Small dent in my right front fender, sorta like a baseball hit it.  So my insurance co. sends their claims adjustor out, and he does up this rocket science level analysis in his laptop, (gotta take the fender off, maybe repaint it, blah blah, etc.) and we wind up with a $730 fix estimate over 12.4 hours, and of course I woulda hadda leave my car somewhere overnight or so, maybe get a rental, whatever.  What a load.

So my friend notices the dent, says, "I got a guy".  His guy comes by, one hour later it's fixed it as if it never happened.  No fender removal, no refinishing, just rewaxing, good as new, a "no-bull" job I'd say.

$100.

So, like a good neighbor, my friend was right there for me.

Now I gotta wonder who our insurance co's are looking out for: us or them.

The cost of insurance over here is such that the first year for a new driver can cost as much as 5-7 times that of the car you've bought.

Any way to avoid them sounds like a good idea to me. Even if you parked in a secure parking area, I am sure they would find a way to blame you for parking in a bad area and not pay out properly if someone causes damage to your car.


Surely there's something that can be done? 

Steve M wrote on Mar 7^th, 2010 at 5:44pm:

Or works for the devil, or is that near enough the same thing? 

Insurance is a necessary evil.  December I plowed a trophy buck while coming home late one night, only a baseball sized dent in the hood and the bumper was a little out of alignment.  But that was the least of the issues, went under me and sent 2 tires up in the air with a hard drop, not only destroyed a ball joint but cracked the 4x4 transfer case and the force of the initial impact cracked the radiator.  Adjuster came out a couple days later, did her magical estimate for the body work, took it to a shop to assess the rest of the damage.  The were willing to write me a check for the body work, $825   But they REFUSED to fix any of the other issues...which were my concern.  Her reason...there was no fur to be found under the truck...blamed it on "old vehicle....Normal wear and tear"  

After a week of fighting I finally took a cash settlement for the body damage which was $725 after my comprehensive deductible and put it towards the mechanical issues...Even doing 90% of the work myself...took over $800 to fix it, minus the transfer case, just have to keep it filled with fresh oil every time I think I might need to use it.  As for the "body damage" a jack took care of pushing the bumper back into place, a hammer and block of wood pounded out the dent, $4 can of glossy black farm tractor/implement spray enamel, cant even tell there was ever a dent there...so for $4 and an hour of my time I did what the shop was going to take 2 days and $825 to do  

Insurance is a rip off most of the time, pay out thousands in premiums and your lucky to get anything back if you actually need it...Willing to pay hundreds to fix tiny dents but refuse to pay for anything that actually matters, old vehicle or not, that deer did it, but they wouldn't believe me    Their loss, got the settlement check in the mail, cashed it, and switched insurance companies the next day

Quote:

From what you're saying there's a fundamental difference in the way claims are settled in our countries. In my experience you would not be paid anything unless the vehicle was a write-off in which case it would be scrapped. It depends on the amount of damage but adjusters don't usually make personal visits or make kerbside assessments. Most insurance companies have approved repair shops where the vehicle has to be taken for assessment & a quote. If the quote is accepted they do the work & are paid direct. If more than one vehicle was involved the blame is decided between the various interested insurance companies. Depending on the type of insurance you might lose your no-claims bonus which can prove expensive.

I'm told the high cost of motor insurance in this country is partly due to the ever-increasing number of uninsured motorists. Driving an uninsured vehicle is against the law but that doesn't help if they write yours off or cause injuries.

Car Insurance in Holland depends mostly on car type and driver age.

Anything worth stealing (speed or rare model) is terribly expensive, and getting insurance below 25 is close to impossible unless you have the financial means to take it to court.

For an indication of how the system works...
My swedish tank (1350 kilo, 150hp turbocharged, built in 2002) has the same insurance cost after 4 years as the Opel Corsa (about 1100kg, 90hp, built in 2006) after one year with the same driver age.

A good tip for future car buyers... check the insurance rates!!! you can get a lot more car for the same money if you choose wisely. I planned for a Peugeot 206 but that was more expensive to use compared to what i drive now, just because the combination of that Peugeot and my age indicated a high risk category. The Saab that i drive now is cheaper in insurance, while it has twice the engine power

Fly2e wrote on Mar 11^th, 2010 at 4:59pm:


Have you got any good, foot in mouth, policies available?