So last week I was in another accident, through no fault of my own. I seem to attract people that go through red robots and stop streets.
Yes, I know... ANOTHER accident. My fourth one in 6 years of driving. This time a taxi full of people jumped a stop street. I hooted at him and slammed on brakes but he put his foot on the gas and tried to make it across. Felt like driving into a tiger tank with the weight of all those people in the taxi.
Anyways, make absolutely sure that the tow truck, which is no doubt on your case about towing your vehicle away from the accident scene, is in fact approved by your specific insurance. I asked the tow truck driver explicitly if he is approved and he said yes, giving me his business card with the insurance logo on it. I phoned the insurer and asked if the tow truck and the destination panel beater are approved and they said yes.
Three days later and my insurer notifies me that I need to pay over R8000 in fees to the towing company because they, are in fact, not approved and thus no fees are covered by my policy. Tomorrow that amount will be over R10k. So now I am drowning in all kinds of paperwork and official complaint letters. If the fees aren’t paid, the car will not be released for assessment and payout.
The tow truck driver will try all sorts of tricks. He will even say things like “the car is a hazard on the road, we need to move it”. Remember that the INSTANT your car is hooked onto the tow truck you will be charged, even if they move it three feet. They will refuse to place the car down again until you pay them. R1000 for moving the car one meter is not unheard of...
Here is a pic of the poor car:
