Everyone talks about compulsory motor third-party liability insurance (MTPL) from the premium-paying side – yet sooner or later, almost everyone ends up on the other side: as an injured party. That's where you find out what the system is really worth. The good news: the injured party's route is orderly and predictable, once you know the sequence. This is the full process, an expanded successor to our earlier quick-guide article.
- You make your claim with the at-fault driver's MTPL insurer – or, if you have one and prefer, against your own casco cover (comprehensive insurance for your own car).
- The at-fault driver's insurer can be traced from the number plate through the central register.
- A no-fault claim doesn't affect your own bonus-malus class – only the at-fault driver's class is downgraded.
The scene: where provability is decided
The injured party's route starts at the scene too: a completed accident statement with both signatures, photos, witnesses – and the police if there's a dispute or an injury. As the injured party you have one extra thing to check: make sure the at-fault driver's insurer's name and policy number go on the statement – it can be found without this (via the number plate, from the central policy register), but having it from the scene saves days.
Two routes: the at-fault driver's insurer or your own casco cover
As a general rule, you report the claim through the at-fault driver's MTPL insurer's claims line or online portal, together with the documents. If you have casco cover, you can choose that route instead: your own insurer settles the claim, then recovers the cost from the at-fault side. The casco route is often faster and more convenient; the questions worth weighing up – the excess, and casco's no-claims discount – deserve individual calculation, and I can help with that on request, before you report the claim.
What can you claim?
MTPL cover pays out the injured party's proven losses: the cost of repairing the vehicle or, for a total loss, the difference between the vehicle's market value at the time of the loss and its salvage (residual) value (the exact figure comes from the inspection and calculation), reasonable related costs (transport, storage, a hire car for a reasonable period), and, for personal injury, the statutory items covering treatment and loss of income. The key word is 'proven': invoices, photos, documents – the document checklist was written for exactly this. In a dispute over the amount, the inspection and calculation are decisive – if you think the amount offered is too low, there's an orderly route for disputing it.
Deadlines, getting stuck, and how the broker helps
You need to report the claim within a reasonable time, under the rules in force – reporting promptly is provability's best friend. The insurer is bound by response deadlines set out in the rules; if the case still gets stuck, ends up in a loop of requests for further documents, or the amount is disputed, that's where a broker steps in: the article on how the broker helps shows what I can do. And here's the rule that reassures every injured party: a no-fault claim doesn't affect your own bonus-malus class – the system downgrades the at-fault driver's class, not yours.
Common question: how long does it take to settle?
A properly handled, well-documented bodywork claim typically closes within a few weeks: insurers are bound by response and payment deadlines set out in the rules, and in practice straightforward cases often move even faster – especially with photo-based assessment. What slows things down: incomplete documentation (every round of further requests costs weeks), disputes over liability, and special types of loss (total loss, personal injury). There are two things you can do for speed: submit a complete package up front, following the document checklist, and answer the insurer's questions promptly each time. If the case still stalls despite that, it's moved into stuck-case territory – from there, help from the broker may come into play.
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