Posted: Fri Aug 29, 2008 10:27 am Post subject: The other party hired an attorney against me, please help
Dear all,
I was in a minor fender-bender car accident earlier this year in January 2008. It was a wet and rainy day, when the car in front of me made a sudden stop, I stepped on my break as soon as I saw the front car stepped the break, however, my car still skidded and bumped the rear bumper of the front car.
The damage was minor, the other car's rear bumper was bent, and the grill and hood of my car was a little bent, there were 2 persons on the other car, the driver and another passenger, they came out of their car and we exchanged insurance information. No one was hurt and no police came.
The other driver and myself both reported to our own insurance carriers, and after investigation by adjusters, I was told that I am 100% at fault, I accept that I am at fault, and my insurance company said that they will take care of the rest, I have full coverage and I am in California.
But, last month when I renewed my auto insurance policy, of course my premium went up because of the accident and the fact that I am at fault, but my auto insurance agent also told me that my insurance company alreay paid for the other party's propery damage, but the other party is not willing to settle with the bodily injury part, the other party is claiming that they have neck and back pain and other sufferings due to the accident.
Today, I received a notice from my claim adjuster saying that the other driver and the other passenger has hired an attorney against me for bodily injury and request that I release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage, what should I do?
Do I have to release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage to the other driver's attorney?
Will my insurance company release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage to the other driver's attorney?
I understand that I am at fault, but it was really a minor accident, I thought the case was closed a few months ago, but now the other party got an attorney against me, will I be in big trouble or get myself into an excess judgement?
I recently purchased a house, I am scared that I will lose my properties in an excess judgement?
I am really upset, can someone please help?
Thanks a lot. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Hi all, I am not sure how my question got posted to the Health Insurance Forum, sorry, maybe I am not familiar with the functions of this site, can someone please help, thanks _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Welcome Niki, first try not to be so upset, these things happen a ton of times a day and are not at all uncommon...you won't lose you house...i can all but guarantee it..
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Today, I received a notice from my claim adjuster saying that the other driver and the other passenger has hired an attorney against me for bodily injury and request that I release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage, what should I do?
Ask your adjuster if you should release the information or not...It depends, really I personally NEVER release that information in the state I live it it is not required, and the only way I ever do, is if there are very low limits...are your limits say 25/50 or better?
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Do I have to release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage to the other driver's attorney?
this is state specific, but I'd say no, you do not have to, however, I would ask your adjuster their opinion and take it..
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Will my insurance company release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage to the other driver's attorney?
apparently not without your permission, thus the letter...
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I understand that I am at fault, but it was really a minor accident, I thought the case was closed a few months ago, but now the other party got an attorney against me, will I be in big trouble or get myself into an excess judgement?
Try not to worry, it is your adjuster/ins carriers job to settle all claims within your limits...this sounds like another small claim that someone is over inflating their injury trying to hit the 'ins lottery' sorry but I see it daily....
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I recently purchased a house, I am scared that I will lose my properties in an excess judgement?
Excess judgements are very very rare, and then usually only collected on if there is a very wealthy person...you're not going to lose your home...
Call your adjuster ask them what are the injurys, are they just soft tissue or is there actually other things wrong...what is the demand from the attorney if there is one yet, and what do they think they can settle the claim for, get their opinion whether or not you should release the limits information....your adjuster will get all the medical bills etc...and run some checks on the people to see if there is a pattern or if there were any prior injuries...
Let us know, and if we can be of any further help...I know you're scared, but trust me this happens a gazillion times a day....people attorney up thinking they will get more money for their injury....(really the attorney is the one that makes most of the money)...
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I am really upset, can someone please help?
I know you are, take a deep breath talk to your adjuster this should help you feel better, it's their job to protect you, and settle all claims within your limits that you are legally liable for..we're here to help let us know if you have any other questions, and what you find out from your adjuster...it'll be ok, really it will...sorry too if I sound alittle jaded, I just see, 'terrible'' injuries ( ) from a 200 buck rear cover repair...a full 50% of these are uninsured themselves... _________________ Have you been helped by a poster? Do you want to show your appreciation? YOU CAN !! Just simply click on the donate button and send them some coin!
How are you Lori? Thanks for your reply. Greatly Greatly Appreciated.
Do you know why the other driver and the other passenger's attorney is requesting for the release of the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage?
If my adjuster/insurance company will not release the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage, do you know why they still send me a notice regarding this matter, I believe the notice wants me to make a choice if I want to release my information or not? Should the adjuster be making the decision for me?
Is there any regulations or rules that actually states that an adjuster or insurance company cannot release an insured's liability limits information to other parties?
In you opinion, what are the pros and cons of releasing or not releasing such information to the other party's attorney?
I am in the state of California and my limits are 30/60.
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Do you know why the other driver and the other passenger's attorney is requesting for the release of the limit of my bodily injury liability coverage?
