Perth area: independent insurance assessor or automotive engineer

The worst part is that I did call the 13 number when the accident happened, span out on some oil, asked them if I needed to contact the police, they said if no other vehicle was involved that there was no need. They asked if the car was still mobile, I said it was so they asked me to bring in to the nearest town. So no witensses to where the accident happned.

Only my wifes car is covered by the RAC so no luck there but thanks for the help.

Most rental companies do not allow their cars off the bitumen and won't cover them for dirt roads.

Speak to RAC legal team..

I have already made a stat dec detailing how the accident happened. Their latest angle is that I signed the small print and that states that roof damage, underbody damage and damage caused by taking the car off road is not covered.
When they first contacted me they insisted that the car was taken off road which I refuse to accept as that wasn't the case.
However, they are now claiming that the car has underbody damage and that that wasn't covered.

In heavy rain the car spun on on the freeway and spun off into the hardshoulder so most damage was underbody. No one else was involved or injured.

I have had some legal advice and it seems that I will have to pay for the underbody damage regardless of how the accident happened.

I need an independent assessment of their claim to differentiate the difference between underbody and non underbody damage that was fixed.

I rented this car in good faith thinking that I was adequately insured if an accident happened, how wrong was I? All I can do now is to attempt to minimise the claim.

Gday Grumpy

As others have said, the onus is on them to proove you have taken the vehicle off road. I'm sure when push comes to shove they wouldn't risk taking you to court. Do they consider skidding off the side of the freeway to be "off road!"

Good luck, Andrew

Oh, and I gather naming the company is not in your best interests.......any hints?

Hi Grumpy

Hear what you say, but I'd challenge them. Firstly, you have an agreement with an insurer to provide you with cover, you are reasonably entitled to assume you would be covered for the accident you were involved in regardless of what damage occurred and were on the vehicle it occured, unless it happened contrary to an exclusion, such as off-road use. Secondly, in this day and age the onus is on the insurer to make sure you fully understand what you are covered for and what you aren't covered for. If it was that obscure (underbody damage), plead ignorance and I'd reckon a better that even money chance the judgement would fall your way if it ever got to that point.

Besides underbody or roof damage could easily occur from a 'standard issue' type accident on the blacktop........I'd be backing your claim.

Andrew,

I'm afriad that their small print (that I signed) says that roof damage, underbody damage and damage from taking the vehicle off road is not covered. They are interpreting this to mean that if I am in an accident that I am only insured for damage to the middle section of the car. I know that sounds crazy but that is what I am being told.

Landy,
Thanks for the post, I have an uphill battle ahead of me but no support right now.

I will and am challening this but its not looking good. I need some more legal advice hence this post.

If I do end up having to pay I will indeed name the car hire company and inform all on here of what has happened.

Gday Grumpy (I'd be grumpy if they were trying to do this to me)

As you say, in the small print they state that they wont cover underbody damage from taking the vehicle off road. As you state the accident happened on the freeway, they don't have a leg to stand on as they will have to proove that you were off road. I wish you all the best, maybe we could get TT or ACA to do something useful for a change.....that would be asking a little much, I'm sure there is an easy target, or cheap washing powder somewhere!

Best of luck Andrew

Andrew, he is not saying that the insurance cover does not include underbody damage caused by taking the vehicle off road.

He is saying it will not cover.......

a. under body damage.
b. damage to the roof.
c. damage caused by taking the car off road.

Finding a witness wouldn't help the fact that the policy from this company states that underbody damage is not covered. Everyone that rents a car from this leading rental company signs this form.

The legal road is not a cheap one and I don't have much disposable income, if mney was no object I would fight this all the way but their will come a point when I will have to make a decision one way to go.

I was thinking the witness would attest to the fact that the accident occurred on a sealed road but if you're saying that the major issue is the underbody damage (irrespective of where it occurred) and you agreed to cover that cost then you're stuffed.

Don't entertain taking them on in court, you'll loose and get hit with costs too. if it's as clear cut as you suggest try and get the media involved somehow (however I doubt they'll be interested) and maybe you can persuade the company to back down for the sake of a quiet life.

Basically I think you'll have to pay - sorry.

Maybe ask them for time to pay? They could hardly refuse.

