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Car Hit Us From Behind, Insurance Company Want Us To Pay Excess Fee

By Lewis Cobain. Last updated 24th January 2023. A situation we hear often is ‘a car hit us from behind and my insurance company want us to pay an excess fee – what do we do?’. In this guide, we’ll explain.

An excess on a policy is the fixed amount that you either have to pay out before the insurance kicks in or which is withheld by the insurance company in the event of car accident claims and other insurance payouts.

car accident claims excess fee

Paying an excess fee in car accident claims

If you have an excess of £100 and make a claim for £1,000 of damage compensation, your insurance provider will pay out £900, the principal minus the excess. Even if you are making a claim for an accident that was someone else’s fault you will need to pay this excess initially, such as if a ‘car hit us from behind, the insurance company wants us to pay excess’. You may then be able to reclaim this from the other party.

To learn more about paying an excess fee after a car accident, contact our team:

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Compulsory Versus Voluntary Excess

Are you wondering ‘a car hit us from behind and my insurance company want us to pay an excess fee – what do we do’? If so, it will help to understand what compulsory excess is vs voluntary excess.

All insurance policies will have some form of compulsory excess. This is applied no matter the circumstances and will be automatically deducted by the insurer. The amount of compulsory insurance you will be charged will depend on factors such as your age, vehicle and length of time driving. Different drivers fall into different risk categories.

Voluntary excess is a little different to this. In a voluntary excess, you will often set the additional amount which you are willing to pay. The more you increase this, the lower insurance premiums often are. Drivers need to ensure that they are happy with the level of coverage and their combined excess value when taking out a policy. When making a claim you will need to pay the compulsory and voluntary excesses together.

When Do You Have To Pay The Excess Fee On Car Insurance?

Before we confirm whether you are expected to pay your car insurance excess fee, we want to discuss the meaning of compulsory excess and voluntary excess. The excess is what you pay when making a car accident claim on your insurance. It’s refunded if you’re not at fault. Compulsory excess is what your insurer decides, whilst voluntary excess is decided by you and is what you can afford to pay should you claim.

If you have excess protection insurance, your insurance excess payment could also be claimed back on one insurance claim during the 12 months of your policy. This is in cases of:

  • Fire
  • Theft or attempted theft
  • Accidental damage
  • Malicious damage

Insurers may ask you to pay your excess straight away in order to begin your claim. However, as long as you weren’t at fault for the road traffic accident, you could potentially get this fee back.

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us if you have any questions about the excess fee. We’re available to chat 24/7 and can offer you free no-obligation advice. Furthermore, you may be put in touch with one of our expert car accident solicitors.

Paying Excess Fees For An Accident Which Wasn’t Your Fault

You may need to pay this fee and then later make an insurance claim it back from the other party’s insurance company if you have had an accident that is not your fault. Your insurance company may organise reclaiming this for you.

No Win No Fee Car Accident Claims

Are you wondering ‘a car hit us from behind and my insurance company want us to pay an excess fee – what do we do?’. If so, did you know that making a claim could be done on a No Win No Fee basis?

Whether you are a driver, or a passenger in a car that has been hit from behind, filing a claim can be complicated and sometimes difficult if insurance excesses are involved. If your accident claim includes claims for loss of earnings, time off work, medical costs or having to have paid an insurance excess, it is a good idea to work with a specialist law firm. At Legal Expert, we can work with you to recover the money you are entitled to and help to protect your financial security.

We offer a no win no fee service. This means that you will not have to pay anything towards your legal costs if your case is unsuccessful and you do not receive any compensation for your injuries or other costs. From start to finish, you won’t have to pay anything. Our fee is paid as part of your compensation package by the person you are claiming against. This type of legal service is called a conditional fee agreement and it has helped people across the country to get the compensation they deserve, without having to take any financial risk.

How Legal Expert Can Help With Your Road Traffic Accident Claim

Whether you’re still wondering ‘a car hit us from behind and my insurance company want us to pay an excess fee – what do we do?’ or you’re ready to make a claim, we can help.

At Legal Expert our no win no fee solicitors can work with you, helping you to settle a claim after a car accident. We will also help you to recover expenses such as any excess fees you may already have had to pay. We are ready and able to work with you and can provide all the help and legal advice you need.

Talk to us today and start your claim by calling 0800 073 8804. You can also send us an email or reach out to us using our online chat feature.

Useful Links

We also have some other guides on car accident claims that you may find useful:

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    • Patrick Mallon

      Patrick is a Grade A solicitor having qualified in 2005. He's an an expert in accident at work and public liability claims and is currently our head of the EL/PL department. Get in touch today for free to see how we can help you.