YOU NEVER GET ANYTHING OUT with OUTsurance - My Personal Experience with OUTsurance

I was recently in an accident with a car/driver allegedly insured by OUTsurance who claims to have specific 3rd party policy cover.

At the time of the accident, in good road conditions, I had done everything possible to avoid the other car - to the extent that, at the moment of impact, my nearside front wheel was on the edge of the driveway to the house I was passing. OUTsurance's 'insured' driver still hit me, head on, almost half way across my front bumper. Such was their lack of concentration, a second before impact, instead of hitting the brake, they hit the accelerator - causing even more damage than would have otherwise been the case.

At the scene, the other driver was apologetic - and accepted FULL responsibility for the accident. In the Police Report filed at the time, the same was true.

Despite these facts, OUTsurance have undertaken what they believe to be the very 'clever' practice of accepting my claim but holding me 40% responsible for the accident and their driver only 60% in some arbitrary allocation of blame which is neither explained or bears scrutiny. Their calculation then deducts 40% of the damage to the other car from 60% of my claim - resulting in them offering zero compensation. It follows that I have refused their derisory offer.

However, what it also means is that I now need to ask the other driver to show some integrity (unlike OUTsurance) and pay for the damages themselves.

In the absence thereof, I will need to sue the other driver - even though they have been paying OUTsurance policy premiums for what they expected to be coverage for 3rd party incidents which were of their sole making.

So this is a bad case all around.

Given that insurance contracts are generally 'of utmost good faith', I would have expected integrity to be shown, in return, by the insurance community. Not in this case. Not by OUTsurance. They have simply resorted to any means to relieve themselves of a relatively modest liability (R20,000). One for which they have been specifically paid by the Insured.

So BEWARE.

If you have a policy with OUTsurance, you may end up paying yourself. You may end up being sued by 3rd parties because OUTsurance will not pay. And if you are a 3rd Party you may never get something OUT of OUTsurance.

That, sadly, is the harsh factual truth of my experience. What's yours?

Jonathan Francis