Car Insurance Company Refusing to Disclose Extent of Damage. What Are My Rights?

LEpikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 13:51

Long story short, I got rear ended, damage wasn't major and other party admitted fault to their insurance company. I'm representing myself as my insurance would have required me to go to one of their dodgy repairers for a claim.

Booked in a repairer of my choice (recommended by manufacturer, good reviews etc.) But now it looks like the insurance company is refusing to share the extent of the damage and have made the repairer do the same. With the only answer being: we can share the quote with you after it has been approved. (First quote was not approved, they asked for a new one).

Seeing as it's my car shouldn't I have the right to know what is going on? I'm not asking for the quote anymore just asking for an assessment/ outline of the damage. My brief googling didn't turn up much.

Automotive Car Insurance Insurance

Comments

  • altomic on 06/06/2019 - 13:59

    is your car going to get repaired to its pre-accident condition?

    if yes then why worry?

    if no then go through your insurance.

    otherwise : insurance ombudsman

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 14:09
      1. I hope so.
      2. In case there's pressures to do a cheaper/ less refined job especially when paintwork is involved
      3. It's the same insurance company so I'd probably get the same/worse treatment. Don't think I'll be renewing with them.
      4. Yeah looks like my next step if I can't reach a resolution soon
  • abb on 06/06/2019 - 14:00

    What are you trying to achieve here?

    You have a rough idea of the extent of the damage, presumably, by looking at it when the accident happened. What do you plan to do with the information you're trying to acquire? And why can that not wait until the insurance processes are completed?

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 14:07
      1. I'm trying to understand why they rejected the initial quote, what about it they didn't like.
        2.I'm also curious as I take really good care of my car.
        3.I don't want to be left with an unsatisfactory repair and be without it for an extra few weeks.
  • tsunamisurfer on 06/06/2019 - 14:01
    +1

    Don't you the owner of said damaged car have access to see the extent of the damage?

    Also you have chosen the repairer, ask them for a copy of the quote directly, then ask the insurance company what aspect of the quote they did not approve of.

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 14:03

      I saw the extent of the damage with the bumper on, didn't see it with the bumper off.

      As for the repairer I tried and they got scared and refused to provide it. They said with this particular insurance company they cannot share anything at all.

  • toniyellow on 06/06/2019 - 14:02

    https://mva.financialrights.org.au/factsheets/ may have some info.

    Most of the factsheets are geared towards disputes about cost, you may need to call them for a weirder question. If you're not in NSW, you might be able to google up a similar service in your state.

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 14:10

      Thanks for that, I'm in VIC, so I'll look for the Victorian equivalent :)

  • TheMindsetTraveller on 06/06/2019 - 14:15
    +2

    Your repairer should be able to tell you what their quote is. If they aren't willing I would find that extremely bizarre.

    I can understand why the at-fault insurer will not disclose to you their 'price' because at this moment you are technically still in negotiations.

    The process as I understand is that your repairer provides a quote (say $30K) to the insurer, the insurer says based on their assessor (it's $20k) and the negotiations continue until both parties agree (say $25k).

    I was in a similar situation to you; I was in an accident where I was clearly not at fault. My insurer wanted me to go to their dodgy repairer - who is likely to be owned by the insurer (sad but true) - so I went to a very reputable repairer to do the claim directly with the at-fault party.

    My repairer sent in their quote and after some going backwards/forwards the price was accepted, the insurer paid up and my car was eventually repaired. The agreed repair cost was was approx 60% of my car's price. Took almost four months for my car to be repaired as all parts were OEM.

    I bet that if I sent my car to the repair shop my insurer said to, they would have completed the work over the weekend. Their voice recordings say 90% of the work is completed within 48hrs. Crazy!

    I have read the parliament hansards on motor vehicle insurance in NSW so I am extremely sceptical about insurers and especially when some insurers own the actual repair shop as well.

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 14:31

      That sounds like exactly what I am going through. The exception being that my repairer wouldn't share the information saying they're tied to the insurance company's requirements at least until an agreement is reached.

      • apu on 06/06/2019 - 15:15

        Is the at fault driver's insurance company and your repairer somehow connected? It might be that the loss adjuster for the insurer and the panel beater are currently negotiating over your repair costs, hence why they won't share the final costs with you until the costs are approved.

        My impression is that quotes from the same panel shop very significantly depending on whether it's private work or insurance work.

      • TheMindsetTraveller on 06/06/2019 - 15:19

        Personally I let my repairer 'do the negotiations'. They were willing and able to do it on my behalf so I did not really care. I just wanted them to do the work - they are reputable, have won awards, is a preferred repairer for my car type - so as long as they were happy with the money side of things.

        After the repair was approved I then asked my repairer what the repair value was - and they told me.

  • jazzor on 06/06/2019 - 14:54
    +3

    If you dont trust your insurer's repairer you should change insurance. What is the point of paying for insurance if you dont use them. Especially in the case of a not at fault accident where you are not out of pocket.

    Suppose you were at fault and were forced to use your insurance for the repair due to cost, then it suddenly becomes ok to use their "dodgy repairers"?

  • Nodeathz on 06/06/2019 - 16:09

    accident

  • vinni9284 on 06/06/2019 - 18:06

    Many insurance companies has a lifetime guarantee of the repair and depending on their T&C's, the parts used should be factory OEM (unless the car is quite old and cannot source parts & or second hand)
    Also their T&C's can stipulate whether it is mandatory to go through their repairers or not (Possibly can argue this with them)

    The only issue I can see is that if you get your car repaired externally, your insurance may not fully support you if there are repair issues/defects/warranties down the track. As you may have to do the run-around (which defeats really having insurance)

    Good luck.

    Cheers

    • Epikmunch on 06/06/2019 - 19:08

      The place I picked state that their workmanship is backed by a lifetime warranty. This place also seems quite reputable. My concern is more around the practice of keeping the owner entirely out of the loop throughout the process and essentially swearing the repairer to secrecy.

  • Jason88 on 08/06/2019 - 15:44

    I'm a lawyer and all I can say is : whilst you owe a duty of good faith to your insurer, a lot of people don't realise that the insurer also has a duty of good faith towards you. For those ozbargainers seeking to protect their legal rights, I recommend reviewing the 'Insurance Contracts Act 1984', and, where necessary, obtaining legal advice (or going to a free community clinic)*

    *This post does not constitute legal advice :)

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