Another Car Accident Topic. Seeking Suggestion: (

triplenet on 17/09/2017 - 22:07
Last edited 18/09/2017 - 09:22 by 1 other user

Hello,

So for the first time ever, I was involved in the car accident today. Not my fault.

One lady didn't give me a way and hit to my driver side. Lucky nothing happen to me but my car got very big damage. not too sure if it will be written off or not. Police involved. My accident happen here . I was coming from Grange Rd and that lady was coming from Leila Rd. She is fully insured with AAMI and I m not. I already got the claim number. Now my questions are what to do next? The towing service suggests me to go to (Daniels, Recovery Agents PTY ) to arrange the hire car. After looking at the google review they don't really have a positive review. And I live pretty far from that agent's company.Let's say I'm to take the taxi to go there. Will I get back that money from insurance? Am I allow to connect other agents for the hire car? If yes please suggest me. I still have a lot of questions to ask but I need a car urgently as I require to travel every day.

Next question is about the claim process. So, I have the claim number to chase after them (AAMI). I called them and they said they can't tell how long it will take to process. They are still reviewing the case of who is at fault. My car is in very good condition. After checking on the car sales, the price range from $7000 to $10000 for my car kilometers and condition.

Another question: Am I allow to take the head unit from my car back if they decide to written off? I paid nearly $1000 for my head unit.

My car model is 2008 Lancer CJ ES. It only has 82k on the clock. I m sorry if it doesn't make sense. I m trying to figure out what to do next. But most importantly now is I need a car urgently :(

My car damage : Driver Side and Overall Damage . and Front damage

Back bumper were hit as well . not sure if they will do any but I cancelled my insurance a little over 3 months from RACV. I was deciding between insurance and keep forgetting it :(

Automotive

Comments

  • AdosHouse on 17/09/2017 - 22:27
    +3

    Since you don't have your own insurance, you are at the mercy of her insurance. You need to call them and take to them about what to do next, how to get a hire car (if her insurance covers it, it might not). and about which dodgy arse panel beaters will fix your car.

    As for the head unit, do you have access to your car right now, or is it in a towing yard? I would pull that straight out and put the factory one straight in. If they write it off, they will take possession of the car as is, and it will now be theirs.

    This is what I believe is right, someone correct me if I am wrong.

    • triplenet on 17/09/2017 - 22:52

      i don't have access to my car as it's in a towing yard. Guess I will go and take it out tomorrow and replace with factory one.

  • Bluberry on 17/09/2017 - 22:32
    +7

    Sigh..

    This is why you need to get insurance!!

    • kerfuffle on 17/09/2017 - 22:46

      Yeah. I have comprehensive insurance for when other people drive into me …

      • [Deactivated] on 17/09/2017 - 23:24

        It's the Aussie way.

        How else are hard working cobbas gonna get ahead if everyone isnt in a fully, comprehensively insured car all the time!!!

      • Ryanek on 18/09/2017 - 08:41

        Umm is this sarcasm? I can't quite tell.

        • kerfuffle on 18/09/2017 - 09:26

          No. I don't have the time to chase other people when they hit my car. Plus like the OP, they might have no insurance like the last guy who hit my car last month …

          You would have comprehensive insurance (with hire car option) too if you had three not at fault accidents in two years …

  • thatonethere on 17/09/2017 - 23:13
    +1

    You can try right2drive or notmyfault for hire cars. But be careful - if you are found to be a fault (or the other driver not a fault or they are unable to claim) then you may get stuck with the bill.

    You may be able to move things along by sending a letter of demand - similar to this: http://www.legalaid.qld.gov.au/files/assets/public/publicati…

    The lady will probably be alarmed and get onto AAMI - if not then time to dip the toe into the pond of "no win no fee" lawyers.

    Personally, I had a car hit by a Suncorp insured person and got a hire car but I only used it when the car was in the shop (3 times!) as my car was driveable and I knew that the costs were just being inflated and send back to consumers.

  • resisting the urge on 18/09/2017 - 00:41
    +2

    If life were good and just, you would be compensated for the value of your car as it was hit.

