Only had it 3 weeks!

[Cleggy70]

Waiting to pull out at a roundabout then bang!
Transit van hits me from behind. My 2 kids are ok, guy accepted responsibility but said I thought you'd set off. Obviously looking right and not checking ahead of him!
There is no creasing or distortion to the bumper, boot opens fine. Mate of mine reckons because of age of car they will probably replace the whole bumper?
Sorry not had chance to add photos, what do you guys think?

 

[Brasso]

God that's tough luck.

Glad you and family are ok though that's the most important thing. I would have thought it'd be a new bumper.

Had something similar happen to me while in a company car.

They had to replace the bumper and a couple of bits which they told me where crash structure underneath which had been bent. Even though there wasn't a scratch on the bumper.

Hope you get it sorted soon.

 

[Beluga S line]

It's the hidden damage under the bumper. Until it's checked properly you won't know the extent of the damage.

The main thing is that everyone is OK...cars can be replaced!

 

[S32B]

Nooo that sucks man...keep an eye on yourself and the kids...neck pain sometimes takes 6-12 hours to kick in! Contact the insurance ASAP, I'd even pay the extra excess to make sure Audi fix it based on the car being so new.

That type of accident is the most popular. Lift the floor mat in the boot to make sure the floor isn't creased...new cars are designed to fold to absorb impact. Had it done to me years back in a company car, nothing looked wrong until I looked under the carpet and wham, the floor was creased.

 

[Cleggy70]

God that's tough luck.

Glad you and family are ok though that's the most important thing. I would have thought it'd be a new bumper.

Had something similar happen to me while in a company car.

They had to replace the bumper and a couple of bits which they told me where crash structure underneath which had been bent. Even though there wasn't a scratch on the bumper.

Hope you get it sorted soon.

Sorry for being a bit naive but I take it it will be an insurance job, guy who did it said what do you think. I said I will need to get it assessed.

 

[Brasso]

Sorry for being a bit naive but I take it it will be an insurance job, guy who did it said what do you think. I said I will need to get it assessed.

Absolutely an insurance job imo.

 

[Cleggy70]

Absolutely an insurance job imo.

How long are we looking do you think, sepang blue S3?

 

[S32B]

Out of interest who is your insurance company? It's always handy to see how well they do when the worst happens and could help others in the future decide who to go with.

 

[Pulp84]

Last year someone pulled out in front of me and the insurance process was refreshingly straight forward.

Called my insurance company, reported the incident and gave them all the details of the at fault party. They told me where I could take it for an estimate and then two days later was notified by my insurer that the other parties insurer had agreed it was their drivers fault.

The other insurer then sent out a third party assessor to and confirm the damage and then about 3 days later it was authorised and it was taken in for repairs. Took about two weeks for all that to happen and get repaired. My insurer was Allianz and the other party was with AVIVA.

If you use the Audi Esurance to get it booked in it might be even quicker!

 

[S32B]

If you use the Audi Esurance to get it booked in it might be even quicker!

I asked Aviva about signing up with Audi Esurance, their reply was "Not heard of them"!!! So I haven't bothered just in case!

 

[Pulp84]

I asked Aviva about signing up with Audi Esurance, their reply was "Not heard of them"!!! So I haven't bothered just in case!

AVIVA are a good insurer IMO as they will let you choose where you get your car repaired for a small fee if it's not on their approved list and also do not kick off if your quote is not inline with their own approved bodyshop quote. Not many let you do that or are that easy going.

Audi Esurance just handles the claims process for you and ensuring your car is repairer by an Audi bodyshop. That's all it does. Your insurer still foots the bill.

 

[mjcourtney]

Had this happen to me a few years ago when an old chap reversed into my parked A3 at speed. Hit the rear bumper square on and bounced off. No visible damage at all and, to his credit, he knocked on the door and admitted it.

Took it to a garage who looked under the bumper and said the supports behind had been buckled. Ended up going through insurance for new bumper, supports and paintwork, cost just over £1k.

Moral here is get it checked, even if there is no visible damage. Modern bumpers just flex right back into shape.

 

[jaypers777]

Audi Esurance is free. Worth signing up.

