so this past sunday im driving home after having brunch with my mom and some prick decides he wants to make a utrun from the right lane while im about 4 feet behind him in the left lane. one moment im looking at open road in front of me and the next second there is a car perpendicular to me. I slam on the brakes and end up hitting him. not even mario andretti could have avoided it. so we pull over into the McD's parking lot and this kid gets out. his dad, whos benz he was driving, was in a acura behind both of us when it happend. my car is still drivable but the front right panels and headlights are all smashed up. the benz has a couple of minor scrathes and dings around the rear driver side tire well and the tire itself is now slanted at a 15 degree angle. it had to be towed. passat 1 benz 0 so my claims adjuster comes out and takes pictures, a cop comes out and takes down our info. agrees that the other driver was at faul based on our stories and the fact that the damage could only have happend based on him pulling an illegal uturn. the cop gives the other driver a citation and lectures him. With me we just chatted about stuff. very cool cop. so today i finally get a letter from the other guys dads insurance informing me that based on their records im the one at fault and need to make payment. how is this possible? ive got the guys address from his DL and have nothing to do for 3 weeks until school starts. im thinking of making this guys life miserable.
The insurance company doesnt have a leg to stand on and they know it. The cop cited the kid for an illegal turn and that is notated on the police report. Call them and try to starighten it out first. If they dont see the truth and still want to make things difficult..call a lawyer. Don't lower yourself to harrassing the kid or the kid's family over this. They arent making the decision, it is the insurance company's call.
im not gonna harrass the kid, i was just playing. im not too pissed of about this cause i cant fathom how they would win. im just pissed cause i was expecting the letter to say it ok for you to go ahead and get your car fixed now and we will be paying.
Hell, the kid's family probably doesn't even know that their insurance is even doing this. Sounds like they are bluffing to see if you'll flinch. You should let your adjuster handle it. That's what they do. That's what you pay for every month when you send that bill off.
I had a problem similar to this. The cop gave the other guy a ticket and his insurance wouldn't pay for the damage on my car. I called like three times and they still said they wouldn't pay me. I heard about this plac in Austin where you can call and complain about insurance companies. I forgot what it's called. Long story short, I called the insurance company one last time and threathen that I would report them. They still said no, but called back like 5 minutes later that they will send a check for the damages. Damn Insurance Depot!!
heh...oh...ok I understand what you mean. I would be highly pissed if it was obviously someone else's fault, and I found out that I would have to fight the insurance co. to get them to payup. You might want to contact one of our resident lawyers and see if they are interested in working with ya on this.(you know, keep it in the family)
im all about keeping it in the family...but since im in seattle i think it might make it a little too difficult. codells wifes company is selling my house in houston for me.
Actually, codell used to be an insurance adjuster (I think) so maybe he can give you the best advice.
ugh..point taken. Actually, id2k has it right.. call your insurance company and get them to do the talkin. Afterall, if the other guys insurance doesnt cover your damage, your insurance will have to, and Im sure they dont want to do that.
That's just nuts! Completely crazy. I dunno where any of y'all have time to find this crap. get it? crap. Ok. I quit now.
here's the answer to this specific instance: the kid drives a Mercedes and the dad is an Acura? it's about protecting daddy's exposure to your potential lawsuit that they are worried about. of course they will deny it and say it was your fault, but they will also settle. figure out what your number is, tell them it's that number or a lawsuit, and don't tell them anything else. A letter would be best, and be sure to write "offer of settlement only" on it at the top. Don't threaten, don't try to convince them or sell them, just tell them "it's a check for $3500 (or whatever your number is) or a lawsuit against Mr. Mercedes and his daddy." Be sure to mention that you have other damages, but that you are willing to settle now for this number. You must keep your options for a claim for other damages open. Be sure to send a copy to the father and son. The dad is the one who can tell the insurance company he wants this matter settled. He's the key. Make him feel the heat, and he'll probably see the light. He does not want to get sued over this, and he does want it settled, unless he's a fool.
on second thought, you'd better make your demand number about $1000 more than you will really take. that gives the adjuster a gummy bear. He or she will want to negotiate you down some, so give it to them. Start higher.
R3K and id2K are absolutely right. Once I was rear-ended at a stop light. The light was red, I was stopped for at least 5-10 seconds and a car hit me from behind. Clearly the other car was at fault. I got the other driver's insurance information and gave it to my insurance company. My insurance company handled the whole thing.
I would agree with this. Unfortunately, insurance companies do their own investigations and sometimes, could care less who was cited. A ticket is not an automatic acceptance of liability on the carrier's behalf. However, if taken to court, they would probably lose IMO. My advice would be to file a claim with your own carrier and let them subrogate on your behalf. That basically means they will go after the other insurance company for you. You obviously have to pay your $500 deductible (or whatever amount it is). However, $500 is probably cheaper than paying a lawyer to do what your insurance company will do for free (fight the fight for you). If the subrogation is successful, then youll get your ded back.
thanks codell...i have to wait 4 more minutes before my claims representative gets to work before i can call her. ill tell her to subrogate on my behalf. sub·ro·gate ( P ) Pronunciation Key (sbr-gt) tr.v. sub·ro·gat·ed, sub·ro·gat·ing, sub·ro·gates To substitute (one person) for another. everyones job is to use subrogate in a sentence today. well just called my claim rep and she said she got a letter from state farm saying mr Luu, who was the father of the guy who hit me, said i rearended him. no mention of his son driving and the citation given to him was made to their insurance company.
