Insurance Advice

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Juan King

Well-Known Member
Joined
14 Feb 2011
Messages
3,437
Looking for some advice if possible.

Last week I was in a no fault crash. I reported it to my insurance company & they passed it to a company called Albany Assistance. They have said that they handle no fault claims for insurance companies. They said that they spoke to the other driver who admitted liability on the phone & the call was recorded.

They have said they will process the claim on my behalf but they want me to sign a credit agreement before they can move any further. The agreement basically says that they will do the repairs now & that I don't have to pay for 49 weeks, while they claim the money back from the other persons insurance. They said that they set up a free insurance policy which kicks in after 49 weeks if for some reason they can't get the money off the other insurance company. They also supply a hire car while the repair work is done.

This seems like a long winded way of doing things.

I read some reviews online which say people in some cases are given a hire car for a long period while they take ages to do repairs so that the charges rack up & in some cases the other persons insurance dispute the charges.

I called & asked them if I could not take the hire car & they have said they will only deal with me if I take their hire car as part of the deal. They say if I don't I have to go back to my insurance company & pay my excess then claim back through the other persons insurance.

Has anyone had any dealings with this company? If so what were they like? Anyone else been in a similar situation.

If I don't use this company can I go directly to the other persons insurance so that I don't have to pay my excess?
 
Juan King said:
Looking for some advice if possible.

Last week I was in a no fault crash. I reported it to my insurance company & they passed it to a company called Albany Assistance. They have said that they handle no fault claims for insurance companies. They said that they spoke to the other driver who admitted liability on the phone & the call was recorded.

They have said they will process the claim on my behalf but they want me to sign a credit agreement before they can move any further. The agreement basically says that they will do the repairs now & that I don't have to pay for 49 weeks, while they claim the money back from the other persons insurance. They said that they set up a free insurance policy which kicks in after 49 weeks if for some reason they can't get the money off the other insurance company. They also supply a hire car while the repair work is done.

This seems like a long winded way of doing things.

I read some reviews online which say people in some cases are given a hire car for a long period while they take ages to do repairs so that the charges rack up & in some cases the other persons insurance dispute the charges.

I called & asked them if I could not take the hire car & they have said they will only deal with me if I take their hire car as part of the deal. They say if I don't I have to go back to my insurance company & pay my excess then claim back through the other persons insurance.

Has anyone had any dealings with this company? If so what were they like? Anyone else been in a similar situation.

If I don't use this company can I go directly to the other persons insurance so that I don't have to pay my excess?
Click to expand...
Why do you pay one compant to pass it to another? My young Son had 2 accidents and both times the insurance company 'Tesco' delt with it direct, Hire car, repairs and back on the road in 2 weks and the first one a right off and paid up in 4 weeks no probs, why a 3rd party I would ask.
 
CITY FOR LIFE said:
Juan King said:
Looking for some advice if possible.

Last week I was in a no fault crash. I reported it to my insurance company & they passed it to a company called Albany Assistance. They have said that they handle no fault claims for insurance companies. They said that they spoke to the other driver who admitted liability on the phone & the call was recorded.

They have said they will process the claim on my behalf but they want me to sign a credit agreement before they can move any further. The agreement basically says that they will do the repairs now & that I don't have to pay for 49 weeks, while they claim the money back from the other persons insurance. They said that they set up a free insurance policy which kicks in after 49 weeks if for some reason they can't get the money off the other insurance company. They also supply a hire car while the repair work is done.

This seems like a long winded way of doing things.

I read some reviews online which say people in some cases are given a hire car for a long period while they take ages to do repairs so that the charges rack up & in some cases the other persons insurance dispute the charges.

I called & asked them if I could not take the hire car & they have said they will only deal with me if I take their hire car as part of the deal. They say if I don't I have to go back to my insurance company & pay my excess then claim back through the other persons insurance.

Has anyone had any dealings with this company? If so what were they like? Anyone else been in a similar situation.

If I don't use this company can I go directly to the other persons insurance so that I don't have to pay my excess?
Click to expand...
Why do you pay one compant to pass it to another? My young Son had 2 accidents and both times the insurance company 'Tesco' delt with it direct, Hire car, repairs and back on the road in 2 weks and the first one a right off and paid up in 4 weeks no probs, why a 3rd party I would ask.
Click to expand...

Don't know mate. I think a few insurance companies use them. It probably save them doing anything themselves & they probably get a fee for passing them cases. I'm going to get back on to my insurance company tomorrow & see if they will deal with it themsleves or if not what my options are.
 
I wok for an insurance company and deal with Albany everyday. They are a credit hire car company so only make cash out of the hire aspect hence they aint interested if you dont take the car. It is in their interests to drag the claim out as the longer you have their car the more cash they make so the at fault insurer may well dispute the charges due to unnecessary delays.
As your signing a credit agreement technically you are agreeing to reimburse some or all of the charges and whilst in my experience they rarely chase customers for any shortfall they would be legally entitled to. Just like whiplash claims credit hire claims add an additional and sometimes unnecessary cost onto the claim which ultimately are passed onto the customer in increased premiums.
If as they say the other insurer has admitted liability chances are if you contact them direct they should be able to give you a car fit for your needs ie. not your bog standard small courtesy car at a far cheaper price which they will pay for and you are then at no risk of being forced to cough up money in 12 months time
 
Who are you insured with ?
Whilst it is probably all legitimate it is this sort of thing that bumps up the price of everybodys insurance. As you say you will have a hire car for ages whilst they take ages to repair your car and all the costs are passed onto the other persons insurance company. But I would be concerned, what happens if the other person disputes he was at fault ? you might have to pay for the repairs and the hire car. This could happen as a lot of insurance companies settle 'knock for knock'. At the moment you have no proof that the other driver is accepting liability so all i can say is be very very careful, I know that is not much advice but I would be worried about this 49 week thing.

