Insurance boggle

[Cyborg]

I'm posting this here because I'll get decent responses. Admin please bare with me.

My dad was in an accident with my virtually brand new van today.

2015 chev utility 1.4 with aircon. 12 days old. Around 2000 on the clock.

Accident was not his fault, other vehicle was a telkom van. He's a registered driver for the van and everything.

Damage to the van looks like it's a write off. What's the likely thing to happen here?

The first instalment hasn't even gone off yet. I'm extremely worried about a pay out that leaves me with no vehicle and isn't enough to settle with the bank.

Can anybody give me the retail value on the van?

Insurance company is unity. A division of budget. I'm insanely stressed right now not knowing what will happen.

 

[Hemi300c]

R158 000 is shown as market value.
Your policy if a personal policy could be new replacement within the first year.
less excess
I suggest you scrutinize the policy.
Sorry but you should have gone through a broker and they would have advised you that you need HP/Top-Up cover.

PS:-
If this is on your personal policy try forcing the "norm" that (and if your dad is) pensioners or 55yrs or older don't pay excess's. This is the norm with reputable insurers.
Also ensure that they stay on top of the recovery with the Telkom Claim as this is done in a unconventional fleet basis and Telkom or their brokers will try everything to get out of the claim IMO. (unconventional = Aggregate Excess / Profit Share)

Good luck with the claim.

 

[Cyborg]

It's a business policy. Forgot to mention that

 

[Venomous]

There is a special insurance that the dealer should have offered you. It is a short term insurance designed to cover the short fall to enable you to be able to have an equal vehicle to that which you lost, within the first year
It is additional insurance not the same as your general motor insurance.

 

[Shah33m]

Agreed. A broker would have advised you of short fall cover. Would have been like an extra R100 pm.

 

[Cyborg]

Okay so insurance wrote the van off without telling us anything .... good sign or bad sign?

I'm taking it as good ... The van was sent to an auctioneer this morning.

 

[SauRoNZA]

Ultimately it's a case of read your policy...we can't use a crystal ball to figure out what it says.

Many times a vehicle will be insured with a clause that states something such as "like for like replacement if written off in first year" basically to cover the shortfall with the bank.

Or the car will be insured at the full value the bank is owed, not the retail value of the car etc.

If they've written it off and you had to find that out yourself...I'd call that a pretty ****ty insurance company. But hopefully it's not a bad sign that you won't get paid out or some such.

However without excess waiver expect to pay 5% of the cost of the car, at a minimum.

@Hemi300C is in the industry and should be able to provide you the right answers.

 

[Hemi300c]

This purely means that the insurance is going to settle.

Excess waiver varies but the industry norm is +- 15% of premium or R110 whichever is the greater and some limit the claim/cover of the excess to R30 000.

As this is a new vehicle and under a business policy they will probably settle on market value and as there isn't a "market value" established as yet as it is a new vehicle it'll, if a good insurer be your or their purchase price being a cash settlement and you will owe the bank the HP costs etc.

I still strongly suggest doing insurance through a reputable broker and they will sort you out on the next one and explain all covers and you can question them.