Hi,

Someone has damaged my car and left a note saying sorry here is my number. I have spoken with the guy and he wants to make a claim through his insurance company. He is asking for my details etc.

Question is - does this affect my no claims and will it raise any premiums for me next year?

Having spoken with my insurer (XS and their £3k excess) I can not trust them and want some advice.

Thanks

If he admits full liability it wont affect your premiums and you need to change insurers. Theyre extremely shady

Thanks. He does and is going to do that.

I know... But this is the cheapest option insurer... Others jump by like £500 a year which is insane! Any advice on who to go for? I am due to switch in October.

Your insurance policy almost certainly requires that you notify them of any incident which might give rise to a claim, regardless of fault, so you really must tell them. You are not obliged to claim from your own insurers, but it may be easier to let them deal with it.

When the claim is fully settled by the other insurers, it should have no effect on your no claims, but insurers almost invariably increase their premiums for anyone who has made a claim, even where it is non-fault. You will have to shop around when your renewal is due.

One note of caution - my step-son was recently caught out following a similar incident when his insurers referred him to an accident claims company who let him believe he could have a premium model hire car indefinitely whilst his claim was sorted out - not surprisingly, the other insurers have refused to pay for it. You are obliged to keep your claim against the other party to an absolute minimimum, so if you need to hire a car it should be the cheapest you can find which will do the job and for the minimum amount of time necessary to repair/replace your own car.

On the bright side, at least they left a note. Have you got his name and address, vehicle reg and insurance details? If not, ring back and ask for them as your insurers will need them.

Make sure you claim on depreciated value as a car with accident damage won't sell for as much.

Personally I think we should be able to claim for increased insurance premiums too but I bet that wont get far.