Yep, to see what there is to work with....if you have low limits he probably wants to get it settled...
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I believe the notice wants me to make a choice if I want to release my information or not? Should the adjuster be making the decision for me?
Well with all the privacy issues now they probably would prefer to have your permission, although I think they can if they want to...likely company policy...I'd take the adjusters advise...Actually I'd give the adjuster permission to use their own judgement, and I'd back that decision.
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Is there any regulations or rules that actually states that an adjuster or insurance company cannot release an insured's liability limits information to other parties?
Usually what it is, is there is a law or rule saying they don't ''have'' to release that information...
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In you opinion, what are the pros and cons of releasing or not releasing such information to the other party's attorney?
There are different thoughts on this everyone has their own opinion, I personally see no reason to release that information....if a claim is worth 10k it's worth 10k what does me telling you I have 50k limits have to do with it? on the other hand the same thing could be said...there are ''some'' unethical people that might try and run a claim up close to the limit...also most attorneys regardless of the injury will request policy limits....again I'd go with your adjusters opinion on this one, I don't (nor have I ever) worked claims in CA....so I don't know what is common practice there....I will say that judging from your accident discription (do you know the dollar amount of damage to the other vehicle, and what kind of vehicle it was?)...you shouldn't have a limits issue, that being said, if this is also the first notice that your carrier has had regarding this injury claim that has given them nearly nine months to run up a bunch of medical bills too...
Have you called your adjuster yet? _________________ Have you been helped by a poster? Do you want to show your appreciation? YOU CAN !! Just simply click on the donate button and send them some coin!
Lori and I actually disagree on the point of releasing policy limit information. But it all depends on ones point of view. I don't mind releasing the limits for the same reason Lori mentioned she does not release the info... a $10k claim is a $10k claim despite knowing what the limits are. But knowing what the limits are helps curb excessive demands. If a person has $50k limits and the attorney does not know this, the demand is going to start at $100k (no, it does not matter if it's a scratch or something else... it's still going to be "excessive"). If the limits are $50k then the demand is going to be for more then those limits but the attorney is going to be "willing" to settle for the policy limits. At least we are now down to the policy limits. If the limits are $1,000,000 the demand is still simply going to be excessive for the injuries. It might not be $1,000,000 but it's still going to be way to high anyway. So I don't see how knowing the limits is going to make any difference. Lori mentions that it might be good to know the limits if they are low so even she is leaning toward disclosure.
As mentioned, speak to your adjuster about this issue.
The claim is probably still pending as the injured party's attorney has probably asked for something outrageous and your adjusters is not willing to pay the inflated claim. If you don't know the status, feel free to ask them about that as well. But when you hear the adjuster tell you about all the claims the plaintif is making, don't take offense to it... it's just part of the negotiation process.
I did try to call the adjuste today, but the adjuster is out of town and will not be back probably until after next week.
The dollar amount of damage to my own car was $2200, I am not sure about the dollar amount of damage to the other vehicle, but in your experience, if the damage of my car was $2200, will the other car have similar damage amount?
I did exchange insurance information with other driver, so I think the other driver does have auto insurance, do you know why the other driver is not asking their own insurance company to settle the claim with my insurance company? Why does the other driver have to get an attorney instead of letting their own insurance carrier handle the case, does this mean the other party is uninsured?
I am really confused how a minor accident can come to this complicated situation, thank you for the replies. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Since the other driver got an attorney against me, does it also mean that their own insurance adjuster will not help them?
Can you please share with me what is going to happen now that the other party got an attorney against me, i.e. the procedures that is going to happen later on and usually for how long will my case get to be closed?
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To be a little simplistic... the allegation is that you caused the injury. As such, the other party has a right to ask _you_ to compensate them for their loss. You have insurance and your agreement with your carrier is to pay them a premium and they protect your interest when you are liable for property damage or injury to another. Some states require that a person's own carrier address their own medical expense but this is usually very limited and usually does not bar them from collecting from the responsible party.
I have been told that CA does not have P.I.P coverage... so the other party goes directly to you for settlement. There is no coverage under their own policy to address their injuries.
As far as the damages... no, $2200 in damage to your car does not mean $2200 in damages to their car. Your car could be a 2008 Mercedes and their could be a 1995 Yugo. Cost of repairs would be "slightly" different. Usually the _extent_ of the damage is the same but this is only when the bumpers are made of the same material (not metal vs plastic) and they line up pretty good.
