Northern Ireland, and Belfast in particular, has seen considerable growth in the number of accident management companies providing replacement vehicles, repairs, recovery and other assistance following a car accident.

This growth reflects the legitimate role these businesses can play. A well-run accident management company can arrange prompt vehicle recovery, keep a motorist mobile and coordinate repairs while liability is being investigated. It can also assist insurers by presenting organised evidence, providing regular updates and progressing the vehicle-damage claim efficiently.

However, the accident management model is not without criticism. Hire charges can accumulate quickly, delays in repairs can extend claims and an apparently straightforward car crash can develop into expensive litigation. Insurers are entitled to investigate whether a replacement vehicle was reasonably required, whether the daily rate was recoverable and whether the period of hire could have been reduced or even whether any credit hire agreement is properly enforeable.

Anyone considering setting up an accident management company in Northern Ireland must therefore seek to establish a business that is commercially viable, properly documented and capable of withstanding scrutiny from insurers, solicitors and the courts.

Lacey Solicitors acts in motor claims for insurers, accident management companies, other businesses and individual motorists. This experience gives us a practical understanding of what a ‘good’ accident managment company looks like and how to ensure a collaborative approach with insurance companies ensuring a smoother process for the AMCs customers.

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What Does an Accident Management Company Do?

 

An accident management company assists motorists with the practical consequences of a road traffic accident. Depending on its model, agreements with customers and experience, it may:

• Recover the damaged vehicle;
• Arrange secure storage of the vehicle;
• Obtain a motor assessor’s report addressing the damage, repair costs and roadworthiness;
• Organise repairs through a reputable local repair garage;
• Provide a replacement vehicle while the damaged vehicle is off the road;
• Deal with pre-accident valuations and vehicle write-offs;
• Communicate with insurers regarding indemnity, liability and payment;
• Preserve evidence relating to the accident; and
• Introduce the motorist to an independent solicitor where legal advice is required.

Some companies provide a complete post-accident service. Others specialise in particular parts of the market, such as taxis, motorcycles, prestige cars, vans or commercial vehicles.

The services offered will determine the company’s financial position, insurance requirements, contractual arrangements and regulatory position.

Decide What Type of Accident Management Company You Intend to Operate

Establishing an accident management company is an exciting prospect, but our advice is always to avoid putting the cart before the horse.

Too often, we have to decline instructions from individuals or newly established businesses who assume that owning a fleet of vehicles, or having access to replacement vehicles, is enough to establish and operate a successful accident management company.

In our experience, one of the most common mistakes made by new entrants is purchasing a fleet of vehicles before fully considering how the wider business will operate. A fleet may be an important asset, but it is only one part of a much larger operation.

Before purchasing vehicles or accepting the first customer, prospective owners should carefully consider:

• Whether the business will provide credit hire;
• Whether it will provide or fund credit repairs;
• Whether replacement vehicles will be owned, leased or sourced through third-party providers;
• How vehicle recovery will be arranged and which categories of damaged vehicle can be accommodated;
• Where damaged vehicles will be stored, including whether facilities are suitable for electric vehicles;
• Which categories of replacement vehicle will be available;
• Whether licensed taxis will be supplied and, if so, whether taxi meters will also be provided;
• Whether the business will operate exclusively in Northern Ireland or extend into other jurisdictions;
• How customers will be sourced and how the business will generate a sustainable flow of instructions;
• Who will be responsible for pursuing outstanding hire, repair, recovery and storage charges; and
• How the business will respond when liability is disputed or payment is delayed or refused.

Many of the new entrants who approach us already have an established presence in the motor trade. They may operate a dealership, repair garage or recovery business, or have access to a readily available fleet of vehicles.

That experience can provide a valuable commercial foundation. However, operating an accident management company involves a different set of legal, financial and operational considerations. Success requires more than simply having vehicles available to hire.

The distinction should be reflected from the outset in the business plan, staff training, credit hire agreements, claims-handling procedures, funding arrangements and insurance cover.

