Back in September I was in a pretty minor car wreck and had to pay a portion of the rental car costs out of pocket. Now I'm trying to get reimbursed from the other driver's insurance company. They claim the repairs took too long and will only cover 5 of the 15 days I had to pay for. So, what are my options at this point to get reimbursed? I've talked to my insurance company and they aren't willing to do anything about it.
did you use a repair shop recommended by them? If so, then you have a case. If not, you'll have to negotiate - You have to be really firm but don't be a jerk cause that could backfire.
The be firm with the other agency and going higher up with your agency is good advice. For amounts this small, you really don't matter to either company. It comes down to making your hassling not worth it to them (whichever side), and just pay you the $100 for you to stop.
I had an issue with State Farm a number of years ago. My agent did not seem to want to help me at all. I got in touch with someone at their Austin regional office and my problem was resolved in a timely manner.
This is very common. All insurance companies estimate how long a repair should take and will cover a rental accordingly. Unless the shop can provide a legitimate reason why the repairs took longer than expected, they will stand their ground. I would start out by finding out directly from the shop why it took 15 days instead of 5. If there were delays with parts (they were ordered timely, but stock dictated a late arrival) or with the insurance appraiser, then the insurance should cover additional days. If the shop just flat out took too long and can't justify why, then you are going to be stuck working it out with the shop. Yes, shops do cover rental when they take too long so you may want to discuss directly with them. Your own insurance company is going to take the same stance as the at fault party. They will only pay for reasonable repair time.
The reason they gave me was because of shipping problems. They had a tire that was sent to the wrong place and a strut that was lost and had to be reshipped.
I would get details. If the delivery/lost parts issue had nothing to do with the shop, then you have case to get reimbursed by the insurance company but you will have to get documentation from the shop.
This happened to me one time and the shop who did the repairs covered some of the rental car expenses.
Contacting your agents boss, or any other agent will do nothing. The carrier is paying the claim, not the agent or his agency. Your best bet is to speak to the claims manager at whatever company you are insured with
Contacting the regional office of State Farm and a person above my agent certainly helped me get my situation resolved. While it may not help, how can you definitively say it won't?
Are you implying that your agent has a say in rather a claim is paid or not? Rather a claim is paid or not is determined by the contract between you and the carrier. Someone isn't going to deny a claim just because they feel like it. Any gray areas like in the OP's case would go through the claims department. Contacting your regional SALES office might have them make a phone call on your behalf, but its the same thing your agent would have done, or even you could have done yourself.
If it's not your fault, the other person's insurance company should cover all days of the rental car. You shouldn't have to pay for nada.
