First off, there was very little damage, and no one was injured. I am extremely thankful for that!
Anyway, when the accident happened, the passenger in the other car tried to say I was at fault, and they called the police. The police came out and wrote up the accident. The officer did tell me that he was listing the other person at fault (they did not yield to oncoming traffic.... other drivers were letting them cross, but I couldn't see it.... I was in the left turn lane).
ETA: Details.... I was in a (northbound) left turn lane, they were coming out of a convenence store, crossing over the northbound lane AND the turn lane, trying to go southbound. The store is on the corner, and traffic backs up there frequently. The drivers in the northbound lane were letting her cross... and she entered the turn lane and hit my front right bumper. The officer said that even though someone was letting her cross, she STILL needed to yield to oncoming traffic (me). Due to the cars, I didn't see her coming until it was too late. This happened maybe 30 feet from the intersection. I hit the brakes as soon as I saw her car, and was driving slowly to begin with.
This happened Saturday.. I picked up the police report on Monday, got the insurance information (the officer said we didn't need to exchange information since he would put it all in the report), and called their insurance Monday evening.
Well, the other person has NOT called the accident in to their insurance, and despite the insurance company calling them repeatedly, they are not answering... and the other insurance company says they cannot proceed on the claim without the insured's statement..... I faxed the police report to their insurance company, and also sent them the photos that we took of the scene of the accident.
I get the feeling that they are trying to get out of it by ignoring their insurance company... I'm just really frustrated with it all and don't know what to do at this point.
I've called our insurance company, but we carry liability only (we tend to have old cars... this car is a 2000), so our insurance won't do anything about it.
ETA.... if it ends up being my fault, that's fine.... I'll let my insurance handle it... I wouldn't try to weasel out of it. (I don't see that happening, though.)
Any suggestions?
Thanks for the suggestions so quickly... I am out of town now, but I figure I will give it until Monday (when I get home), and If I haven't gotten any response from their insurance company, I'll sent them a certified letter (return receipt requested) stating that if they don't contact the insurance company by a certain date (say 2 weeks) I will be pursuing the matter in small claims court.
The other company (a very reputable company, by the way) says that they cannot proceed with the claim until they get the statement from their insured..... sheesh! I will also be talking to a local agent for that company, and see if they have any suggestions.
I'm afraid if I wait too long, they will move ... I'm assuming I have the correct contact information.... their d/l may not have their current address as it it..... sheesh!
ETA Again... if anyone is still watching this post. I just called their insurance company, and since the police report DOES list them at fault, and they have not been able to get the insured to contact them, they will accept responsibility and pay the claim. An adjuster will be out in the next few days to look at the car. YIPPEE!!!!!
You have the other party's information in the report as well, right? Send them a certified letter giving them a specific time frame to respond to their insurance company. If by that date the insurance company can not move forward because they have not responded, you will take them to court.
Every state/insurance company has laws/guidelines in place as to their timeline to handle claims. If they don't handle it within the time frame, you could accuse them of acting in bad faith. Even if their insured never calls them back, they will still have to either settle or deny the claim. If you've given them the police report, they'll use that to determine liability and if their insured is at fault.
If they are taking too long, file a complaint with the TX Department of Insurance before you take them to court. All insurance companies take those complaints very seriously and you'll more than likely get your issue resolved much faster with no legal fees/court costs. If after the complaint, the claim still isn't settled to your satisfaction, then you can look at options to take them to court.
Really? That's all you have to do to avoid the claim and responsibility is not answer the phone when the insurance company calls? That's not what happened to me! Something sounds weird here, of course I'm no insurance pro. I agree with the other moms, sent them a statement that by such and such date if they don't cooperate then you will take them to court.