    If it has parts and accessories you'd prefer to keep rather than be compensated for, minus depreciation, wear, damage and any other reductions they can claim, you should minimise those. If it is just a head unit that you want to keep, take the old radio and some tools and goto the yard- it is your car, and prior to assessment there is nothing wrong with you 'inspecting it'. Swapping it may not be possible, but you never know. It is quite reasonable/normal for people to go an retrieve any personal effects from their cars after such accidents. Imagine if yo left your wallet or your phone in it?

    Changing something that could have caused/contributed to the accident would be a bad idea. Tampering with evidence is illegal too. So beware of what you do. It doesn't sound worth the trouble to me. If they think you are dudding them, they may refuse to pay you anything altogether.

    But at the same time, I'd be concerned that your radio may be stolen at the yard waiting for weeks and weeks for the assessor to come out. I'd at least go and take photos of the car at the yard to make sure you can back up any claim you may need to make about expensive items that could easily 'disappear'.

  • slow on 18/09/2017 - 08:14
    +3

    Similar happened to me last year - was hit by someone insured by AAMI and my car was written off. She admitted fault which made it easy. On the good side AAMI were excellent and easy to deal with.

    They paid for a hire car for me for a few weeks (I hired and paid and submitted the receipt and they refunded). They also paid for taxis to get there and back. But in your case if they haven't determined fault yet you may end up paying for it if they decide it wasn't her fault

    They told me within a few days that my car had been written off. I said I had to get some personal stuff out of the car and they gave me the address of the yard. I went and removed the head unit and replaced it with the old factory unit (which I had kept) and also removed a few other bits and pieces. I tried to do this without making it obvious but they didn't seem to really care

    I got my full payout within 2 weeks

    I would keep chasing AAMI for a decision, and when you get a new car GET INSURANCE

    But be nice, I always find that you get much better results in these situations by being nice and friendly as first option, rather than aggressive and demanding

  • 87percent on 18/09/2017 - 08:34

    Hold up… I'm with AAMI for my insurance, I didn't take up the hire car option on my policy but I have full comprehensive. If I get into an accident, and it's the other drivers fault, I can hire a car and charge it to them??? What about things like seeing a doc or massage if I have whiplash in the accident??

    • R-Man on 18/09/2017 - 09:03

      I don't know about your hire car question but

      What about things like seeing a doc or massage if I have whiplash in the accident??

      This would form part of a CTP claim (or TAC claim if you are in Victoria)

    • CLoSeR on 18/09/2017 - 09:03

      Yes I have heard this too, if your in a not a fault accident the insurer for at fault party should provide a hire car to compensate your vehicle being off the road.

      • R-Man on 18/09/2017 - 09:10

        So the hire car option that you choose to pay for, is really for times when its your fault + you pay excess?

        My family recently had a not at fault claim and our car was at the repairer for a 5 days. If I knew this we could have got a hire car for this period. Damn!

        • CLoSeR on 18/09/2017 - 09:11

          Yes.

  • CLoSeR on 18/09/2017 - 09:07
    +3

    I hope for your sake you are not found at fault; as you have no insurance you could be liable for thousands in repair costs to the other vehicles involved.

    As a minimum you should have Third Party Property Insurance (yes this is different that CTP/Greenslip).

    As others have mentioned you'll need to do some leg work with at fault parties insurer to get an outcome.

  • angelkulit025 on 18/09/2017 - 09:25
    +4

    typical owner of these kinds of vehicle. I have a very little empathy to drivers who spends a lot of money to make their cars look good (buy expensive rims, expensive head unit) and cannot afford to get a full comprehensive insurance???

    It doesn't matter how good of a driver you are, but accidents and incidents happens on the road which you cannot control. So probably next time OP,when you get your new/second hand or whatever car you will be driving next, get the necessities before the accessories.

    • Kangal on 18/09/2017 - 09:45

      The rims aren't that impressive, if he bought them expensive, he definitely got jipped.
      Not sure about the headunit, cannot tell if he also wasted nearly $1,000 on that.
      Cannot tell how someone can have a magnitude of an accident on that level, on that particular street… it seems he was speeding and didn't react properly to the collision. So he may not have been at fault, but he could've potentially avoided it all.

      Well, at least he will have the option of claiming back his headunit, and getting $7,000 back, so that he can upgrade to a better car.
      Its the headache, frustration and time, that he will ultimately pay for.
      Maybe he will learn from this experience in how to read the road, other vehicles, and perhaps get some skill/experience/training in how to react to situations. I've avoided 6 major accidents so far, all not my fault, without any damage to me, simply because I'm aware and react appropriately. You gotta treat every other driver as an "idiot".

