Accident claim - charged but not convicted yet

Convicted Driver Insurance

Davyatsea

Member
Hi there. Wife was charged under Section 4 last week for being unfit to drive through drink. She pleaded guilty at police station. Breathalyser reading was 59. She has crashed the car and police seized it at the time.

Fast forward to now and she has made claim for RTC. Car is now total loss claim and should be settled to finance company (car is on PCP).

Wife was advised not to declare charge as she has not been convicted. Court date is 24th but insurance is set to renew on 13th. Should she advise insurance yet of charge, or just let insurance lapse. I'm scared if we do tell, then they wont settle finance. If we dont tell... then we all know the potential consequences. Many thanks for any advice you can give.
 
Hello Davyatsea. The best advice is to contact a local solicitor with a 'general enquiry'. This forum will offer sound advice but will not have any influence in the outcome, granted. Where large sums of money are involved and more importantly humans life & credibility is at stake - only the legal guys can point you in the right direction. What I would say is don't be influenced by the solicitors who charge an extreme amount to represent you. I paid almost £2,000 to a 'big' solicitor. However, on the day of my court date it become apparent an 'on the day solicitor' (for a nominal fee) would've got me the exact same result. Wise men learn from fools mistakes. Good luck
 
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Many thanks Woozle47. We have both been trying to get legal advice, but have been shocked at the cost of it. I think we have found someone local to us, who is charging around £400 (assuming a guilty plea). I had also wondered if my wife had considered pleading not guilty in court. But seeing as she said she was guilty during interview, and considering the state of her car, I'm not sure what to think.
 
Many thanks again. I've asked the question to this guy to see what he says. Interestingly enough, I was quotee some obscene amount for defending a non guilty case - not even going to mention the amount here, but he would seem pretty convincing to the very well off, with some 'well backed' success stories.
 
During the course of the insurance investigation your wife's insurance company will contact the police for a copy of the report. This report will state that your wife was arrested for DD, what she blew etc.

You may want to read your policy documents as in the case of drink driving all insurance companies that I have come across will only pay out for the third party. Last year when I lost my licence my car was a total loss but my claim for my own car was rejected but all third party claims were paid.

Also I paid £190 to a local solicitor for representation, she came with me on the day to court. Call all the solicitors local to you and ask for a quote as £400 is steep to me for a mornings work.
 
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