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I am very worried right now. My car was damaged through no fault of mine whatsoever. Another car coming out of a side street swiped me and now my driver’s side mirror is unusable. There is also panel damage and a good chance my 19 year old (my first) car will be written off.

Then I looked at my WOF sticker some time after the crash and I see it expired 3 days before the “accident”. I knew it was close, and was planning to get it renewed once I got to my destination as I worked Monday-Saturday last week and was unable to get in to get a warrant. Am I still covered by insurance? If not, would I be covered by the other party’s insurance? I have comprehensive AA Insurance, have had it almost continually for the 15 years since I bought the car. It has lapsed occasionally through oversight and automatic payments dropping off. My claim has been accepted and my excess waived as they have accepted I was not at fault.

My other worry is that I’m now five hours drive from home. Too far to walk if my car gets written off. Also can my car be ordered off the road if I get stopped by police? I understand only one mirror (side or interior) is required to be functional in a car produced before 2000? If I take it to a garage to be assessed in the town I’m in at the moment, can they order it off the road?

Also if it gets written off, what will happen next? Will I get use of a rental car until I am able to purchase a replacement? For how long? I cannot possibly afford to buy another car in my current financial state, well okay maybe a $200 side of the road job, but not one suitable for my purposes. I also think I’d need a few weeks to find a suitable vehicle, as my dad is a motor mechanic living elsewhere, and I would require his assistance.

Hi there,
The WoF requirement for a vehicle manufactured before 1 Jan 2000 is to have either an External R/H side or interior mirror fitment.
You would be best to speak with your insurance company and see what they say, if they would deny your claim, then take the car to a panel repairer, obtain a repair quote and submit it to the person who crashed into your vehicle and they can choose to pay you out or claim on their insurance if they have it. It is unlikely that the insurance company will supply a rental car unless it is included in your policy.

Okay, thank you. Last time someone crashed into me, a few years back, the insurance company said they would provide a rental car as per my policy. Unfortunately as it was a couple of weeks before Christmas, there were none available, and I ended up having to borrow a friend's car for a week until I could get a courtesy car from the panel beaters. I can’t remember though if I got the rental car agreement in my latest policy. I’m pretty sure though that it said they will pay to get you home if your car is damaged away from home. I wonder if it matters if my car was damaged on the way to my current location. I had to keep going as I had a medical procedure the following morning.

My car was manufactured in October 99, so yes that mirror is not legally required I guess. Although it just seems really dangerous somehow. I almost had another accident on the way, pulling into a passing lane because my lane had come to a virtual standstill behind a very slow truck. I’d done my normal over the shoulder blind spot check, and didn’t see a small light coloured car in my new blind spot. Luckily they braked in time. My next car will be red! Or is yellow the safest colour now? My car’s bright green, but all two times someone crashed into me, they didn’t see me.