 

[DommyR]

Audi Esurance is free. Worth signing up.

Yes and it ensures your car is fitted with OE parts and any work done by audi or audi approved places.

 

[Pulp84]

I remember another ASN didn't actually get much assistance from Audi Esurance when it was needed.

Found the thread here....http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/ruddy-typical-accident-already-two-days.211506/page-3

Just to be balanced

 

[S32B]

AVIVA are a good insurer IMO as they will let you choose where you get your car repaired for a small fee if it's not on their approved list and also do not kick off if your quote is not inline with their own approved bodyshop quote. Not many let you do that or are that easy going.

Audi Esurance just handles the claims process for you and ensuring your car is repairer by an Audi bodyshop. That's all it does. Your insurer still foots the bill.

Thanks for that, yeah for a 'Non approved repairer' the excess is £200. I did a lot of looking into insurance companies before going with Aviva, as you say they do seem to be good

 

[RichardT]

Sorry for being a bit naive but I take it it will be an insurance job, guy who did it said what do you think. I said I will need to get it assessed.

You will be in contravention of your insurance if you don't report it to them.

 

[S32B]

I can see no reason why he wouldn't report it, it's the other guys fault, it's his new car that's been damaged, he wants it fixed properly! I bet if it was the other way around the guy would be claiming for all sorts of injuries on top!

 

[ds7090]

you know that if its not your fault you don't actually need to involve your own insurance company, you can go straight to theirs and claim and their are companies that take care of this for you,

Someone hit my bumper last year and although there didn't look to be much damage the bills was over 2k,

I went to the garage of my choice ( I would never go to the insurers approved garage ) and all was sorted without even involving my company, I did let them know as a courtesy only,

 

[Cleggy70]

Just as an update guys I've logged a claim with Axa, still waiting for third party blame acceptance.

I've stipulated that I want an Audi approved garage and my insurer is fine with that but if you have a look at the small print in my policy it states:-

1.It is your responsibility to provide us with a full estimate and colour images of the vehicle damage from your chosen repairer.

2.You may face several delays during the authorisation process; this is because we would need to negotiate labour rates and parts prices relating to the repairs to your vehicle.

3.If we cannot agree on rates with your chosen repairer we would offer you a cash payment at the amount we would pay to our recommended repair centre. We do not guarantee this payment will cover your full repair cost and you will be liable to pay the extra.

4.We will not arrange delivery of your vehicle to your chosen repairer or pay any costs relating to the recovery and storage of your vehicle when using a repairer outside of our approved network.

5.As we have no contract in place with your chosen repairer we are unable to take on any complaints relating to the repair of your vehicle or arrange any rectification work to be carried out.

6.If you have purchased the courtesy car cover with us we are unable to insure any courtesy car they supply you.

Feels like they are trying to get me over a barrel with this, what does everyone think?
I will be ringing my nearest Audi garage to get a better idea.

 

[ds7090]

I think you should go to the garage of your choice as you wont be happy with their approved repairer,

 

[Beluga S line]

Find out who their approved repairer is first and then make a decision. They will want you to go through their approved garage as it is less hassle for them and cheaper.
As it wasn't your fault and the car is new I would strongly recommend you push it back through an Audi body shop or an Audi approved repairer.

At the end of the day it's the other parties insurance who will be paying for it and they will want to mend your car the cheapest route!

 

[Q5 TRS]

I'm almost sure that by law you can choose where you get it repaired. You don't have to accept "approved" garage. Surely that just means the insurance company uses a particular garage.

In my experience I've always used the same guy (my friend) for any insurance work. Have done on 2 cars in the past.

 

[Pulp84]

Just as an update guys I've logged a claim with Axa, still waiting for third party blame acceptance.

I've stipulated that I want an Audi approved garage and my insurer is fine with that but if you have a look at the small print in my policy it states:-

1.It is your responsibility to provide us with a full estimate and colour images of the vehicle damage from your chosen repairer.

2.You may face several delays during the authorisation process; this is because we would need to negotiate labour rates and parts prices relating to the repairs to your vehicle.