They can't dodge it forever.. it's going to suck for you until they can finally get them on the phone and it just looks really bad for them that they have not only not called in and let them know about it but have been refusing to talk to them about it as well.. You have the police report and it's obviously going to be covered under their insurance.. call the company back and ask what the policy is when they can't get a statement, it may be that they'll wait 30 days and if they can't obtain a statement then they'll proceed with the information on the police report.. just don't freak out, you won't get screwed! Good luck!
That is true...their insurance won't do anything about it unless their insured person calls and reports it to them...to get their side of the story. Happened to me once...just so happened the other guy was a Marine...and I found out what company he was in and called his Company Commander...that took care of it real quick!!!
If you don't get immediate help and response from this company, call and file a complaint with the insurance commissioner for the state. They are on the hook no matter what. Even if their insured refuses a statement, they are still on the hook. They can stall, but they can not ignore you.
There is no way it's your fault for one. They will frustrate you and go slow. That's the job of the insurance company. I also bet they will try and total your car. Being as old as the car is. They will be looking at Kelly Blue book values. You need to collect as many advertisements for cars your make and model as possible so you have many prices listed for when they come in with a low offer. If you have maintenance records to back up that the car is in good shape, most people are unaware that they are REQUIRED to make sure you have a car that is equal or better to the one you have. So get mileages listed on any cars of the same make and model being sold. Often the damage looks small when it's not.
Don't let it go, keep contacting their insurance company, and if something does not happen soon, consider a lawyer as well. I agree, they are just trying to get out of paying.
I am a little confused about how the accident happened. If you were making a left and they were making a left how did you hit each other? If you went straight from the left turn lane it is actually your fault but I digress.
Without full coverage you don't have use of the insurance company. You have to sue the people directly, on your own, then they can pay out of pocket or submit it to their insurance company. Normally with full coverage your insurance company fixes your car and then sues the other party or as it usually is their insurance company.
The same thing happened to me. Other driver at fault and not responding to their insurance carrier. I have a $500 deductible and suprisingly didn't have rental car coverage. If my insurance pays, then I have to pay my deductible before I can get the car out of the shop. AND since I don't have rental car coverage. have to pay for the rental car out of my pocket. Then I wait to see if and when their insurance company reimburses me. Needless to say, I now have rental car coverage,. but have not gotten my car fixed because I can't afford the $500 deductible. Fortunately the damage was very minor and hardly noticeable so I just live with it.
I had this same issue-someone backed into me in a parking lot. The driver was the nephew of the insured who was out of the country. They couldn't contact the insured because- he was out of the country. It took a quick letter from a lawyer friend and they paid up right away. As my lawyer said, if they could really get away with not paying because clients were out of the country-everyone that was in an accident would be sent on a trip. Cheaper for the insurance companies.
Document everything. Keep copies. Record phone calls if you can-just be sure to say "I'm recording this phone call".
Grrrrr. Insurance accompanies drive me crazy. Necessary evil.
I too recently had an accident and have the same problem, although no police were called. The other party is not responding to their insurance company (it was their fault). My insurance company said, by law, they have to wait 30 days before proceeding with any claims. This gives all parties amply time to reply. Their insurance company is making every attempt to get the claim settled via sending emails, telephone calls and probably now letters. My suggestion to you is.... Be Patient!
Know this information, has made the whole process less frustrating.
S.
Ask for the other insurance company to give you a WRITTEN statement that they will not move on this until they talk to the other party. Get it all in writing. All of it!
Ask for a reference in the policy about everything they need to give you the money to fix your car.
Talk to your insurance co and ask them if they can help you with dealing with this company in any way.
Even though the other party hasn't turned it in, you have and there is a police report. Them not responding to their insurance company is between their insurance company and them. You should not be dealing them the other driver but their insurance company only...they should be the one to contact the other driver about their report (or lack thereof). Your insurance agent, even though you don't carry comprehesive, should be able to help you out with how to proceed.
