Car insurance question..wasn't my fault.?

jjjjjjjjj

If you have her insurance information, then use her insurance. It's doubtful that her insurance company will contest it, especially since you have a witness.

Additional: FYI, insurance company's are authorized to pay $500 above that of other accrued bills to anyone making a claim against one of their policy holders, if that person makes an issue of it. So you can get at least $500 more if you make a slight nuisance of yourself. Press the issue with them.

Oh, and always make a claim with the other person's insurance company, especially if they beg you not to.

la428282

Heres the thing.. when you go directly through the at fault parties carrier... they have every right to investigate before they do anything. Sometimes this can take longer then others.

What takes so long you ask? Well... first they have to determine coverage.. was the policy still valid? Was she listed on the policy?

Once they do this.. they have to determine liability.. this requires there driver to be cooperative.. if she isnt.. or says you were at fault.. it will take longer.

So.. you just need to decide whats worth more to you.. waiting... (and not complaining.. b/c they didnt do anything wrong and are trying to get this done for you) or paying a deductible.

If your insurance company does pay out.. they will attempt to get your money as well as theirs back from the at fault party and eventually pay you back.

And please dont listen tot he people on here who say "get a lawyer" honestly.. they are very uneducated in this department. I lawyer cant do anything in this situation and will only delay it longer.

ca_surveyor

OK this is going to echo some of the other comments but I disagree about the $1000.

1) Contact her insurance company and get their address.
2) Send a letter to them and to the other driver providing a copy of the estimate and making a formal demand for the total amount plus a reasonable estimate for rental costs while your car is being repaired. In the letter give them:
a) The location of where the car will be repaired
b) The dates when the auto can be inspected prior to any work being performed
c) A copy of the police report . (Which I presume will have the information about the witness and which places the blame on the other driver).

Send a copy to your insurance company and advise them that you will handle the matter at this stage but that you reserve the right to submit a claim later if you are unable to get a response from the other parties.

Remember.. the other driver owes you for the repair.. NOT the other drivers insurance company. They must represent her/him. So whatever you do.. you do it 'against' the other driver.

OK.. the insurance company should contact you promptly.. if not then you will need to wapnerize them (small claims court).

It is easy (and an educational experience)

1) Go to your local county (or parrish or whatever) offices and file the claim.. its simple to do.. File for the total that you expect to spend (not your time). That is generally the cost of the repair, the cost of the rental, and any personal items which were lost or damaged because of the accident - for example blood all over a new dress or damaged cd's etc..)

2) Have the other driver served with the legal papers. Mail a copy to the insurance company.

3) Get your witness statement notarized. Better still have the witness available on the court date. Court costs and costs related to the lawsuit are generally compensible so keep a separate record of those.

4) Get your estimates together.. better still have the repair shop show up to describe the damage to the vehicle and explain the costs and the time it will take to fix it. If he is not sure about other damage which might be discovered during the repair make SURE he notes that.

5) Call a couple of car rental places and prepare estimates for a rental of the same type of car..(you can not rent a Rolls if they dented your Yugo) for the period that the shop estimates. Claim an average value since the cheapest may not be available when you need it.

6) The insurance company will contact you somewhere along this road... maybe with an offer.. maybe not.. you can decide to accept it or to keep the court date going.... remember you are suing the driver not the insurance company.

7) Thats it.. take all this to court and clearly and calmly explain your case and present your witnesses.

8) The other driver will be there (or will lose) and the other driver can NOT be represented in court by a lawyer.. (not allowed in small claims). If you win, they can appeal but that is not likely because of the cost of the appeal being more then the $4 or $5 k.

don't worry.. from what you wrote... you will likely get the full amount BUT... that is ultimately up to you - if you settle, or the judge - if you go to court.

.

cheri h

get a lawyer and put some pressure on them

wizjp

Call her insurance company and file the claim. In these cases, the nice guy ALWAYS gets screwed. Of course her insurance wants you to use yours; they don't want to pay. Her fault; her insurance. Othewise, bet on not getting the deductable 1000 back.

Mopar Muscle Gal

after you contact her insurance company with info from police report, and contact your insurance company to authorize getting your car fixed, you get your car fixed , you pay for your deductible, contact her insurance company again , then her insurance company pays you back

thickhtowngurl

you should be using her insurance!!

SusieM

No doubt the easiest way to get insurance quotes is on the web.
Why would you waste your time on the phone calling around?
the last time i needed quotes on insurance i used one of these comparison sites and it was great.
this is the site i used and it was quick like less than 5 mins.
The last thing I want to do is listen to elevator music while waiting for a salesman.
Anyway I got good quotes and ended up saving money so I was happy.
So shop around and compare quotes which is easy on the net.
Good starting point is at this site.

http://insurance.deal4-you.com

Good luck.

PeppermintandPopcorn

When you call her insurance and they pay for your damages, then you will not need to use your deductible.

gymfreak

You need to call your insurance company and file the claim, they work for you so make them go after her company, that's what they are there for and what you pay them for. Never, never try to get around the system, it will always come back and bite you in the backside.

got2ofem

i would use hers, there not wanting to turn in a claim for some reason. like you said if you use yours you gotta crap the 1000 dollar deductible. you tried to her out and she poked you in the eye. if her company wont file a claim call the board of insurance and they should get them off their a@@.

I hate Comcast

You should have had the police come and file an accident report when it happened. Now, you really don't have any proof. I think 1000 is better than 4000 to be honest. If you have a good insurance company, they will get you more than just your deductible back also...

goldenlizzy04

Hi, I'm a licensed insurance agent in Texas. Do you have uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage on your policy? If so, it should lower your deductible to $250, and your insurance company will then subrogate against the other insurance company to get their money back! Good luck!

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