Claiming after a crash that was not your fault
There are two routes: claim on your own policy, if you hold a level that covers your car, or pursue the other driver and their insurer directly. Which is open to you depends on your cover, and the details you collect at the scene decide how well either one goes.
Last checked against Consumer Protection and insurers' own wordings on 2026-09-16
The steps
- Collect everything at the scene. The other driver's name, address and phone number, their insurer's name, their registration and driver licence details, and photographs of the damage.
- Tell your own insurer anyway. Tell your insurer what happened even if you intend to pursue the other driver, so the event is on record.
- Check what your own level of cover pays. Third party only pays nothing for your own car, whoever was at fault. Third party fire and theft pays only for fire and theft.
- Ask about the excess. Ask your insurer whether the excess is payable up front and what happens to it if the cost is recovered from the other party.
What do I need from the other driver?
Their name, address and phone number, the name of their insurer, their registration and licence details, and photographs of the damage. Pursuing another driver is only realistic if you know who they are and who insures them, and the insurer's name is the single most useful thing on that list.
Consumer Protection's list is short enough to do at the roadside: Consumer Protection's list is short enough to do at the roadside:
“If you're in a car accident get the name, address and telephone number of other drivers involved. Ask for the name of their insurer and make a note of their registration and drivers licence details. If you can, photograph the damage on your phone.”
— Consumer Protection (MBIE), Car insurance, read 2026-09-16
Does third party cover my car if it was not my fault?
No. Third party only never pays for your own car, whoever caused the crash — the policy is about damage you do, not damage done to you. If that is your level, the route to getting the car repaired runs through the other driver and their insurer rather than through your own policy.
This is the point people get wrong most often: third party only never pays for your own car, even when somebody else caused the crash. The policy is about the damage you do, not the damage done to you. If you hold third party only, the route to getting your car repaired runs through the other driver and their insurer, not through your policy.
If you hold comprehensive, you generally have a choice between claiming on your own policy — paying your excess, and letting the insurer pursue the other party — and dealing with the other driver directly. Which is better in your case depends on the numbers and on how cooperative the other party is, and it is not a decision this site makes for you.
If the claim is declined and you disagree
Consumer Protection sets out the order to do this in:
“If you have had a claim refused and disagree with your insurer's decision, first take it up with their complaints team. If you can't sort it out directly, ask your insurer which dispute resolution service they belong to and get advice from them.”
— Consumer Protection (MBIE), Car insurance, read 2026-09-16
Of the eight insurers on this site, only one names its scheme in its own policy wording. Cove's wording names the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman and sets a timing point: "If after two months, you are still unsatisfied, or we have confirmed to you that we have reached the end of the complaints process via a letter, you may refer your complaint to the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman (IFSO)". Tower's and Trade Me Insurance's wordings say only that they will tell you how to reach "our external disputes resolution provider". So the reliable step is the one above: ask which scheme, in writing.
The IFSO Scheme describes itself as "an approved Dispute Resolution Scheme" and says: "We resolve complaints about insurance and financial services. Our service is independent, fair and free for consumers." It also sets out what it does not do: "We are independent and fair. We're not consumer advocates and can't give legal advice. Our role is to assess complaints by looking at the facts, the law, and the contract."
Questions
Do I pay my excess if the crash was not my fault?
It depends on the wording and on whether your insurer recovers the cost from the other party. Ask your insurer directly whether the excess is payable up front and whether it is refunded on a successful recovery — the answer varies, and we publish no general rule because no source supports one.
What if the other driver has no insurance?
Then a claim on your own comprehensive policy is generally the only insurance route, and recovering from the driver personally is a legal matter rather than an insurance one. Some wordings have a benefit dealing with uninsured drivers — check yours, and ask.
What if they drove off?
Report it. Without the other party's details a recovery is very hard, and what your own policy does then depends entirely on which level you hold.
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Sources
- Consumer Protection (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment), Car insurance
- Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme
Read on 2026-09-16. If a source and this page disagree, the source is right.