3.If we cannot agree on rates with your chosen repairer we would offer you a cash payment at the amount we would pay to our recommended repair centre. We do not guarantee this payment will cover your full repair cost and you will be liable to pay the extra.

4.We will not arrange delivery of your vehicle to your chosen repairer or pay any costs relating to the recovery and storage of your vehicle when using a repairer outside of our approved network.

5.As we have no contract in place with your chosen repairer we are unable to take on any complaints relating to the repair of your vehicle or arrange any rectification work to be carried out.

6.If you have purchased the courtesy car cover with us we are unable to insure any courtesy car they supply you.

Feels like they are trying to get me over a barrel with this, what does everyone think?
I will be ringing my nearest Audi garage to get a better idea.

Yep small print is a ***** isn't it?

You might be lucky however - if your local dealer is part of a big franchise then hopefully it will be on their list - especially someone like AXA who generally deal with big franchises.

For instance, my local dealer is a franchise called Heritage. The Heritage bodyshop for my Audi dealer actually is a massive repair centre that covers all the manufacturers they sell for (Audi, VW, Peugeot, Skoda etc) and they cover about 3 counties so it's very likely for me the car would go there.

Good shout to call your local Audi dealer and check if they do work for AXA. You shouldn't get any issues then with costs etc if they are. You should also be able to ask AXA to send you a list attached of approved bodyshops near to your postcode.

 

[Pulp84]

I'm almost sure that by law you can choose where you get it repaired. You don't have to accept "approved" garage. Surely that just means the insurance company uses a particular garage.

In my experience I've always used the same guy (my friend) for any insurance work. Have done on 2 cars in the past.

Correct. But usually in insurers T&C's they will reserve the right to refuse to pay the difference between their bodyshop quote and your preferred repairer.

Some like AVIVA charge a fee to use a non-approved repairer and are very relaxed if your bodyshop is a couple hundred pounds different. They don't own any of their bodyshops so their approved repairer will probably quote something similar to your preferred bodyshop as most use a specific price of software to price the parts, repair time and how much paint is needed (Audatex).

MoreThan in contrast will make life as difficult as possible for you to use someone else - reason why? They own most of their bodyshops so control the costs. Therefore (as I found out once) you will never beat their repair quote meaning a serious difference in £££ that you have to pay. Not to mention the 4 weeks taken to agree to the repair.....

 

[Ignition1]

Expect to get cold called from claims companies for the rest of your life now.

"Hello sir...we can see you were in an accident 14 years ago. Did you know you are eligible for...GO AWAY!"

 

[Cleggy70]

Correct. But usually in insurers T&C's they will reserve the right to refuse to pay the difference between their bodyshop quote and your preferred repairer.

Some like AVIVA charge a fee to use a non-approved repairer and are very relaxed if your bodyshop is a couple hundred pounds different. They don't own any of their bodyshops so their approved repairer will probably quote something similar to your preferred bodyshop as most use a specific price of software to price the parts, repair time and how much paint is needed (Audatex).

MoreThan in contrast will make life as difficult as possible for you to use someone else - reason why? They own most of their bodyshops so control the costs. Therefore (as I found out once) you will never beat their repair quote meaning a serious difference in £££ that you have to pay. Not to mention the 4 weeks taken to agree to the repair.....

I have now arranged a slot tomorrow for an Audi approved bodyshop to assess the damage and provide an estimate, my insurer is ok with this (has no choice) and has cancelled the recommended repair centre(s). I spoke to the bodyshop manager about the points I raised earlier re. being out of pocket, etc. He said it's just standard patter and not to worry, scaremongering etc. I will get a courtesy car insured by the bodyshop so everything should be fine. Just waiting for the third party insurer to accept liability now, I assume that only happens once my incident statement, sketch, photos of damage etc. are provided by my insurer (sent them this morning)?

 

[Cleggy70]

Expect to get cold called from claims companies for the rest of your life now.

"Hello sir...we can see you were in an accident 14 years ago. Did you know you are eligible for...GO AWAY!"

Yep, had that last time I was the filling in a shunt sandwich.
You did hurt yourself sir didn't you?
Er no, bye!