On Sep. 29, I had an auto accident. I was driving on the interstate. Traffic was starting to get heavy. There was a semi pulling a flat-bed trailer in front of me. He had to stop suddenly; I hit my brakes; the car behind me hit me and pushed me into the back of the trailer.
At the time, my neck was hurting, but I wasn’t seriously injured. I went to the doctor and he said it was a sore muscle and would take a few weeks to heal.
Yesterday, the insurance company called me (the insurance of the guy that hit me). They said my truck ('95 Chevy S-10) was totalled, but the amount they offered won’t even pay it off; its about $1200 short.
So what do I do now? Do I have any options, or do I have to take what they’re offering and cough up the extra $1200 to pay off the loan?
Ahem, a lawyer is going to take a share of it & its going to take much longer (Took a year once for us). So do you want to wait?
However, I always settle with their insurance company, its much quicker (Less than a day) & you can get the money you need. To get what money you NEED, talk to YOUR insurance company. They would be more than happy to see you get as much as you need because they want to keep insuring you…
Keep a daily record of how your neck feels. Thats worth more bucks. Be sure to ask for money for your neck thing. A couple thousand dollars might be acceptable.
Of course, if you want to wait, get a lawyer.
At the very least, consult with an attorney before proceeding. Usually, there will be a bar referral service that will charge you ~$30.00 for a half hour consultation. Get all of the accident reports and a medical report on the condition of your neck prior to the consultation. You should be driving a rental vehicle that is paid for by the insurance company of the driver who hit you. You are entitled to compensation for the inconvenience. Get all of your ducks in a row and attack this logically. Legal advice and/or representation is your best friend in this situation.
(Be sure to assemble all service records and parts purchase receipts for your vehicle in order to push up its value. Be very hard nosed with the insurance companies. They are not your friends!)
Once again, I stress- get a lawyer. Not because you want to sue, but for legal advice on how to proceed. Better to have to wait a little longer then to get screwed by the other guys insurance company.
Ignore Handy’s advice. Settling with the insurance company will be the same thing as signing off on what could be more. Because if you accept the paltry $1200, you could be needing 5,000 (or whatever)for what you went through.
Get a lawyer. Document everything between you and the insurance and doctor’s office (people you talk to and paperwork. Start a file. Never lose it.)
If the insurance company pressures you to sign something, tell them you will have your lawyer contact them. This will keep the greedy so and so’s off your back for a time. They are only out to protect their money.
I am assuming you filled out a police report.
“Ignore Handy’s advice. Settling with the insurance company will be the same thing as signing off
on what could be more.”
Oh yeah? What proof do you have of that?
Personally I think that you have the old idea of insurance companies. I know people who work for them & they often deal with this old idea. They are more than happy to listen to your claim & settle.
Don’t settle with what their insurance company offers, it is their job to screw you for as little as possible. The fact that their first offer was $1200.00 short should be your first clue. You need a new truck. You were injured. They know that and would like to get off the hook as quickly as possible.
You need to get some good advice and once the other company knows that you have even considered getting a lawyer I would bet that their offer will increase substantially.
Check what the blue book value of your truck is. If the value is, say, 7000 and the repair shop wants 8200 to fix it, they will judge it totalled and offer you 7000.
OH yeah, those insurance companies sure are helpful.
Are you kidding me? Handy, he ALREADY SAID that the amount they offered him won’t even cover the amount that his truck is worth. I, too, know people who work for insurance companies. It is their JOB to get you to settle for the lowest amount they can.
The MORNING AFTER my husband was hit on his motorcycle, a rep from the insurance company KNOCKED ON MY DOOR, literally ready to write a check for the cost of the bike (totalled) and “possible medical expenses”. We had no idea at that point WHAT he was going to need (healthwise) and had been up all night (at the hospital). This guy was actually MAD when I said I’d take his business card and have my lawyer call him. He acted like we were out to screw HIM, which was his exact intent in visiting us. He was like “I don’t think we need to get lawyers all involved in this mess”. Bullshit! A year later my husband was healed (after many surgeries- good thing we didn’t take the check) and we had settled with the insurance company for a fair amount.
They will almost ALWAYS offer to write you a check immediately after an accident if their client was at fault (ticketed). They figure you’ll think it’s easy enough to just take the money and deal with whatever comes up. Unless you KNOW FOR A FACT that you will need NO medical follow up, and the amount will cover your car repairs/replacent, DO NOT accept a check from the insurance company. It doesn’t hurt to contact an attorney and let THEM talk to the insurance company.
I’m FAR from a “sue happy” person, but you have to be smart when you deal with these sorts of issues.
My only “proof” is personal experience with insurance companies following an accident. That’s enough for me to know NOT to sign anything they give me until my lawyer has a look at it.
Thanks for the replies. I’ve called a lawyer, and I’m waiting for him to return my call. I’m just going to explain the situation to him and find out what my options are. Then I’ll go from there.
When the adjuster told me the amount they would settle for, I told her it wouldn’t pay off the loan. Her response was, “Oh. Well, you need to sign your title and bring it to us.”
I’m not out to get rich from this deal, and I’m not trying to cheat anyone. I just want to be treated fairly and get what I’m entitled to…nothing more, nothing less.
“Handy, he ALREADY SAID that the amount they offered him won’t even
cover the amount that his truck is worth.”
Exactly, but you missed where I said that he should make his own offer & present that to the insurance comp. I didn’t say anywhere to take what they offered.
Zette, we dont even know what type of car it was yet. Or what year. What would you think if it was a $40,000 car & they would give him $38,800?
Don’t settle until you know the extent of your injuries. With that sort of accident, you’re quite likely to have whiplash, which may or may not just ‘go away’ in a few weeks. You might well need physical therapy.
Soft tissue injuries can be very difficult to heal. I was in a similar type of wreck about 7 years ago, and still have back trouble today because of it.