Have you googled Albany, I did and there are some worrying storys on there have a look.
 
didsburyblu said:
I wok for an insurance company and deal with Albany everyday. They are a credit hire car company so only make cash out of the hire aspect hence they aint interested if you dont take the car. It is in their interests to drag the claim out as the longer you have their car the more cash they make so the at fault insurer may well dispute the charges due to unnecessary delays.
As your signing a credit agreement technically you are agreeing to reimburse some or all of the charges and whilst in my experience they rarely chase customers for any shortfall they would be legally entitled to. Just like whiplash claims credit hire claims add an additional and sometimes unnecessary cost onto the claim which ultimately are passed onto the customer in increased premiums.
If as they say the other insurer has admitted liability chances are if you contact them direct they should be able to give you a car fit for your needs ie. not your bog standard small courtesy car at a far cheaper price which they will pay for and you are then at no risk of being forced to cough up money in 12 months time
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice.<br /><br />-- Sun Feb 19, 2012 9:33 pm --<br /><br />
Blue Mist said:
Who are you insured with ?
Whilst it is probably all legitimate it is this sort of thing that bumps up the price of everybodys insurance. As you say you will have a hire car for ages whilst they take ages to repair your car and all the costs are passed onto the other persons insurance company. But I would be concerned, what happens if the other person disputes he was at fault ? you might have to pay for the repairs and the hire car. This could happen as a lot of insurance companies settle 'knock for knock'. At the moment you have no proof that the other driver is accepting liability so all i can say is be very very careful, I know that is not much advice but I would be worried about this 49 week thing.

Have you googled Albany, I did and there are some worrying storys on there have a look.
Click to expand...

The only proof I have that the other driver has accepted liability is from this Albany Assistance who say they spoke to the person & recorded the call. I think I need to get my insurance company to verify this & then not use Albany.
 
didsburyblu said:
I wok for an insurance company and deal with Albany everyday. They are a credit hire car company so only make cash out of the hire aspect hence they aint interested if you dont take the car. It is in their interests to drag the claim out as the longer you have their car the more cash they make so the at fault insurer may well dispute the charges due to unnecessary delays.
As your signing a credit agreement technically you are agreeing to reimburse some or all of the charges and whilst in my experience they rarely chase customers for any shortfall they would be legally entitled to. Just like whiplash claims credit hire claims add an additional and sometimes unnecessary cost onto the claim which ultimately are passed onto the customer in increased premiums.
If as they say the other insurer has admitted liability chances are if you contact them direct they should be able to give you a car fit for your needs ie. not your bog standard small courtesy car at a far cheaper price which they will pay for and you are then at no risk of being forced to cough up money in 12 months time
Click to expand...

Would this explain why my friend was given a brand spanking new 3 series M Sport on hire for 2 months while his rather clapped out A3 had minor repairs undertaken for a no fault accident? Scoundrels
 
Fuck that.
You pay your insurance company to sort this shit out. That's what they are there for.
If your policy states a hire car will be given then get on the phone and get THEM to sort it


fuckininsurancewankerbastards.
 
nem said:
didsburyblu said:
I wok for an insurance company and deal with Albany everyday. They are a credit hire car company so only make cash out of the hire aspect hence they aint interested if you dont take the car. It is in their interests to drag the claim out as the longer you have their car the more cash they make so the at fault insurer may well dispute the charges due to unnecessary delays.
As your signing a credit agreement technically you are agreeing to reimburse some or all of the charges and whilst in my experience they rarely chase customers for any shortfall they would be legally entitled to. Just like whiplash claims credit hire claims add an additional and sometimes unnecessary cost onto the claim which ultimately are passed onto the customer in increased premiums.
If as they say the other insurer has admitted liability chances are if you contact them direct they should be able to give you a car fit for your needs ie. not your bog standard small courtesy car at a far cheaper price which they will pay for and you are then at no risk of being forced to cough up money in 12 months time
Click to expand...

Would this explain why my friend was given a brand spanking new 3 series M Sport on hire for 2 months while his rather clapped out A3 had minor repairs undertaken for a no fault accident? Scoundrels
Click to expand...


yup
 
Having a mare with this lot.

Got on to my insurance today to say I'm not happy with using Albany. They said I could either pay my excess & get the car fixed through them then claim it back if the other sides insurance company admit liability or they could get the other sides insurance to do it. They called the other persons insurance to see how far they were on with things & nothing has been reported by their client or Albany. My insurance have now sent the details to the other persons insurance today when I reported this last Wed. I was told by Albany that the other person had admitted liability but their insurance company claim they have no reports off anyone.

Seems ridiculous that I have to chase this when my insurance company should be dealing with it.
 
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