Quick answer
When a non-fault driver calls their own insurer to report an accident, the insurer's first instinct is often to handle the claim under the comprehensive policy: pay the repair cost less the excess, give the claimant a small courtesy car, and recover from the at-fault insurer in subrogation later. This is the path of least resistance for the insurer and it sounds convenient for the claimant. But for a clear non-fault claim it is rarely the right call. This post explains why and when going direct to the at-fault insurer through an accident management partner is the better route.
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Why you should not claim through your own insurer first in a non-fault claim
When a non-fault driver calls their own insurer to report an accident, the insurer's first instinct is often to handle the claim under the comprehensive policy: pay the repair cost less the excess, give the claimant a small courtesy car, and recover from the at-fault insurer in subrogation later. This is the path of least resistance for the insurer and it sounds convenient for the claimant. But for a clear non-fault claim it is rarely the right call. This post explains why and when going direct to the at-fault insurer through an accident management partner is the better route.
What 'subrogation' actually is
Subrogation is the right of an insurer who has paid a claim under a policy to step into the shoes of the policyholder and pursue any third party who caused the loss. Once your own insurer has paid for the repair, they have the right to recover that payment from the at-fault insurer. The recovery happens between the two insurers' subrogation departments, often through a centralised dispute resolution process such as the Motor Insurance Bureau Subrogation Service.
From the insurer's perspective, subrogation is a normal part of motor underwriting. From the claimant's perspective, it has three downsides: the no-claims discount is affected pending recovery, the excess has to be paid up front, and the courtesy car under the policy is rarely like-for-like.
DETAIL
Section 3 of the walkthrough.
The no-claims discount problem
When you make a claim under your own policy, your no-claims discount is normally affected at renewal - even if the claim is a clean non-fault claim and the insurer recovers from the at-fault party in full. The reason is that the insurer's underwriting model treats any 'fault' or 'open claim' status as a risk indicator until subrogation is complete and the file is closed.
Subrogation can take 6 to 18 months. During that time, your insurer's record of you shows an open claim. Renewal during that window typically prices in a no-claims-discount loss. Once subrogation completes and the claim is recorded as 'recovered in full', the no-claims discount is reinstated, but you may already have renewed at the higher rate by then. Reinstatement does not retroactively refund the renewal premium.
The excess problem
Your own policy has an excess - typically £250 to £750 depending on the policy and any voluntary excess. Where you claim through your own policy, you pay the excess up front when the repair is authorised. The excess is then refunded to you once subrogation completes successfully.
Two issues. First, the up-front excess is real money out of your pocket for the months it takes to complete subrogation. Second, where subrogation is partially successful - for example, the at-fault insurer disputes the scope and pays 80 per cent - you may not get all your excess back. A non-fault claim handled through the at-fault insurer direct does not involve your own policy and therefore does not engage the excess at all.
The courtesy car problem
Your own comprehensive policy normally includes a courtesy car as a benefit. The courtesy car is typically a small economy class vehicle for a fixed period (often 7 or 14 days, sometimes longer). It is not like-for-like for most drivers. A driver whose own vehicle was a 7-seat MPV gets a 5-seat hatchback; a tradesman with a van gets a small panel van; a higher-spec vehicle owner gets economy class.
Going direct through credit hire produces a like-for-like replacement that matches the damaged vehicle, for as long as is reasonably needed (typically until repair is complete or for a buffer after total-loss settlement). The credit hire route, when liability is clear, is structurally better suited to a non-fault claimant's actual loss.
When the own-insurer route makes sense
The own-insurer route is the right answer in three scenarios. First, where liability is genuinely uncertain and there is a real prospect of a contested claim that the claimant does not want to fund through credit hire. Second, where the at-fault driver is uninsured or untraced and the comprehensive policy will pay regardless of MIB recovery. Third, where the claimant is impecunious in a sense that makes credit hire awkward and the own-policy route is faster.
In each of these scenarios, the trade-off is a known cost (excess up front, no-claims discount impact, smaller courtesy car) for a faster path to a repaired vehicle. For a clean non-fault claim with admitted or likely-admitted liability, the trade-off is rarely worth it.
What to tell your own insurer
You still have a contractual duty to notify your own insurer of the accident. Most policies require notification regardless of which route the claim takes. Notification is not the same as making a claim under the policy. The wording is something like: 'I'm calling to notify you of an accident on [date]. The other driver was at fault and I will be claiming through their insurance directly. I am not making a claim under my policy at this stage. Please open a notification record.'
The notification protects your contractual position: the policy normally voids cover for failing to notify, and the notification keeps you compliant. Your insurer records the event and may reach out for further information; they do not normally take action on the file unless you ask them to. Your no-claims discount is not affected by a notification-only entry.
Going direct through an accident management partner
The direct route works like this: the accident management partner notifies the at-fault insurer; arranges recovery, storage and inspection; instructs an independent engineer; arranges credit hire; and pursues the at-fault insurer through to settlement. The non-fault driver pays nothing up front. The at-fault insurer pays the partner directly on settlement.
The driver's own insurance is informed but not engaged. The no-claims discount is preserved. The excess is not paid. The courtesy car is replaced by like-for-like credit hire. The repair is to the engineer's specification at the chosen repairer. The trade-off is that the partner takes a margin from the recovered settlement, but for a non-fault driver who pays nothing the margin is largely invisible.
DETAIL
Section 9 of the walkthrough.
When you have already claimed through your own insurer
If you have already started a claim under your own comprehensive policy, you are not necessarily locked in. Until repair work is authorised, you can sometimes pause the own-policy claim and switch to the direct route through the at-fault insurer. After repair authorisation, the position is more complicated - the repairer is engaged, the courtesy car is in use, and switching may incur switching costs.
The accident management partner can review the file and advise. Where the switch is possible, it is often worth it; where the file is too far progressed, the cleanest answer is to complete the own-policy claim and ensure the subrogation recovery happens in full. Either way, the lesson is to call the accident management partner before starting a claim under your own policy, not after.
Take action
If you have just been in a non-fault collision, the fastest way to protect your claim is to open the file with us inside the first hour. We dispatch recovery, lodge the relevant CCTV requests inside the retention window, and notify the third-party insurer for you.
