Thread: I got rear ended while teaching my son to drive

If it were me, given the crease in the roof. I would claim.

IMO this makes the car a write off and unless you are really good at panel beating and have access to straightening jigs etc, its dead and may not pass its next rego if the inspector is thorough.
Also IMO I wouldnt want my kids in a twisted vehicle.
Its a tough call given how hard your boy has worked to get it.
But maybe think of it as a hands on lesson on how to deal with these things in the future. He will be better equipped to assess and make decisions if he should find himself in this situation and youre not there to help. I hope that doesnt sound like cold comfort.
All the best whatever you choose.
cheers

Hang on if you are only insured 3rd party fire and theft then you can;t claim.
The only thing youc an do is to take action against his insurance company, surely ?

I would claim also.

Further to the above, he will have difficulty selling it with that damage (even after repair.) One of the good things about cars in that price bracket is that if you look after them you can sell them for almost what you paid for - which is a huge help for the next one at that age.

I had the same thing - my first car was rear ended (not while I was driving it) and was 'fixed' rather than being claimed. It was hard to sell it because everybody (except one guy) asked if it had been in an accident and what the damage was. You could see the warp around the rear doors (mm only). The car was fine, but it meant that I got next to nothing for it when it was time to upgrade.

Originally Posted by VladTepes

Hang on if you are only insured 3rd party fire and theft then you can;t claim.
The only thing youc an do is to take action against his insurance company, surely ?

The other driver is at fault - their insurance company pays.

Make the claim and retain the wreck. Have the structure repaired professionally and do the cosmetics yourself.

Claim against the other guys insurance. He will be getting his Merc done anyway no doubt.
Then it will either get fixed or you get paid out and you buy something else.
Don't have your son drive around in a dodgy car just because of some emotional attachment.

Make the claim directly with the other parties insurance company.

Remember their insurance company is responsible for the damage caused by their insured, they do not have any ownership rights over your car.

Don't let them bamboozle you with market value of your son's car that is irrelevant, they are responsible to pay for the repairs necessary to bring your son's car back to the condition immediately before the Mercedes hit it, whatever it costs to make that repair.

Even if they pay out the car's full market value for the claim, they have no right to claim the wreck as you do not have any contract with them.

Don't let the car be taken out of your possession and if it's at a smash repairer, instruct them that it is not to be removed except with your/your son's permission. Once the other company has your son's car you will never get it back.

What happens as far as a "write off" value in this case?
When you have comprehensive insurance, you'd normally just claim against your own policy (even if the other driver is at fault), and let the insurance company do the dealing with the other guys insurer to get the money. Your policy has clear definitions of the writeoff value - either an agreed or market value.

With you deal directly with the other insurance company, you've got no policy with them that states the write off value for your vehicle like you would with your own insurer. Is it completely up to them to make the decision on what your vehicle is worth (and at what point its written off for economic reasons).

Steve