      But surely, he should've at least got 3rd-party & Fire-Theft.
      Unless he's <25yo, which I can sympathise with, because it can be very expensive.
      I know I had no records, and when I tried to get Comprehensive Insurance for my old Astra which I bought for $1,700…. well they wanted me to pay $1,900 yearly. Years have passed, and still no record, now they want $1,200. So I stick with Insurance 0.5 (3FF) for $400.

      • triplenet on 18/09/2017 - 10:06

        Thanks for the reply . and yes rims ain't expensive I was due to replace my tyres and found it cheaper with new tyres so I replaced it all together. And I wasn't speeding it's a 60 km/h speed zone with a lot of traffic going at that time.I m very sure I was on between 30 to 40 km at that time. The other driver decided to speed up when she crossed the road. And Yes, it was on the police report. She admitted she didn't see me.
        Regarding about the insurance. I had some financial problem past few months that's why I cancelled it out. No excuse I know.

  • Slippery Otter on 18/09/2017 - 09:39
    +1

    Pmed! As I work in this industry.

  • bargainswarrior03 on 18/09/2017 - 13:51

    bikies

  • triplenet on 18/09/2017 - 21:09

    Hi everyone,

    Thanks for the reply. I tried the Right2Drive for the replacement car and they delivered me Almost new Holden Aastra. I will go to tow yard to take out my head unit tomorrow as AAMI are still reviewing the case and I m not gotta lost my head unit :( and i can take off the reverse camera as well yeah ?

    Also, i am about to give the authorization to Motor vehicle claim lawyers to settle the case for me. Is it a good idea? I am very confident it's not my fault and I don't want to waste my time chasing after them and negotiate with AAMI.

    Lastly, I just want to say about not having the insurance. Some are probably thinking I have that much expensive head unit and not insurance. I had the full insurance whole time and I canceled it out only last 3 months as I m having the financial problem.

    Thanks everyone for the suggestion. I will update again in the future :)

  • triplenet on 09/10/2017 - 20:16

    Hi, just an update about my situation. So, my car is officially written off. AAMI is going to pay out the value of my car and I’m not happy with the final value. I request to talk with the guy that valued my car and I am still waiting for the call. One of the AAMI customer services suggests me that I can take the money first and see if they can increase the value when I talked with him. What should I do next?
    Another question, AAMI said i can buy back my car with 300$ only if I want the car back. Is it even possible? giving my car engine is still in good condition and can easily sell.
    Also, i m still driving the car from right2drive. I was told I can drive the car until I receive the money into my bank account. Is that correct?
    Thanks :)

    • ol mate on 10/10/2017 - 21:54

      Personally I would do the following:

      Contact AAMI and let them know that you have a right2drive car, and will continue to use it until you do receive a final value which you are happy with, and it would be in their best interest to get the valuer/assessor to contact you ASAP to minimalise cost. Get the name and preferably employee number of the person you speak to, and note it with time/date so they can’t argue you didn’t let them know (doing this means you are mitigating their loss - you’re obligated to by law)

      I wouldn’t accept the money then wait to renegotiate, as it may be taken that accepting the money = accepting the price/value. If you want to buy the car back and sell it for parts, go for it. You will make a profit on most of it via gumtree.

      And right2drive are right, you can keep the car until the money hits your account (they haven’t “corrected” their clients “wrong” until you are compensated)

      • triplenet on 12/10/2017 - 19:11

        Thx u,
        So, I can't negotiate with my assessor and he told me if I am not happy with his decision (it took him 1 week to connect me for negotiation and a lot of calls to AAMI). I can open the "internal dispute resolution" to complain.So I told him I am going to dispute his decision.Now the question is as I m still driving the hire car from Right2Drive.

        Would it be problem? should I return the hire car now to avoid the future problem? Because from I was told it will take at least a week to resolve the complaint.

        I will confirm with Right 2 Drive as well .

        • ol mate on 12/10/2017 - 21:32

          I don’t see it being an issue - AAMI are delaying it themselves.

          Either way, I’d be contacting right2drive, as they’d have a lot of experience with these situations, as well as also having the legal resources (lawyers) that know what can and cannot be charged.

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