Insurance cheque - please help!

[touristboy]

Hi all

My car was wrote off in a non fault accident, I received a cheque, with my name on it and accompanying letter, from 3rd party insurer which I paid in to my account.

I was then paid a larger sum by bacs into my account (I assumed the cheque was an initial payment) which was the agreed value of the car - this again was from the 3rd party insurer.

It transpires that the cheque was sent to me in error from the 3rd party insurer and the company it should have gone to, my insurers recovery agent, have not received their money.

Subsequently they want the money off me, as I have been advised from their solicitor.

Where do I stand, legally?

In my opinion the 3rd parties insurer made the error, they should write off this amount and send it to the correct place, and my insurers solicitors should be pursueing them and not myself.

Any help would be appreciated, if I need to clarify anything please let me know.

[yourbank]

You do have to give the money back regardless of the error. Have you spent the money?

[touristboy]

Thankfully not!

Though it does seem strange that they can make such an error, what would have happened if I had of spent it?

For the amount involved, below £600, would not be worth taking me to court etc surely to retrieve it.

Would make them more careful if they had to write these amounts off!

[Bookworm]

If you had spent it, they would have pursued you for it, all the way to court and CCJ, without a doubt. Don't think for one minute that they wouldn't.

[touristboy]

Thanks for info, will be contacting solicitor to sort out.


Will be keeping a more watchful eye on what cheques I am sent from companies in the future!

[LemonTwist]

Would make them more careful if they had to write these amounts off!

Why should they write it off though? Premiums would be higher if insurance companies had to keep writing off incorrect claims payments. This is not to say that they shouldn't be more careful.

£600 is a lot of money. If it was a small amount, say less than £10, then the insurer would probably be more willing to write it off, as the cost of collecting it would be higher than the actual amount.

[yourbank]

Touristboy, some people are confusing, knowinbly spending what is not yours and spending money in good faith(the good faith can be argued in any defence--I did my research many moons ago). If you had spent it in good faith then the bank would find it difficult to prosecute. You would have then had to arrange to pay it back in instalments, as you would have to explain to them the circumstances, ie you believed it to be a first instalement of an insurance claim. Pay em it back as they have brought it to your attention. Send the cheque registered mail and keep the receipt and the matter is over. You don't need the expense of a lawyer just of registered/special delivery. At least you did not spend it.

[gyzmo]

If you have not spent the money I do not see where the problem lies. You know now that it was sent in error and still have it. You are legally and morally obliged to return it. It may also be possible for you to be convicted of fraud.

Return the money which you know is rightfully theres. You have not lost out.