A West Australian woman is in a battle with her insurer and a hire car company after her vehicle was written off in an accident involving a foreign national.

Key points: Marni Devlin says her car was written off when it was involved in a crash with a tourist in a hire car

Marni Devlin says her car was written off when it was involved in a crash with a tourist in a hire car When she contacted her insurer, they refused her claim because her daughter was not a nominated driver

When she contacted her insurer, they refused her claim because her daughter was not a nominated driver The rental company says it will only process a claim if the customer driving the car provides details of the accident

Marni Devlin's daughters Averlii, 18, and Hayley, 16, were driving their mother's ute back from boarding school last month when they were involved in a collision at a cross intersection in Mogumber, north-east of Perth.

"They rolled out at the last minute and we have hit them," Averlii said. "But as we've hit them, I have sort of swerved and only hit the bonnet instead of the driver's side.

"The back end of their car has [then] swung around and hit the whole passenger side and we have gone off the road."

The young women were not seriously injured but were admitted to hospital for shock and whiplash.

Ms Devlin says her daughters could have died when a tourist driving a hire car failed to stop at a give way sign. ( Supplied: Marni Devlin )

'They are saying there is no record'

After the accident Ms Devlin contacted her insurance company, HBF, but was told it would not handle her claim because her daughter was not a nominated driver.

"I rang a number of times [in the past] to make sure the ute was covered for her driving it, and I was told it was," she said.

"They are saying there is no record of me ever mentioning my daughter and her L plates or her P plates and everything like that."

When Ms Devlin contacted the other driver's car rental company, Redspot, it denied liability for the accident because the driver had not provided details of the accident.

She said she was told to pursue the driver at fault to recover the $25,000 in losses for her own vehicle.

"I said, 'Can I have the driver's contact details?', and they said no — due to privacy they cannot do that," Ms Devlin said.

"I've applied for a Freedom of Information, but police have informed me that I will pretty much get a piece of paper with scrubbed-out names."

The two sisters have had to see a chiropractor regularly following the accident. ( Supplied: Marni Devlin )

Ms Devlin said the situation had put her back financially and she was relying on a work vehicle to get around.

She has referred the matter to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).

'Have proof to support your claim'

AFCA lead insurance ombudsman John Price said it received a large number of complaints about motor vehicle insurance each year, with many concerning nominated drivers.

"It is important to ensure the policy covers the relevant drivers of the vehicle," he said.

"Some policies will cover the named driver and any other driver, while there are some policies that only cover anyone named on the policy."

Mr Price said nominating drivers could be done over the phone but that customers should keep their own records.

"Sometimes we have people say they've contacted an insurer on a particular date or something, but they don't have any phone records to show any contact with the insurer," he said.

"It is important you have some sort of proof to support your claim — if it doesn't exist, it makes our job a bit harder."

Both cars were badly damaged in the crash. ( Supplied: Marni Devlin )

Hard for consumers to understand

Ms Devlin said she had higher expectations of her insurance company.

"I am absolutely disgusted. If the situation had been any worse, I would be dealing with hospitalised children," she said.

"I am at breaking point now — and my kids are safe."

Mr Price said consumers should refute their insurance if their claim was refused.

"The first thing we recommend is that people go back to their insurer and request that the insurer conducts a review of their decision," he said.

"If the person remains unhappy at the end of that, they can refer the matter to AFCA."

Around 87 per cent of matters before AFCA resolve without the need for a decision.

Mr Price said consumers must read their policy carefully, but it could often be difficult to understand.

"There was a report released by ASIC in the last day or two that really puts disclosure across the board as being a serious issue and something that consumers really do not understand the complicated nature of many insurance documents," he said.

"It's understanding the basics that is most important for people and just making sure that the policy is fit for purpose."

Mr Price said he had not come across any disputes with hire car companies.

"I don't know why a hire car company wouldn't bring a claim if they've got the details of it, because the beneficiary of the policy would be the hire car company."

Hire car company pursuing tourist

In a statement, a spokeswoman for Redspot said the customer involved had not provided accident details, but the company was working to verify the party at fault and determine liability.

She said if its customer was at fault and met the relevant contractual obligations, it would indemnify the customer for third-party losses.

A spokesman for HBF said Ms Devlin's policy did not cover her daughter, but that the case had been raised with underwriters IAG and CGU to be handled through its formal internal dispute resolution process.

He said the company was reviewing past conversations with Ms Devlin and would also be contacting police and the hire car company to help identify the other driver and recover losses from the accident.