Time limit on car insurance claim

[Redzer]

Hi,

I accidently reversed my car into a low wall and cracked my bumper and rear light. I did nothing about it at the time. When getting my car serviced some time later I noticed a rust spot at the corner below the rear window where the boot meets it and queried it with the garage under the paint warranty. They said it was initially caused by the boot hitting it in a bumper impact and was not a warranty issue.

Now the NCT is due and I'm getting the bumper/light fixed under my insurance policy but the insurance assessor won't accept the rust spot because its on the opposite side from the bumper damage but that makes sense due to the angle of impact. I'm not sure if I'm on solid ground to insist as its some time since the incident. However if i had made a claim when it happened then it would not have been evident as the rust only formed since so I can argue that the full damage has only now become apparent.

Is there a time limit on putting in a claim and how much of a right do I have in this instance?

Thanks.

 

[ailbhe]

Most policies will not pay for consequential loss. The rust is a consequence of the damage.

If they don't have you under that then the policy likely states that you must take all reasonable steps to prevent loss or damage and by not fixing the damage right away (and the rust occuring as a result) they can say you didn't abide by the terms of your insurance.

This is all assuming that the rust wouldn't have occured had you not had the accident.

In my opinion they have you over a barrell with this one and I highly doubt they will pay the costs associated with the rust.

 

[Redzer]

Thanks for your reply Ailbhe,

I could argue that the source of the rust is the original damaged area and request that it be made good under the policy.

The rust area is smaller than a 1 cent coin but the original damage may only have been the size of a pinhead and was not noticeable after the accident due to its location and size. I couldn't reasonably take any steps to prevent loss or damage when it was not noticeable. Even fixing the bumper immediately would not have prevented this occuring, again assuming it is due to the accident. Worst case scenario I'll pay for the the consequential part if they pay for the original part i.e. go halves on the cost.

My query relating to the time limit in general still applies as I'm not even sure if the bumper repair is within such a limit and don't want to press the issue until I'm more confident of my rights.

 

[ailbhe]

It varies from company to company but usually in the policy booklet it will say to notify them immediately in the event of an accident, never admit liability etc etc.

How much they adhere to these varies also.

I've had many people admit liability and the claim has been paid no question. But if the clause is there, then they can use it to get out of paying a claim. Has the engineer sent a report stating that the rust was caused by the collision?

 

[Redzer]

Not that I'm aware of, but he only saw it this morning! I was to collect it yesterday when the bumper got done but asked the garage then that they sort the rust spot also. They got the assessor to check it but he refused to include it in the claim even when I asked again today. I took the car back without accepting that all repairs were completed and the garage suggested getting onto the Insurance Company directly to try to sort it but I'm still wary of the timelimit issue.