The key is to establish the business model before committing significant capital. A carefully structured accident management operation is better placed to manage risk, control expenditure and build a sustainable business than one that begins with a fleet but without a clear plan for how that fleet will generate and recover revenue.

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Are Accident Management Companies Regulated in Northern Ireland?

 

As at September 2026, there is no regulator responsible for licensing a business merely because it provides accident management services in Northern Ireland unlike other jurisdictions.

The Financial Conduct Authority has confirmed that claims management companies carrying on claims-management activities in Northern Ireland are outside its claims-management regulatory perimeter. This differs from the position in England, Scotland and Wales.

That does not mean that an accident management company operating in Northern Ireland is entirely unregulated.

The legal position depends upon what the business actually does rather than the name it gives itself. An accident management company may still be affected by the legislation governing consumer hire, consumer credit, insurance distribution, data protection, electronic marketing and consumer contracts.

When FCA Authorisation May Be Required

FCA authorisation may be required where the business:

• Enters into or administers regulated consumer hire agreements;
• Undertakes consumer-credit or credit-broking activities;
• Arranges or advises upon insurance;
• Carries on insurance-distribution activities;
• Provides regulated claims-management services in Great Britain; or
• Conducts another regulated financial activity.

Whether a particular hire agreement is regulated will depend upon its terms and the circumstances in which it is entered into.

A Northern Ireland accident management company should obtain an assessment before commencing business. It should not assume that all its activities fall outside FCA regulation simply because the company has a Belfast address or operates mainly in Northern Ireland.

Expanding into the Republic of Ireland

Lacey Solicitors handles credit hire claims in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland on behalf of both insurers and accident management companies.

Ireland is a small island, and it may make commercial sense for an established Northern Ireland accident management company to develop a network of repairers, recovery operators and replacement-vehicle providers in the Republic. Credit hire litigation in the Republic remains less developed than in Northern Ireland, however, and the same legal or procedural assumptions should not automatically be applied in both jurisdictions.

Expansion should therefore be planned carefully. The company will need to consider:

• The law governing its customer agreements;
• Differences in the law of champerty in both NI and ROI;
• The appropriate jurisdiction for disputes;
• Insurance coverage in the Republic of Ireland;
• Vehicle registration and licensing requirements;
• VAT and tax treatment;
• Data transfers and customer privacy;
• The applicable court procedures; and
• How outstanding charges will be recovered.

Lacey Solicitors has offices in Belfast and Dublin, and members of our team are qualified to act in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. We can therefore provide joined-up advice to accident management companies operating on an all-island basis.

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Establish the Business Properly

 

Most accident management businesses operate through a private limited company.

The company will require:

• A suitable company name;
• A registered office;
• A registered email address;
• Appropriately appointed directors and shareholders;
• Registration for the relevant taxes; and
• A suitable business bank account.

Operating through a limited company creates a separate legal entity, but it does not remove every risk faced by its directors or shareholders.

The structure should reflect how the business will be funded, who will own the vehicles, who will enter into the customer agreements and which entity will pursue the charges. These issues are considerably easier to address before trading begins than after the company has built a substantial book of outstanding hire claims.

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Build a Defensible Credit Hire Model

 

This is an area in which Lacey Solicitors can provide particular assistance. We are involved at the coal face of credit hire litigation in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Credit hire can provide an important service to a motorist who reasonably requires a replacement vehicle but cannot as a matter of priorities pay for one immediately.

It is not, however, an automatic entitlement following every non-fault accident.

The customer ordinarily enters into an agreement under which payment of the hire charges is deferred while recovery is pursued from the responsible driver or insurer. Whether those charges are ultimately recovered will depend upon the accident circumstances, the customer’s need for a replacement vehicle, the applicable rate, the duration of hire, the contractual documentation and the supporting evidence.

It is not a ‘free car’ or ‘courtesy car.’

A massive hire invoice is not necessarily a valuable asset. If the agreement is defective, the customer did not need a vehicle or the period of hire was unnecessarily extended owing to poor claims practices, some or all of the charges may be disputed.

