If you have been in a road traffic accident that wasn’t your fault, you may find yourself without your vehicle while it is in the garage to be repaired.
How do you navigate this inconvenience? Depending on the circumstances of your accident, you may decide to hire a replacement from a credit hire organisation.
The Watermans team have compiled a list of the main credit hire terms below so that you can be in full confidence of the credit hire process!
Common Credit Hire Terms
Negligence
Negligence is a failure in a duty of care, resulting in physical or psychological harm of a person.
Duty of care
A duty of care is a legal obligation that someone has to avoid causing harm to others.
Compensation
Compensation is money awarded to someone who has suffered loss in an accident.
Limitation
Limitation is the limit on the amount of time you have by which to make a claim for compensation. In Scotland, you generally have five years in which to raise a court action or settled a claim for compensation for losses and expenses. There are some exceptions to this rule, which our dispute resolution team can chat you through. However, if you have exceeded the time limit, your claim is then time-barred and your case won’t be taken on by a solicitor.
Pursuer
The pursuer is the party making the claim.
Defender
The defender is the person or company responsible for your accident.
Impecuniosity
Impecuniosity is the formal way of saying “having little or no money”. In credit hire terms, it essentially means that the non-fault party would be unable to pay for a replacement vehicle without making significant, unreasonable sacrifices.
Credit hire rate
Credit hire rate is the daily cost of using a replacement vehicle following your involvement in a non-fault accident.
Repair duration
Repair duration is the time it takes following the date of your accident for your vehicle to be assessed, repaired and returned to you.
Replacement vehicle
You will have a need for a replacement vehicle if yours is unusable and in the garage for repair following an accident that wasn’t your fault.
Like-for-like replacement vehicle
A like-for-like replacement vehicle is a vehicle provided to you on a temporary basis that matches the size, type and functionality of your own vehicle while it is in the garage being repaired.
Repairable Vehicle
If your vehicle has been declared a Repairable Vehicle, this means that it can be repaired safely, and that it makes sense economically to do so.
Total Loss
If your vehicle has been declared a Total Loss, this means it is either too damaged to be fixed properly and safely, or the repairs are too expensive relative to the value of the vehicle. We usually call this a “write-off”.
Out-of-pocket expenses
Out-of-pocket expenses are reasonable costs that you will be forced to pay after being involved in an accident that wasn’t your fault, that has resulted in you not being able to use your vehicle. Examples include any travel costs, like train or taxi fares, that you have had to pay while your car is in the garage.