If the police assigned blame, or actually even if there was no blame assigned, the other insurance company must make a determination no matter what to liability within a reasonable time. The only time this won't happen is if they are a low-tier company. The liability only high-risk companies are worthless--they never pay out, they have the best stall tactics in practice, and they truly will just ignore you. Forever. Even a lawyer won't get to them.
However, they have to process the claim even if they can't get a statement from their insured. I want to say it is 30 days or something. Call your insurance company for help if you need it, but if they stall too much, just get a lawyer. And go see the doctor as soon as possible after an accident, document everything, and never say anything on the phone to them. Ever. They are in the business of keeping their money, and not giving it away until after a pretty decent fight.
It appears to me that you should push your insurance company to get this claim settled. It should be their job even if you only have liability insurance.
That's my opinion anyway. I know my insurance company will do that for me.
Now, if there was "very little damage", what is the need to reach the other party's insurance company? If you are pursuing getting the bumper fixed at their expense, then keep after that company. I like the idea of a registered letter and _everything_ in writing. When you call, say you are going to record the conversation yourself; speak with that person's supervisor - you don't want a lowly phone answerer to give you a canned response so he/she can send you on your way.
Good luck and so glad no one was hurt!
Hi Malia,
I asked my husband about this, and he said that it shouldn't matter that the person hasn't called their insurance company. The fact that you have the police report is proof of their negligence. And your own company should be helping you if you can't get the other company to budge.
My husband said that the fact that you only carry liability doesn't have anything to do with it. Because neither insurance company is dealing fairly with you, you need to call the insurance commissioner.
After all this is taken care of, you ought to change insurance companies. You might save money using a company like yours, but the insurance isn't worth much if they don't do their job. We don't mind paying more for insurance in order to have a reputable company that is on our side, even when they have to pay for us.
My husband was hit by a guy who had "jack-leg" insurance. They wouldn't even send out an adjustor - my husband had to drive to him. They would only agree to fix the car by using certain places - these body shops only pay 50% of the hourly wage as the regular shops. We knew that the reason these workers will accept half a regular wage is because they are either not good or experienced at their job, or they are working illegally here.
We called our own insurance company, and they explained that if we wanted, they would handle it, and we could take our car where we wanted. We used our insurance company's approved list, found a wonderful place, and went ahead and paid our deductible. Our insurance paid the rest - the total bill was 3 times what the other place offered because, in addition to the low wage rates they cover, there was more damage underneath that they would have refused to pay to fix.
This process is called subrogation. What happens, Malia, is you front your deductible, and you let YOUR insurance people fight with the other company. That company might say no to paying, but what happens is, one of your insurance company's people hits one of theirs, and your insurance company refuses to pay THAT claim until your claim is paid TO THEM. THAT'S how they get their money. And as soon as they get it, they reimburse your deductible. That's what we did, and actually got our $1000 deductible back within a month or 6 weeks, if I am remembering right. (It was very quick.)
If your insurance company won't do this for you, then you shouldn't have a relationship with them. I don't have Allstate insurance, but I DO like their advertisements on TV about the guy who is always hitting everything (the Mayhem Guy) who says if you have an insurance company who you choose your own rate (or however they say it), you could be paying to fix your car yourself.
I would NOT let this go. You pay money every month to cover yourself. And this didn't happen in a parking lot where people usually have to pay to fix their own car. This accident was not your fault and you shouldn't let ANYONE weasel out of it, including your own insurance. However, you should be willing to let them subrogate - that's part of what you pay for in your monthly premiums.
Monday morning, if you haven't already, call your own insurance company and tell them that you will be making a complaint to the insurance commissioner about what is going on. You will start with a complaint about the other company. You want your own insurance to handle this by subrogation, and if you meet no resistance and your car is fixed through this, you will not have any reason to take your complaint with the insurance commission any further. They will understand what this means, that if they don't handle this for you, that you will add THEM to the complaint. I think this might help more than just telling them you'll take them to small claims court.
Good luck, and don't flinch.
Dawn