Lacey Solicitors acts for both insurers and accident management companies in credit hire claims. This gives our lawyers a balanced understanding of the issues from each side of the litigation.

We provide training to insurers on the investigation and defence of credit hire claims. We also train accident management companies on the evidence they will be expected to produce, the insurance requirements, the needs to properly assess an individuals circumstances, the questions insurers are likely to ask and the issues that may arise if the claim proceeds to court.

Our work includes:

• Drafting and reviewing credit hire agreements;
• Advising on credit repair, recovery and storage documentation;
• Developing customer onboarding procedures;
• Assessing evidence of need;
• Reviewing hire rates and periods;
• Preparing claims for presentation to insurers;
• Responding to requests for information and disclosure;
• Advising on disputed or reduced offers;
• Training claims handlers and management teams; and
• Conducting credit hire litigation in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

We have substantial experience working with established accident management companies throughout both jurisdictions.  Our aim is to ensure that legitimate services are properly documented, reasonably provided and capable of being proved to ensure a collaborative approach to claims.

That approach protects the accident management company, provides transparency for the motorist and allows an insurer to assess the claim on its proper merits on behalf of their policyholder.

Lacey Solicitors manages the credit hire claim from the outset. Our network of motor assessors across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is well known to insurers nad are often on panel to some insurers in this jurisdiction.  That means tha they are both experienced and qualifed in giving evidence before the courts. Their reports are integral to establishing the vehicle’s condition, roadworthiness, repair period and resulting period of loss of use which goes directly to the recoverability of any hire sum.

We create and most importantly, control, a clear timeline. We take the customer’s instructions, appoint the assessor, arrange the inspection, review the report with the customer, submit it to the third-party insurer and chase regularly for a response. This allows us to stand over the claimed loss-of-use dates and reduces the scope for disputes about avoidable delay.

We also provide guidance and training on setting fair and recoverable hire rates. This includes consideration of:

• The General Terms of Agreement;
• Rates available in the local market;
• Comparable Basic Hire Rates; and
• Our own Basic Hire Rate reports.

The objective is to establish rates that are fair, reasonable and commercially defensible—not inflated.

Impecuniosity is considered by our office at an early stage. We train accident management companies to understand what impecuniosity means, when it may be relevant and what financial evidence could be required if it is relied upon.

By controlling the evidence, rate and duration from the beginning, we place legitimate credit hire claims in the strongest possible position for presentation to insurers or, where necessary, the court.

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Prepare Clear Credit Hire Agreements

 

Credit Hire agreements should be drafted for the particular business. Copying an agreement used by another accident management company is risky because its services,  allowcances and payment structure may be different.

Separate documentation may be required for:

• Credit hire;
• Credit repair;
• Recovery and storage;
• Engineer’s fees;
• Insurance-related products;
• Data protection;
• Cancellation rights; and

Explain the Customer’s Responsibility

Ensuring that the customer fully understands the terms of the agreement, strengthens its enforceability and reduces the risk of disputes at a later stage.  We explain;

• The daily hire rate;
• When the hire charges begin and end;
• Whether the customer remains liable for payment;
• What happens if recovery from the other insurer is unsuccessful;
• The obligation to provide truthful information;
• The possibility of financial disclosure;
• The possibility of attending court;
• The obligation to cooperate with the claim;
• Vehicle-use restrictions; and
• Any cancellation rights.

Describing credit hire as automatically “free” or guaranteeing that the responsible insurer will pay often misleads the customer.

Even where liability for the collision is admitted, the insurer may still dispute the need for hire, the class of vehicle, the daily rate or the duration.

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Build Constructive Relationships With Insurers

 

An accident management company and a third-party insurer will not always agree. Nevertheless, professional communication can reduce unnecessary disputes and costs.

