I have a 1997 V40 2.0, 5-door estate. My car suffered a heavy collision in the rear from a vehicle behind while mine was stationary at the traffic lights. As a result there was considerable damage. Among other things, the central locking, which had worked fine before the accident, no longer worked. When I tried to lock the doors, it seemed to lock for a moment and then unlock again. I briefly mentioned the locking problem to my insurers when I rang to report the accident, and also mentioned it to the man who came to collect the car for repairs.
My car was scheduled to be brought back from the garage, when the garage suddenly cancelled the trip and mentioned a problem with the central locking. It sounds as if one (or all) of the doors do not lock. I have heard nothing which suggests that what is wrong is other than what I found to be at fault immediately after the accident, although there may be some difference, as I have not had a detailed description of the problem. It seems, reading between the lines, that the locking problem did not receive any attention from the garage until it was due back from the repairs and they appear not to have estimated for such work.
Unfortunately, my insurers are now saying that they doubt the central locking fault is related to the accident. They have proposed to return the car with the locking at fault. To me it seems obvious that the damage occurred at the time of the accident because that is precisely when the symptoms arose.
Does anyone have information which might help my argument? I am not at all technical. For example, can anyone confirm that a heavy collision in the rear might cause such symptoms?
I would be very grateful for any information.
Best wishes,
John