worried about claim

by Guest » Thu Sep 24, 2009 12:56 am
Guest

ok so i need some advice. i was recentley in an accident and i was not at fault. state farm, who was the insurance of the policy holder, has agreed to pay for all the damages. they told me they were gonna send me a check for the damages. well, during this process my car was repossesed. do i still accept this check? will it be made out to my name and the name of the bank who had my loan for the car? the check will actually be enough for me to be able to get my car back from the repo. am i allowed to use the money for that and then fix the car with my own money later on? any help from you guys would be great. if state farm makes the check out to only my name i wanna take that money and get my car back. just dont know if i can do that. Thanks everyone.
Bill

Total Comments: 5

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 02:13 am Post Subject:

More than likely the check will have the lein holder's name on it. However, sometimes it's not. If that is the case, you can do what you want with the money.

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 08:36 am Post Subject:

Hi there..

i think the insurance agent will call us...

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 10:39 am Post Subject:

billivey,

With the settlement being made by the other driver's insurance Co. most likely the Check will only have your name on it.

Also... some Adjusters are in the habit of "Low Balling" their initial settlement offer. With this in mind, I suggest you do a little Local Research on the value of your car. Just to be sure you are getting the full value owed to you.

In many states you should also collect Sales Tax, Title fees, Storage, Loss of use/Rental car, and likely a few other items.

Do your homework, be nice, be honest, and be fully made whole by the at fault insurer.

Once you and the insurer agree on a settlement amount and you have the Check... its yours and yours alone to do with as you please. But do remember... you likely will still have financial obligation in relation to this settlement. [car loan etc.]

Posted: Thu Sep 24, 2009 01:54 pm Post Subject:

From your post it sounds like this is a 3rd party claim. As such, SF would make the check payable just to you. There is a very good chance that your lien holder is going to hold you responsible for the payments on the vehicle as well as the damages. That is, they may not return the vehicle unless you pay to have it repaired. I can't say for sure but this makes sense. Right now they can hold you responsible for the damage and the entire loan. If they give the car back their collateral is greatly reduced due to the existing damage on the vehicle.

You can call SF and ask them who is going to be on the check. You can then call your LH and see what kind of deal can be worked out.

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