Early notification should provide sufficient information to allow the insurer to investigate the claim. Depending on the circumstances, this may include:

• The accident circumstances;
• Vehicle details;
• The customer’s need for a replacement vehicle;
• The type of vehicle supplied;
• The applicable rate;
• The condition of the damaged vehicle;
• Repair or total-loss information; and
• Relevant supporting documents.

Do Not Mistake Robustness for Obstruction

An accident management company is entitled to protect its legitimate position. Equally, an insurer is entitled to investigate the claim and challenge unsupported charges on behalf of their policyholder.

Insurers have a duty to protect their policyholders and fully investigate claims.  They are not being obstructive and they are entitled to challenge claims where they see fit.  Our office knows first hand that there are bad practices from other accident management companies that insurers often wish to explore with a newly established accident managment company to make sure that similar issues do not arise.

Refusing reasonable information such as insurance details of the hire car, allowing avoidable delay such as delays in offing hire when PAV payment raised or treating every request as tactical obstruction is unlikely to advance the claim and will serve only to delay this claim and future claims with that particular insurer.  Indeed insurers share information and so it is important to assist where possible.

The strongest cases are generally those in which:

• The hire documentation is clear;
• Need was properly assessed;
• The rate is reasonable and can be explained;
• The hire period was actively monitored by the solicitor and can be proven;
• Updates were provided promptly; and
• The underlying liability evidence is complete.

This approach benefits the customer, the accident management company and the insurer and it is through this approach that Lacey Solicitors excel.

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Establish a Reliable Supplier Network

 

The company may need relationships with:

• Recovery operators;
• Storage facilities;
• Repair garages;
• Insurers;
• Motor assessors;
• Vehicle suppliers;
• Fleet insurers;
• Solicitors

Each relationship should be documented.

Monitor Repair Progress

Repair delays can substantially increase hire charges. The accident management company should obtain:

• Prompt estimates;
• Evidence of parts orders;
• Regular progress reports;
• Notice of additional damage;
• Realistic completion dates; and
• Properly itemised invoices.

An insurer should not be expected to pay additional hire charges caused by inactivity or poor communication between the accident management company and its chosen repairer.

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Comply With Data Protection Law

 

An accident management company often processes driving licences, insurance records, financial information, accident details and, in some cases, medical information.

The company should determine whether it must register with the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Its data-protection arrangements should include:

• A privacy notice;
• An identified lawful basis for processing;
• Additional protection for health information;
• Data-sharing agreements;
• Secure access controls;
• Retention and deletion policies;
• A data-breach procedure;
• Procedures for data-subject requests;
• Supplier due diligence; and
• Staff training.

Information should not move automatically between garages, accident management companies, solicitors and medical agencies without a lawful basis and appropriate safeguards.

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Manage Relationships With Solicitors Properly

 

An accident management company should not provide legal advice unless it is authorised and qualified to do so.

Where legal advice is required, the customer should be referred to a solicitor and the customer must remain free to choose their own legal representative.

Any relationship with a solicitor should respect:

• The solicitor’s professional independence;
• The customer’s freedom of choice;
• Confidentiality;
• Data-protection requirements;
• Potential conflicts of interest;
• Settlement authority; and
• The distinction between the customer’s interests and the company’s invoice.

Recognise Potential Conflicts

The solicitor acts for the motorist, not for the accident management company.

A conflict may arise where:

• The customer wishes to accept an offer;
• The hire company considers the offer inadequate;
• The customer does not want to provide financial records to substantiate impeccuniosity;
• The customer disputes liability for the hire charges;
• The company wants proceedings issued; or
• The likely recovery is insufficient to discharge every claim.

No arrangement should interfere with the solicitor’s independent duties.

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Prepare for Insurer Scrutiny and Litigation

 

A credit hire claim should be prepared on the assumption that it may have to be proved in court.

The company should preserve:

• The signed agreements;
• The electronic-signature audit trail;
• Vehicle records;
• Rate evidence;
• Need assessments;
• Repair records;
• Insurer correspondence;
• Hire-monitoring notes; and
• Payment information.

