company van insurance cock up

[matty0785]

basicaly what happened is in july 2012 i was driving a company van (i work as a mobile tyre fitter) to a job short version of events i was called to a job that was roadside in some road works so i approached roadworks put on my flashing beacon and hazards then signaled to enter into the coned of area of the roadworks and continued to do so. as i was pulling into the road works an elderly gent tried to follow me into the coned off area and when i braked to a stop he ran into the rear of my van

 

no heres where it gets messy

 

when the accident happened there where 2 witnesses that where happy to vouch for my and the accident not being my fault as they had been standing only a few feet away. so i did the usual and exchanged details with the guy that hit me and the forwarded them to my employer after this i was sent a claim for from the company insurance a filled it in accordingly.

 

yesterday i had the MD of my company on the phone saying that the guy who yhit me had went to a small claims court and told them that i had reversed into him an my company hadnt bothered to fight the accusation or reply to any correspondence from the courts and they had awarded the guy 890 quid in compo/repairs

 

now the my employer has told me i have to pay the above amount and has started to deduct an set amount from my wages every week without my permission even after me expressing i was not at fault and i would not pay for there mistake

 

also there is nothing in my contract of employment to say that i pay for any excess or damages to a vehicle even if i am the one at fault never mind if im not at fault

 

 

 

please help with some advice as i dont know where to turn with this problem

[dw190]

The Company you work for should have discussed the matter with your when they received a claim. If they just ignored until default judgement that's their fault. The judgement is against the Company (I assume) so its their problem.

 

To deduct from your wages without consent or agreement is unlawfull.

[matty0785]

yes the judgment is against my employer only

 

the only discussion if you could call it that was my md phoning me up and saying i would have to pay then when i spoke back and said i will be seeking legal advice as i was not at fault and asked for written correspondence he hung up the phone then i receive my wage slip yesterday with deductions titled LOAN (i have no loan of anything from my employer and never have had)

 

so all i can think of is that they have paid said amount to the court or who ever and then made up paperwork to make it look like i have paid it and they have loaned me the funds to do so.

[raydetinu]

the deduction is illegal and you should seek legal advice.

get solicitor to write to co./MD.

Has the firm got a HR department, contact them.

[matty0785]

no there no hr dept only employs maybe 10 people in the office and 70 mobile fitters

 

i will speak to them on tuesday when we return to work and try to sort things out amicably before contacting a solicitor

 

i just needed a definitive answer to if he could legally deduct my wages without permission

[raydetinu]

should not be deducting anything at all!

insurance should of sorted it.