Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

A postman in an unmarked rental van has hit Mrs Hammer’s car - no injuries fortunately but what looks like significant panel/door damage. He’s offered cash, not sure why as it’ll be a pretty hefty bill if anything underneath or the rear wheel is affected.

As he will get in trouble or borrowed the van while not officially supposed to.

But then I have paid to get damage repaired as cost was less than admitting an accident on my insurance for the next 5 years and the associated premium loading.

His manager called and gave details - apparently Royal Mail self insure so it’s a bit different and their solicitors will contact us.

Mrs Hammer has also called insurers (admiral) and they’ve offered a policy claim (with excess) or ‘no fault claim’ through auxillia (no excess)... Not sure what the best option is tbh!

Ah I knew royal mail self insured but that was when they were a public body not sure when privatised. At a guess this how they do it. See if royal mail will repair (pay for the repair of) the vehicle and if they have a place that they use.

At least use a body shop that will guarantee the work, and if the car is young enough any any corrosion details

19 plate, new door at least I reckon - there’s daylight into the cabin.

1 Attachment

Anyone in here own a mitsubishi Outlander phev?

I had use of one for a few months last summer...

Saw this lovely curvy old Austin today, its listed as a 1953 one and I thought it was a Somerset, but the windows seem lower and more like a hot-rod, and its cooler looking than any Somerset I've seen before. Anyone know if this rolled off the Austin production line like this, or is this is a special custom/hot rod? Good effort if its the latter.

Mrs Hammer has also called insurers (admiral) and they’ve offered a policy claim (with excess) or ‘no fault claim’ through auxillia (no excess)... Not sure what the best option is tbh!

Was Mrs Hammer driving the car at the time or was it parked? If the latter, there's little scope for the Royal Mail to claim it wasn't their fault. Even given their propensity for perjury and lying in court.

You can usually stick the reg number of properly old/unique cars into google and get some results. If it's this one it's had some choppage in the last few years:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/28439790@N03/33423712141

Ha wow top sleuthing! I looked up the number plate on the DVLA check thing and it just said it was a 1953 Austin. I didn't think to put the plate details directly into google for more info. And yes that's the exact same number plate, so choppage confirmed, and it definitely looks better, thanks.

Driving but apparently they’ve already admitted liability.

Had one for 3 years…

Thats really substantial damage, proper way to repair it is replace entire quarter panel, which runs along the rocker (starts at drivers door or sometimes at join in the base of b pillar), goes all teh way back to under the rear headlight, sometimes extends up into the roof line as well. Then to paint really you have to do the entire side of the car and rear bumper, maybe back of roof to in order to get it looking decent. Would estimate never less than about £6k at a bodyshop worth its name.
On a car that new would only let it go through due process.
rear wheel/suspension likely fine, looks like the quarter took the majority of the hit.

Yeah - had one for the last 1 1/2 yrs or so. Feel free to ask any questions etc.

Yeah, looks proper fucked.

@Dramatic_Hammer go through insurance 100%, especially if they’ve admitted responsibility.

Seconded! Also worth noting that you can insist on the repair shop of your choice, I would suggest main dealer on a 19 plate.

I suspect that with hire car costs that’s a write-off.

It must at least be running that close...

Madness.

Another angle below, I’ve already made contact with the local Seat dealer @ColinTheBald in anticipation. Admirals chosen bodyshop has very good reviews but I would prefer main dealer (especially as we bought it from them 6 months ago).

Im waiting to hear back from RM’s solicitors, Admiral seem very keen to push us onto Auxillis but I’m not keen to save £350 excess and end up with a shit repair or liable for excessive hire car costs.

@Dammit I’ve read that hire car costs aren’t considered as part of the write off calculation but I will be annoyed if they do anyway - don’t think we’ll find the same deal again.

1 Attachment

Have heard of hire costs getting out of hand before, and bodyshop storage fee's. Though from what I've seen/heard of, this is just crappy behaviour with them massively overcharging for these services (i.e. a fiesta on a contract hire with just about any company I've ever worked for has been around £25-45 a day for short periods of time like 1 week to 3 months, but heard of insurance companies having numbers in the £100-150 per day range been put into the calculation.

Yeah, I had a hire motorbike once after an accident and the cost of the bike for 8 weeks was more than buying the same bike new.

Yep, I was cut up by an old fart in my van ages ago, I sideswiped his car and absolutely devastated it. Small scratch on my van’s bumper.

Claim took several months to sort, he turned out to be legally blind. During this time I got given a new Vauxhall Insignia hire car; by the time I had to give it back, my claims team said that the hire cost alone was approaching the value of the Insignia.

They eventually wrote the van off, gave me slightly below market value for it in cash, plus £2K ‘compensation’, and bizarrely let me keep the van as a Cat-N.

I had at no point asked for any of those things. The whole industry is a gravy train racket.

Hola, firstly do the main dealers have a body shop or farm the work out to someone else. Whom ever does the work, make sure that it is done to the anti corrosion/perforation spec. Would also get a caster camber check on the rear before and after. The rim has been scuffed so would want to be sure.

@BrickMan is right, but the quarter panel looks small, just to the rear window. Also don't think that rear light mount is not part of the rear quarter panel but part of the rear panel. So probably cheaper, time wise to replace the exterior panel then repair the inner door shut than to repair the dent. Then the door skin replacement.

Just imagine how much more reasonable everyone's vehicle insurance would be if they all did a fair job for a fair price, and didn't farm stuff out to sub companies (of the original insurance co) at mad prices.

Used to do deliveroo when it 1st started on motorbike, a commercial policy for an MC doing that job is mad price, BUT, those folks unlucky enough to need the cover, wow were they looked after. Most of them (other party at fault) if they could still ride would be given a new honda mc of equivalent size, literally just told to roll around to Victor Devine (local dealer) and collect their rental. Usually just a scooter, but a new Honda SH/PCX for the duration of your claim is not to be sniffed at, most had them for at least 2 months.