A company representatives should also be capable of explaining the business’s procedures and the basis of its charges.

Consider Wider Costs Risks

The financial risk is not always limited to non-payment of the company’s invoice.

Depending on the jurisdiction and the company’s involvement in litigation, an opposing party may seek a costs order against a credit hire company that funds, controls or is the principal beneficiary of unsuccessful proceedings.

The company should obtain advice before exercising control over litigation or encouraging proceedings primarily to recover its own charges.

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Obtain Appropriate Insurance 

 

Depending on the business model, appropriate cover may include:

• Fleet motor insurance;
• Employers’ liability insurance;
• Public liability insurance;
• Professional indemnity or errors and omissions cover;
• Cyber insurance;
• Directors’ and officers’ insurance;
• Premises and equipment insurance;
• Business interruption cover; and
• Legal expenses cover.

Most employers in Northern Ireland must have employers’ liability insurance. The wider insurance programme should be reviewed whenever the company introduces a new service or vehicle class.

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Market the Business Responsibly

 

A new accident management company in Belfast or elsewhere in Northern Ireland must explain clearly what it offers.

Its website and advertising should distinguish the company from:

• The customer’s insurer;
• The responsible driver’s insurer;
• A firm of solicitors; and

Marketing should not guarantee that:

• Every service will be free;
• Every customer is entitled to a like-for-like vehicle;
• Liability will be admitted;
• Every hire invoice will be recovered;
• Compensation will be paid; or

A credible accident company should instead compete and market itself through prompt service, transparent agreements and effective case management—not unrealistic promises.

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Accident Management Company Start-Up Checklist

 

Before accepting the first car crash claim, the business should have:

• A defined service and geographical scope;
• A realistic business plan;
• Sufficient working capital;
• An incorporated business structure;
• Tax and VAT advice;
• A regulatory-perimeter assessment;
• ICO registration where required;
• Legally drafted customer agreements;
• A compliant privacy framework;
• Appropriate insurance;
• A documented assessment of need;
• Defensible hire rates;
• Daily hire monitoring;
• A complaints procedure;
• Trained claims handlers; and
• A plan for disputed and irrecoverable charges.

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How Lacey Solicitors Credit Hire Lawyers Can Help

 

Lacey Solicitors is an insurance law firm acting in road traffic, credit hire and accident-related claims.

We understand the accident management industry from more than one perspective. We advise in claims involving motorists and accident management companies, but we also act for insurers scrutinising hire, repair, recovery and storage charges.

That experience allows us to identify the issues that commonly result in claims being challenged:

• Poorly drafted agreements;
• Inadequate evidence of need;
• Unsupported daily rates;
• Excessive hire periods;
• Repair delays;
• Regulatory uncertainty;
• Conflicts between customers and service providers; and
• Insufficient evidence to prove liability.

Lacey Solicitors are against artificial or inflated claims. We seek to help establish lawful arrangements, produce clear documentation and promote the efficient resolution of legitimate losses.

We can assist with:

• Reviewing the proposed business model;
• Assessing potential regulatory requirements;
• Drafting credit hire and credit repair agreements;
• Reviewing recovery and storage documentation;
• Preparing supplier and referral agreements;
• Developing claims-handling procedures;
• Advising on disputed charges;
• Training claims handlers;
• Engaging with insurers; and
• Conducting or defending credit hire litigation.

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A Sustainable Accident Management Business

 

There is a legitimate place for professionally operated accident management companies in Northern Ireland and elsewhere.

The most sustainable businesses will not be those that simply accumulate the largest invoices. They will be those that provide a necessary service, charge defensible rates, minimise avoidable delay and preserve the evidence required to justify each claim.

A fair and properly documented claim is more likely to be resolved without unnecessary litigation. That is in the interests of the motorist, the accident management company and the insurer.

Anyone considering setting up an accident management company in Northern Ireland should obtain legal, regulatory, insurance and financial advice before trading and reach out to Ruaidhrí Austin Partner in charge of credit hire.