When the other side says it was your fault

Write your own account down first

Before you read anyone else's version, write your own: the route you were taking, speeds in plain words, what you saw, what you did, and what happened next. Date it.

Writing your account promptly may help preserve your memory of it. Note what you actually observed, and keep that separate from any estimate, such as speed or distance.

Gather what does not rely on memory

• Photographs of the scene, positions and damage.
• Dashcam, helmet camera or nearby CCTV — ask straight away, footage is often overwritten.
• Witness names and contact details, even if they seem neutral.
• Any police incident number.
• Every letter, email and text from the other side or their insurer, in date order.

Things that tend to make a dispute worse

• Agreeing fault at the scene, or in a phone call, to end an awkward conversation.
• Guessing at speeds, distances or costs as if they were facts.
• Deleting messages or photographs that seem unhelpful.
• Repairing or scrapping a vehicle before the damage is recorded.

The options in general terms

Broadly, disputed accidents are resolved by the insurers involved, by a negotiated split of responsibility, or through a formal process if they cannot agree. Which of those applies depends entirely on the evidence and the facts.

Nothing on this page is advice about your situation. A qualified legal provider can consider the detail and explain its own view and terms.

Smart Family Ltd’s role and boundaries

• Smart Family Ltd is a claims management company. Its role is identifying and referring claims or potential claims. A recipient and reason for sharing must be clear before you agree.
• Assessing who was responsible is the legal provider's work, using the accounts and evidence. This site does not take a view on fault.
• It does not negotiate with insurers, handle correspondence for you, or hold money.

Time limits

Legal time limits exist and they are not the same in every situation. This site does not calculate them and does not tell you whether you are in or out of time. If timing matters to you, that is a question for a qualified person.