Posted: Sat Jun 02, 2007 8:32 pm Post subject: recently in a car accident
I was in a car accident on 5/21 in which the other person was cited for failing right of way. I filed a claim with their insurance on 5/22, authorized my car to be moved from the tower to the auto body & now my car's just sitting there. The claims adjuster says she can't do anything until she speaks to the other driver, (who is dodging her calls) even though I faxed her a copy of the police report (a week later they still didn't have one.)
In the meantime I'm without transportation & have to get somebody to take me to & from work. I don't have rental insurance and can't afford a rental car. She did say I could get a rental & if they decide they're liable, they'd reimburse me but I don't trust her.
I could file a claim with my insurance but then I'd end up paying the deductible and who knows when or if I'd ever get it back.
I called on 6/1 & asked to speak to a supervisor, and was told thy would have somebody call me back. I never did get a call.
Is there something I can do, because I'm pretty sure they're seriously dragging their feet. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
First, they have every right to investigate the accident. Should it take that long, no. Their insured could be giving them the run a round, it does happen. Some people think if they don't respond that it will go away.
As for the police report, many times carriers will mail away for a copy of the report. It usually takes anywhere from 1 to 3 weeks depending on the police department.
As far as a rental, you could get one... but you are right, you could get stuck with all or some of the cost. If they deny liability or deny coverage (if their insured does not respond), you could be stuck with all of it. If they accept liability, they can claim that you had a responsibility to mitigate your loss (go through your own carrier during the delay).
As far as not getting a call back on 6/1, I would not be surprised... it is a friday and a lot of calls do not get returned on fridays.
So are they dragging their feet...maybe, but as long as they document their dealings with their insured, they have every right to do so.
You could always send a letter to their insured stating that if your damages are not addressed that you will seek legal action. Could light a fire. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
I'm sure you won't like this answer but what the other carrier is doing is correct and reasonable. Most states have some degree of comparative negligence. This means that both drivers can contribute to an accident. As such, the other carrier needs to speak to their driver in order to provide him a defense and to determine if his point of view might lead to some negligence on your part. Now I'm not saying that you were at all to blame in the accident... I'm only pointing out that it's prudent that they speak with their own insured before they accept 100% liability. I always explain it like this... would you want your carrier to just speak to the other person, take their work for what happen and pay the claim w/o speaking at all to you? Or would you rather that they at least speak to you before paying a claim under your policy? I know... you'd think the other person should have the decency to pick up the phone and speak to his own carrier. Sorry... there are a lot of scummy people in this world that don't give a rats butt about anyone else. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Something else I forgot to mention is if you file the claim under your policy, if/when the other carrier accepts liability, they can simply issue payment to you directly for your deductible amount. If it takes them a week or two to clear this up, you won't be out your deductible for very long (you won't pay your deductible until your vehicle is done being repaired). If they deny your claim for any reason, you would still need to file a claim under your policy anyway.
If the accident was local, you could also pick up a copy of the accident report and forward it to the adjuster. It may speed up the process. Depending on the state, some police reports have the parties phone numbers listed. With a copy of the accident report you could call the other party and see if you can persuade them to return the adjusters phone calls. Perhaps even a 3 way call.
To be honest, I have waited close to a year for subro packages from other carriers. It could take more then a couple weeks to get your deductible back. I would still go through your own carrier. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Subro is one thing (usually passed off from the original adjuster to another department where it sits around). It only takes the initial adjuster about 2 minutes to generate a deductible payment and most will do this without any problem. That is why I highly recommend calling the original adjuster about the deductible. No point in waiting months for your carrier to send subro demand, other carrier eventually paying it, and then your carrier eventually refunding the deductible.
