Almost 12 months after the minor accident last December, and faced with a minor claims court appearance next month, the other party has finally admitted liability after my video evidence was re-submitted to them. My solicitors have recovered all costs, including my £150 excess and more than £1000 repair bill for my insurers. Although it is nice to have the £150 back, I mostly wanted to fight this on principle.
Initially my insurance company said the most likely outcome was 50:50 settlement in such cases. The other driver's statement actually claimed I was negligent, in that I:
- Encroached onto the Defendant's side of the road and collided with her vehicle
- Travelled too close to the Defendant's vehicle
- Failed to brake in time, or at all
- Failed to manage, steer or otherwise control my vehicle so as to avoid colliding with the Defendant's vehicle
- Failed to observe and heed the presence of the Defendant's correctly positioned vehicle
- Failed to have any sufficient regard for the Defendant
- Failed to manage, steer or otherwise control my vehicle so as to avoid the collision
- Caused the collision where by the exercise of proper driving care and skill should and would have avoided the collision
Of her own driving, she claimed:
- As the Claimant passed the Defendant he collided with the Defendant's correctly proceeding vehicle
- The Defendant steered her vehicle to the left in order to avoid the Claimant's vehicle
Thankfully my solicitors agreed that my video evidence showed her claims to be completely false, and were able to convince her solicitors accordingly.
Here's a short clip of the incident:
I should also mention that she did not stop at the scene. It was only through having dashcam video that I could report her number plate to the police, who tracked her down so we could exchange details and start any insurance claim and legal proceedings.