Mike Harding

" Hopefully unlike my experience you didn't let them swipe your credit card before setting out on the journey."

you can still despute the payment via the bank so long as it is within 30 days or so cant you?

Anyone see the rent-a-car crash derby on Jackass by Johnny Knoxville?

In retrospect I was very fortunate to have some fraudulent activity on my credit card, the credit card company issued me with a new credit card shortly after this incident.

That’s put the rental car company in a better position from my perspective. They want to get the money from me and its not a case of me trying to claim my money back from them. This position keeps the dialogue open.

I wasn't aware of the 30 day dispute period with the banks but that is good to know, thanks. I had an instance once where I did an over the phone credit card order and was charged 3 times for the same amount by the same supplier because he had a problem with his eftpos bizzo being "down". Luckily I knew the supplier pretty well having dealt with him over a number of years and his accountant simply looked up their bank records and refunded me the money. My bank however was less than sympathetic and didn't even want to see reason in that you wouldn't normally buy the same priced item three times from the same supplier in as many minutes on the same day. They said it was up to me to sort it out with the supplier. Since then I found out those eftpos machines have a memory and if they punch in your credit card details such as when you do a phone order and if the power is off or there is any sort of fault when it is rectified the transaction will be processed for as many times as they tried to put it through. Another good bank trick to boost profit.
Grumpy I'm real glad to hear you haven't paid them because at least that gives you the upper hand in one respect. It's always better to be negotiating to get an invoice reduced rather than try and get a credit when you have already paid especially as most Companies have very strict credit criteria and lots of "please explains" have to be answered by the Staff if a credit is given partly I suppose because that is an area of possible staff fraud and also once they have got the money they hate to give it back. Re your problem I would try to gradually go "up the (seniorority) tree" by phone in the hope you get someone with a bit of common sense and understanding who can make a decision. If you have already done that then a letter is a good way to set it all out on paper in front of them and as well it gives them a problem by putting the ball in their court that won't go away until they answer the letter. It also drags the process out so you can get more information and work out your next strategy. I know this sounds really basic but make sure you have read all the stuff you signed in detail and any other literature available from the hire company including their website because surprising as it may sound you may find something in writing that you can use or interpret to your advantage. If all else fails and they turn out to be people of doubtful parentage you can always tell the to get stuffed and then they will have to decide whether they want to take legal action to recover 6g's which I doubt would be worth their while. A lot of these mobs just try this stuff on and try to bluff people who are reluctant or unable to stand up for themselves. Bottom line is if you had insurance cover provided by them for damage caused when driving on the road and for whatever reason you had an accident and slid off the public road and damaged the under body in so doing then if they refuse to pay the claim maybe they were taking the insurance cover under false pretences. Just keep annoying them and don't give in and when they realise you aren't going to go away they will either write it off or have to raise the bar to another level and threaten legal action. Good luck and don't let the mongrels wear you down:-)

Thanks for taking the time to reply, I discussed the issue with Dept of Consumer Affairs and they said my first action was to write to the rental car company stating my understanding of the situation. When the rental car company responds I will then have sifficient information for them to take a look at the case.
In my response, to be drafted over the next day or two, I will seek an accurate percentage of the car that is actually covered by insurance seeing that there is a clause the excludes underbody damage and roof damage. From this response I will have in in black and white exactly what was covered and what was not. If I still have to pay then so be it but I sure will make as many people aware of this situation as possible.

Thanks everyone for your input, I needed a bit of support to carry on, stuations like this cause us a lot of stress.

Regards.

No problem,

But I'd certainly do nothing until they serve some sort of demand on you for the money, you can then take it from there.

Hi Brian,

The repair bill is for a little under $6k. I have already supplied a stat dec to the rental car company. So far my issue is with the rental car company and not their insurer. The accident happened near Goulburn, NSW and we now live in Perth. I may be back there in a few months time and I will take pictures if I get the opportunity.

I disucssed this case with the Dept of Fair Trading and they have advised me of a course of action that I have started to put in place today with a letter back to the rental car company stating the facts as I see them.

I am not and actually can't just hand over that amount of cash. I will have to fight this all the way. If I do end up having to pay I will let anyone and everyone know about my experience.

Thanks for your input. cheers.