Car insurance- 3rd party not paying claim

[Invisiblehms]

Back in April a car drove into the back of when when I stopped at a zebra crossing. He accepted it was his fault. His insurers emailed me stating “it appears our driver is at fault” - so clearly accepted liability. There was then this awkward tussle between my insurer and his insurer about hire car costs… and ultimately because it was becoming pretty unsavoury I decided not to request one even though I was entitled to one. Thereby reducing the overall cost of my claim to the 3rd party significantly. All they had to do was pay for the repairs to my vehicle-pretty simple straightforward claim.

Except 3 months later the claim has not been settled and the company instructed by my insurers to handle the claim is considering taking them to court over the outstanding sum. Has anyone had experience of this? And did the insurer pay up before going to court? It is typical that this all happened just as we were planning on selling the car. I’ve had mixed opinions on whether or not it is wise to do so when the claim has not yet been settled.

Our car was hit in a car park whilst we were not there. A witness saw it and left car's details for me.
My insurance company fought this and when no payment was made the next step was court. As soon as that process began the other party accepted liability and their insurer paid.
Not sure if my experience is typical but as soon as court was discussed it was sorted.

That’s reassuring to know. Fingers crossed that will nudge them to pay up! My insurers have said they are still giving them a little longer but that court is the next step if it’s not resolved. I just want to sell my car for something newer, more economical and environmentally friendly- it’s a 10year old Land Rover which is so expensive to run and maintain. But I don’t know if that’s a wise idea if the claim is unsettled.

It's fairly common, even when fault is admitted. The insurance company wants to hang onto their funds for as long as possible. It wouldn't surprise me if your insurers issue court documents, a date is set and they end up paying the day before the court hearing.

I work in this industry and your experience is fairly common. It mostly gets settled before a court date unless their is a serious discrepancy in liability or unrealistic costs being claimed.

Yours (on the face of it) seems pretty straightforward and although not what you want to hear, 3 months isn't excessive in my experience.

Once the third party claim handlers get hold of it, they do a decent job of claiming costs. Both insurers will have images/invoices/assessments of your car before, during and after repair so I would suggest you are pretty safe to sell.

Goodness knows why the offending driver's insurers want to extend a slam dunk own insured claim. I guess though that if they do yours have to play along.

Very few court cases actually get to the point where the Judge is involved; once counsel have spoken the costs clock runs at warp speed.

It's just a war of nerves as to who rolls over fist...

I had an accident almost a year ago, I have dash cam footage, the other driver denies even being there. His insurers have seemingly accepted this and it's due to go to court next month... I think it all depends on the insurers involved.

I have a separate claim for belongings and personal injury, not a huge amount - some physio, car seats etc. I'm not sure if it will have to go to court twice.