I forgot that you mentioned the accident happened in CA. Welcome to the state where everyone sues everyone for _everything_. I think if you look at someone the wrong way they can claim and injury. Injuries as a result of an accident happen all the time... especially in states like CA. That is, the court systems favor the injured party. It's just a fact. I'd not concerned yourself too much about the situation. There is a 99.99999999% chance that 1) the claim will be settled prior to suit being filed and 2) that the attorney will take at least far less then your policy limits or at _most_ your policy limits. If they don't want to accept your policy limits then the attorney gets _nothing_ up front, would need to spend a _lot_ of more money and time going to court and even if he/she obtained a judgment in excess of your limits, they'd probably never see a dime from you. Attorneys don't have time to try cases... they simply settle for a "reasonable" amount and move on to the next 50 cases.
but in your experience, if the damage of my car was $2200, will the other car have similar damage amount?
There's really no way to know that without knowing a million other facts....and damage amounts aren't really an indicator of injury unless you have a 400 dollar bumper repair...it's possible for you to have 500 bucks in damage and total the car in front of you...some (many) carriers have web sites that you can actually see parts of your claim like the PD payment, this would be the amount of damage and rental on the other vehicle...
What happens now? The attorney demands an extrodinary amount of money 1 million bucks maybe...your adjuster gets the packet rolls their eyes, and starts reading...they will quickly sift through all the garbage and get to the guts...the people were out and walking at the scene, so the injury can't be too awful bad. i'm betting on a lot of diagnositics and either PT or chiropractic care...your adjuster will then either make a counter demand or request more information, and the dance has begun...it will go back and forth until settlement is reached, which really depends a lot of the attorney and their clients willingness to be reasonable...or not...
T and I are in agreement most of the time, just not on limits disclosure, I personally dont like to give an attorney anymore information that I have to because he won't... snotty? yep... still on this issue I think you should take your adjusters advise, neither one of us work in CA so we don't know the atmosphere there around injury claims and limits disclosure, more than likely your adjuster has had claims with this attorney before...(same ones always )...we are in agreement that the chances of going to trial or excess judgement is rare... _________________ Have you been helped by a poster? Do you want to show your appreciation? YOU CAN !! Just simply click on the donate button and send them some coin!
I did exchange insurance information with other driver, so I think the other driver does have auto insurance, do you know why the other driver is not asking their own insurance company to settle the claim with my insurance company? Why does the other driver have to get an attorney instead of letting their own insurance carrier handle the case, does this mean the other party is uninsured?
Since the other driver got an attorney against me, does it also mean that their own insurance adjuster will not help them?
tcope mentioned that "Injuries as a result of an accident happen all the time... especially in states like CA. That is, the court systems favor the injured party." If the courts in CA favor the injured party, will the courts favor the other driver and their attorney and I will be put in a bad situation?
anonymousadjuster mentioned that "Although California does not have PIP, $5000 medpay limits are standard." Does this mean no matter what kind of accident it is, the insurance will only pay out $5000 medpay?
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do you know why the other driver is not asking their own insurance company to settle the claim with my insurance company?
Sure, I know, if they use their carrier, they have a claim against their policy they also have to pay the deductible and if they do not have rental they are out that money as well..using the liablity (PD) coverage they have no deductible, no claim on their policy and get a rental...
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Why does the other driver have to get an attorney instead of letting their own insurance carrier handle the case, does this mean the other party is uninsured
No it doesn't mean that, some people have the common mis-conception that they need an attorney to get more money...
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Since the other driver got an attorney against me, does it also mean that their own insurance adjuster will not help them?
kinda yeah, your own carrier will never (offically) help you with a BI claim..anyway
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...If the courts in CA favor the injured party, will the courts favor the other driver and their attorney and I will be put in a bad situation?
no he didn't mean you'd be put in a bad place...just that the courts apparently are sympathic to folks injured in auto accidents and not so sympathic to carriers
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..."Although California does not have PIP, $5000 medpay limits are standard." Does this mean no matter what kind of accident it is, the insurance will only pay out $5000 medpay?
No, it doesn't mean that...''IF'' the other party had medpay, they didn't say it was a required coverage, just that most people carry it, (must be cheap in CA, not in my state )...if they have medpay their policy can pay medical bills only up to the limit...that however doesn't stop a bodily injury claim against your policy.... _________________ Have you been helped by a poster? Do you want to show your appreciation? YOU CAN !! Just simply click on the donate button and send them some coin!
OP, the other party's policy does not address most of their injury loss (i.e. pain and suffering and possibly all of the medical expenses), no one's does. So they are looking to you to address that portion of their claim. Also, if they don't have collision coverage on their policy then their own carrier won't address that portion of the claim either.
The other party obtain an attorney because that is what you do when someone hits you... you've seen the commercials, right.
Everyone sues everyone in CA. That is, it's a very litigious state. CA laws do not favor insurance companies so plaintiff attorneys have the upper hand.
Bottom line, I think you can relax. You had insurance at the time and I'm most certain that your insurance company will be able to handle this matter for you. People file injury claims all the time when they are not really hurt (more so in CA). That might be one reason why they obtained the service of an attorney.
) from a 200 buck rear cover repair...a full 50% of these are uninsured themselves... 
snotty? yep... 
