the neighbours across the road who have said they won’t pay? Why would the neighbours across the road be expected to pay?

Anyway. It’s a storm. I doubt you have a claim unless you can prove they were negligent with maintenance or knew there was a risk of the tree coming down.

Third party is just that. You want to be insured for your own vehicle, you pay fully comp.

How much is the damage? Is it worth paying for legal advice? I would think you’ll need to at least speak to someone to see if you have a claim, and if so engage the to act for you. Your vehicle insurance won’t pay, you could check your household insurance and see if they will if you have legal cover. I suspect they may say it comes under your vehicle insurance though….

Original poster

ZeroFuchsGiven · 09/12/2021 20:57

No, sorry I must have worded it wrong, the people who his bike was left with were the people across the road, not the tree owners.

So you are saying we can not put a claim in with the tree falling people on their house insurance

OP posts:

Original poster

ZeroFuchsGiven · 09/12/2021 20:59

And i understand fully comp, my question is, it was not my sons fault so can we make a claim from the homeowners whose tree was across the road as it was their fault.

OP posts:

alwayswrighty · 09/12/2021 21:00

Have you costed up the damage? It's often cheaper to not go through insurance and fix it yourselves if not mechanical

Soontobe60 · 09/12/2021 21:01

All I can say is that my house insurance includes cover in case someone or something gets damaged from something that forms part of my. Property. So I’d assume that a tree that has fallen from my property into the road causing n accident can be claimed against. Ask your son to see a solicitor for a free 1/2 hour consultation.

Username7521 · 09/12/2021 21:01

Hi OP
We’re you thinking of loss of earning or just the bike? And when you say bike do you mean Motobike or pushbike?
If it’s a push bike it honestly won’t be worth pursuing just for the bike.

DicklessWonder · 09/12/2021 21:02

General insurance principle: if you hit something stationary it’s your fault. He should have seen the branch. Tough lesson.

DicklessWonder · 09/12/2021 21:03

@Username7521

Hi OP We’re you thinking of loss of earning or just the bike? And when you say bike do you mean Motobike or pushbike? If it’s a push bike it honestly won’t be worth pursuing just for the bike.

Literally says in the OP it’s a moped.

WouldIBeATwat · 09/12/2021 21:03

@Soontobe60

All I can say is that my house insurance includes cover in case someone or something gets damaged from something that forms part of my. Property. So I’d assume that a tree that has fallen from my property into the road causing n accident can be claimed against. Ask your son to see a solicitor for a free 1/2 hour consultation.

If it fell on him whilst he was driving past, yes.

Hitting it after it had fallen and was stationary, no. He should have seen it and left appropriate space.

rwalker · 09/12/2021 21:04

No help with tree or insurance issue but my lad got knocked off his moped all fairings trashed got a complete new body kit for £180 bike looks like new .

LarryTheLurker · 09/12/2021 21:06

If a tree falls on e.g. a neighbour's garage, the owner of the damaged garage can make a claim, as it was the falling of the tree that caused the damage. The owner of the fallen tree had a duty to check it was safe; house insurance ought to include public liability cover, which should cover that eventuality.

I am sorry to hear your son was hurt, but that's not the case here. He was either going too fast for the conditions or not being observant enough to avoid an obstacle in the road, type immaterial, and I doubt the tree owner's insurers will entertain a claim.

By all means get professional legal advice, but I'd be surprised if it differs materially from what I've said.

Baypony · 09/12/2021 21:06

Maybe they mean check on your own house insurance for legal cover to see if you can lodge a claim against the tree owner through that? I don’t see that you could claim off their house insurance directly as it’s not your policy and surely they don’t have to give you their details?

Mintyt · 09/12/2021 21:07

@DicklessWonder is correct, he has hit a third party (the tree) and should have taken car not too. I understand, but this is how he has insured himself. So any incident had the underwriter will only pay for 3rd party damage

ikeptgoing · 09/12/2021 21:10

So you asked a legal question and
The legal question is the household that tree was across the road negligent and liable in any way for the moped/motorbike accident your DC had?

Well that will depend on the evidence your son has that their tree caused it and they were negligent. I think a storm that felled their tree is likely an unexpected incident and it would be assumed your son was driving with care. And he hit a stationary object (albeit a felled tree )

So .... not sure you will win this as tree didn't fall in him when he was driving he drove into it?

Original poster

ZeroFuchsGiven · 09/12/2021 21:10

Thank you for all your replies, much appreciated x

OP posts:

gogohm · 09/12/2021 21:31

They would only be liable if you could prove they knew the tree was likely to fall. Falling debris during a storm is a natural event so they are not liable as long as they clear it up as soon as feasible

DENMAN03 · 09/12/2021 22:07

You would need to prove negligence on the part of the tree owner. So if the tree was under a regular inspection regime and showed no sign of disease etc, it appears as if this was an event that could not have been prevented and hence the tree owner would not be liable for the accident. If that is not the case however, there may be a finding against them but this also may be reduced because of an element of contributory negligence on the part of the road user for not being able to stop in time.

andtherewere2 · 10/12/2021 02:09

I think it was answered earlier

OP's son rode into the tree, not realising it was there

It was a storm
Tree came down

So, glad OP's son is okay
Accident is still his fault

alexdgr8 · 10/12/2021 02:52

@DicklessWonder

General insurance principle: if you hit something stationary it’s your fault. He should have seen the branch. Tough lesson.

i agree. unless the tree actually fell as he was riding by under it, which was not the case, from what you say. sounds like he was riding without due care and attention. he should have pulled up in good time, dismounted, and walked around the obstruction, pushing the moped. it's unfortunate and i'm sorry he got hurt, but it really is a lesson to him.

thatstheloveiwantiwantlove · 10/12/2021 03:01

2 lessons for you and your son here

He should have been fully comp on his insurance - no excuse really

he should have driven more carefully when he tried to go round it - it was already in the road. He miss judged the space much like had he clipped something whilst parking

rwalker · 10/12/2021 07:19

Forgot to add my son had fully comp but excess was £450 one of the lowest we could find.
Also some people unaware a moped claim is a motoring claim and if he starts driving next you he would have to declare it as an accident on his car insurance affecting it for the next 5 years .
Realistically unless your claiming well over a £1000 don't claim its not worth it .

Lockdownbear · 10/12/2021 07:40

I'm not a lawyer but basically he hit a stationary object, you'll have a hard time claiming the owners of the object are at fault.

Think about what would be said if it was an abandoned car he'd hit rather than a tree. The owners of the car would be entitled to claim him for damage to their car. He could hardly claim it shouldn't have been there.

HoppingPavlova · 14/12/2021 10:26

I’m not sure I understand. Was the tree already down? If so how did he not see an actual tree until the last second and ran into it? What if it had been a person and not a tree? Or, was there no tree initially and as he was driving it suddenly came down in front of him so he couldn’t stop?

WouldIBeATwat · 14/12/2021 10:41

@HoppingPavlova

I’m not sure I understand. Was the tree already down? If so how did he not see an actual tree until the last second and ran into it? What if it had been a person and not a tree? Or, was there no tree initially and as he was driving it suddenly came down in front of him so he couldn’t stop?

Looks pretty clear in the OP that it was already there.

So from the beginning, My Son was on his way home from work on Tuesday evening and there was a tree in the middle of the road, it was dark, raining heavy and very windy. He seen the tree last minute and tried to go round it but caught his moped on a branch sticking out and it tore all the plastic bodywork off also sending him flying. We have just retrieved the bike back today.